Retrospectives by alumni of the Information Department at the HfG Ulm

The first generation of five students joined the Information Department in 1954 and 1955. Four of them completed their studies with an HfG diploma. Fortunately, these four have agreed to write a personal retrospective. They bear witness to the most stable phase of the department under the direction of Max Bense.

 

The second generation began their studies in 1958. At that time, the existence of the department was repeatedly questioned due to low student numbers, the lack of a fully committed director, and the emergence of the new film department. The department's fragile state was reflected in a significantly higher rate of students dropping out. Even today, when this generation looks back, a greater sense of insecurity and critical distance towards the HfG is noticeable.

 

The third and last generation consisted of only three students. Among them is Hanna Laura Klar (then "Hannelore" Waller), who completed her studies in the film department. The last information student was Peter Michels. He initially left Ulm to study journalism in Berlin. After the closure of the Ulm School, he returned to the Institute for Environmental Design [Institut für Umweltgestaltung] to take his diploma examination. Michels worked as a critical and informative journalist throughout his life. He is therefore a perfect match for what the founders originally had in mind for the Ulm School in the late 1940s.