Dances Take on New Delight - Osram (1955)
Year: 1955
Format: Print advert
Illustrator: Paul Peter Piech (1920-1996)
Client: Osram
Details: This advert for Osram light bulbs appeared in a 1955 issue of Reader’s Digest. The artwork is by Paul Peter Piech (1920-1996).
Paul Peter Piech was born in Brooklyn, New York to Ukrainian parents. He studied at the Cooper Union College of Art and went on to work as a graphic artist at Dorlands Advertising Agency in 1937.
In 1942, he was enlisted into the US Army and sent to England during the Second World War. While on leave, Piech visited Cardiff, Wales where he met his future wife, Irene Tompkins. The two were later married in 1947. After the war, Piech pursued printmaking at Chelsea College of Art. Subsequently, he worked as a designer and illustrator in commercial advertising for a number of agencies.
In 1959, Piech established his own private press, the Taurus Press, where he produced a range of limited-edition artists' books, prints and leaflets. In the early 1970s, he left his advertising career behind to teach at several art schools across the UK, including the London College of Printing and Leicester College of Art & Design. During this time, Piech created and exhibited many politically and socially motivated printed posters that combined bold imagery with linocut lettering.
In 1986, Piech and his wife Irene moved to Porthcawl, a coastal town in South Wales. He made a significant impact on the Welsh art scene with his hard-hitting works. Many of Piech's pieces can be found in the Regional Print Centre at Cambria College in Wrexham. Over 2000 examples of his work are also held by the V&A.