Output details

From hieroglyphics to isotype: A visual autobiography (Otto Neurath)

The first publication in full of the final text written by Otto Neurath, who is coming to be considered a major thinker of the twentieth century. It has been carefully edited from the original manuscripts, and the research involved comparison of various drafts in order to access Neurath’s authentic voice. Picture research was also an important aspect of the work in recovering the numerous illustrations intended by Neurath to accompany his text, and in supplementing his text with an extensive appendix of examples from the rich variety of graphic material that he collected. The introduction takes a fresh angle on Neurath’s life and work by examining his Jewish heritage and how it relates to the common notion that Central-European Jewish culture c.1900 was primarily verbal, not visual. In this respect Neurath, who straddles both cultures, presents a complex case.