26 © 2021 Massachusetts Institute of Technology DesignIssues: Volume 37, Number 1 Winter 2021 Speaking Italian with a Swiss-German Accent: Walter Ballmer and Swiss Graphic Design in Milan Chiara Barbieri, Davide Fornari Arms folded resolutely over his chest, Walter Ballmer (b. Liestal 1923, d. Milan 2011) stares sternly at the camera (see Figure 1). He has one blunt slogan to communicate: “Trust in Nava, take Walter Ballmer’s word: If producing a well-made organizer was an easy task, I would not have turned to him.” But why did Milanese printer NAVA pick the Swiss graphic designer as the face of its 1980 collection of diaries by leading designers, including Max Huber, Heinz Waibl, Bob Noorda, Massimo Vignelli, and Ballmer himself? Why should NAVA’s customers take Ballmer’s word? Would they even know who he was or what he stood for? https://doi.org/10.1162/desi_a_00622 Figure 1 NAVA brochure advertising the collection of organizers (ca. 1980), 21×29.7 cm. Logo designed by Walter Ballmer in 1975. Source: Walter Ballmer Archive, Milan. Courtesy Walter Ballmer Archive. Downloaded from http://direct.mit.edu/desi/article-pdf/37/1/26/1893991/desi_a_00622.pdf by guest on 15 July 2021