Charles Hasler Collection

CH

c.1800-[c.1992?]

Charles Hasler worked as a freelance designer producing posters for the British Transport Commission from the 1940s to the 1960s, during which time he was also a consultant for the printing company Waterlow & Sons Ltd for whom he designed their house-style. Between 1942 and 1951, Hasler was an exhibition designer for the Ministry of Information and the Central Office of Information. He worked on displays such as ‘Dig For Victory’, ‘Make Do and Mend’ and ‘Nation and the Child’. After the war, he became a senior designer and chairman of the Typographic Panel for the Festival of Britain in 1951. Hasler also designed covers, layouts and occasionally contributed articles for publications such as The Penrose Annual, Architectural Review, and The Complete Imbiber (vols 4 - 12, 1961-1971) for Vista Books, and various companies' trade literature as well as many smaller commissions for company logos. He wrote and published articles about typography and printing technique (both contemporary and historical, particularly Victorian colour printing) and in 1979 his 'The Royal Arms: its graphic and decorative development', a comprehensive work on the development of the styles and decoration of crests in Britain, was published by Jupiter Books.

The archive, research material and ephemera collection of Charles Hasler, graphic designer.

125 boxes; 5 books; 1 slide album

fonds

Design, Festival of Britain, Great Exhibition

Acquired from the Museum of Domestic Design and Architecture in 2024.

The Charles Hasler Collection was donated by the Museum of Domestic Design and Architecture (MoDA) to the University of Reading Special Collections in 2024. The majority of the catalogue records and hierarchy for the archive material was produced by the MoDA team. A small amount of uncatalogued material was catalogued by UoR Project Archivist, Jackie Bishop. Where this is the case, it is noted in the System of arrangement field. The MoDA box numbers have been retained in the Numbers field. CH 5/2, 5/4 and 5/6 are library books, periodicals and music scores and will be listed and made available under the library catalogue. Charles Hasler Collection archive hierarchy: CH/1 Material relating to Exhibitions for which Charles Hasler was involved as a designer CH/1/1 Material relating to Festival Britain CH/1/2 Material relating to Ministry of Information exhibitions CH/1/3 Material relating to the Background to Design Exhibition CH/1/4 Material relating to Public House of Tomorrow Competition CH/2 Graphic Design by Charles Hasler for Various Clients CH/2/1 not used CH/2/2 Contact books and covers CH/2/3 Items designed for the British Transport Commission CH/2/4 Menus and wine lists plus book making article CH/2/5 Vista books library of World Culture and century of total war dust jackets designed by CH plus unbound proof of the arts of Great Britain CH/2/6 Waterlow and Sons Ltd materials CH/2/7 Bookmark Commission CH/2/8 Brian Scott-McCarthy Esq correspondence and designs CH/2/9 Miscellaneous correspondence and designs CH/2/10 Selection of material designed by Hasler for various organisations. CH/2/11 The Wolf society booklet CH/2/12 Material related to the design of ‘Compleat Imbiber’ magazine CH/2/13 Rayon & Deign Magazines CH/2/14 Penrose Annual CH/2/15 Portfolio of Charles Hasler’s work for various clients CH/2/16 Modern Jewellery publication CH/2/17 Cards and Invitations designed by Charles Hasler CH/2/18 Stationary designs and layouts by Charles Hasler CH/2/19 Non-Transport Posters and Poster Designs by Charles Hasler CH/2/20 Transport Posters Designed by Charles Hasler CH/2/21 Original artwork [possibly by Charles Hasler?] CH/3 Books written by Charles Hasler CH/3/1 Articles proofs, ‘Catalogues of the Great Exhibition of 1851’ CH/3/2 Mid-nineteenth century Colour Printing, The Penrose Annual CH/3/3 ‘Arms, Stamps and Money’, The Architectural Review CH/3/4 ‘Printing for Royal Occasions’ CH/3/5 A Show of Hands in Typographica CH/3/6 ‘Strong, Sparkling, Modern’ SIA Journal CH/3/7 ‘Industrialised Building is not New’ (the Crystal Palace), Bison Survey CH/3/8 ‘Britain’s Royal Arms’, in Typographica CH/3/9 ‘The Songs They sang’, The Compleat Imbiber CH/3/10 ‘Advertising’s artfoul aids to an apertif’, The Compleat Imbiber CH/3/11 ‘The Emergence of the Printer’s Stock Block’, Typographica [not found] CH/3/12 ‘Great Artists for Great Wines’, The Compleat Imbiber [not found] CH/3/13 The Royal Arms Publication CH/3/14 Typewritten notes by Charles Hasler (various lectures and unpublished articles) CH/3/15 'More then mere words' book proofs and research CH/4 Personal Archives CH/4/1 Typography and art by Charles Hasler and possible panels for Art Exhibition layout CH/4/2 Charles Hasler certificates CH/4/3 Greetings cards CH/4/4 Charles Hasler correspondence personal CH/4/5 Charles Hasler correspondence regarding Tonic to the Nation Book and Festival of Britain Exhibition at the V&A in 1976 CH/4/6 Charles Hasler Correspondence: Correspondence with Art History Student Joanna Groves on Typography relating to her thesis in 1985 Correspondence relating to the Music Covers exhibition held in Norwich and Hastings CH/4/7 Papers relating to Charles Hasler’s trip to France in the 1970’s CH/4/8 Charles Hasler’s address book CH/5 Reference Material CH/5/1 Examples of Graphic Design CH/5/1/1 Graphic Design by Edward McKnight Kauffer CH/5/1/2, 3, 4 & 5 Graphic Design by other designers CH/5/2 Charles Hasler journals and periodicals (LIBRARY) 29 boxes, 16 books unboxed. CH/5/3 Printers specimens and other reference material CH/5/4 Nineteenth century typography and printing reference material CH/5/4/1 Packaging materials CH/5/4/2 Printed ephemera CH/5/4/3 Printing & typesetting reference material CH/5/4/4 English market towns reference CH/5/4/6 Greenwich reference material CH/5/4/7 1953 coronation reference material CH/5/4/8 Printing and reproduction processes reference material CH/5/4/9 Notebook of old memoranda CH/5/4/10 Crest album CH/5/4/11 Heraldic album CH/5/4/12 Scrapbook CH/5/4/13 Printing, typography and fonts reference material CH/5/5 Charles Hasler books and publications (380 books) (LIBRARY) CH/5/6 Sheet music (LIBRARY) CH/5/7 Other Exhibitions and projects CH/5/8 Reference photographs