Davos Suisse (Pic Vert) 1957

This vibrant 1957 travel poster by Otto Glaser celebrates the alpine resort town of Davos, one of Switzerland’s most renowned mountain destinations. Dominated by a striking woodpecker (pic vert) perched against bold vertical bands of color, the composition blends natural symbolism with modernist graphic expression, capturing both the vitality of wildlife and the exhilaration of the high Alps.

Rather than depicting a conventional landscape, Glaser constructs the scene through expressive color fields—deep purples, reds, greens, and blues—that evoke towering forest trunks and alpine depth. At the center, a glowing valley opens onto a stylized vision of Davos itself, bathed in warm yellows and oranges, suggesting sunlight, altitude, and clean mountain air. The bird, both sentinel and emblem, introduces a sense of scale and serenity, embodying harmony between nature and human settlement.

Active in mid-20th-century Swiss graphic design, Otto Glaser was known for a painterly approach that bridged tourism promotion and modern art. His posters often favored symbolic imagery and bold color harmonies over literal description, aligning Swiss travel graphics of the 1950s with broader currents of European modernism.

Produced during a period when Switzerland was positioning itself as a destination for health, winter sports, and alpine tourism, this poster reflects the optimism and visual freedom of postwar design. The multilingual subtitle—Schweiz / Suisse / Svizzera / Switzerland—underscores its international ambition, addressing a global audience eager for clean landscapes, cultural refinement, and restorative environments.

Today, this work stands as both a collectible travel poster and a refined example of Swiss modern graphic art, where expressive color, simplified form, and poetic imagery transform Davos into a visual emblem of alpine vitality.

Original Poster

Tourism - Animals - Switzerland

Printed by Verlagsanstalt in Basel

Good condition