Ludwig Hohlwein was born in Wiesbaden on July 27, 1874. He is regarded as one of the great inventors of the artistic advertising poster in Germany. With his constantly new ideas, he became the modernizer of the newly discovered "art of advertising". Hohlwein created numerous style icons and brands for renowned companies, with which he revolutionized advertising graphics and packaging design and which still make him internationally famous today. He went to Munich for his studies and settled there after graduating. He remained connected to his hometown of Wiesbaden throughout his life through commissions.

Established in old age, honored, bourgeois and politically adapted, he became a companion of the Nazi greats. Even before the Nazis seized power, the designer was committed to the Nazi ideology and provided the regime with impressive and powerful visual designs. In the 1930s, the ingenious artist became a designer of sometimes fatal pictorial creations. His former innovative power visibly disintegrated. His motifs and pictorial means became more and more adapted. The courageous artist had become a calculating businessman and political opportunist.

For the first time, the Stadtmuseum Wiesbaden shed light on the development and significance of Ludwig Hohlwein's packaging design, with which he wrote brand and advertising history.

With numerous exhibits from the private collection of Hans-Georg Böcher (Bad Schwalbach) and the Wiesbaden City Museum Foundation collection, the exhibition commemorated a man who has probably remained one of the most prominent sons of this city to this day - an artistic personality of the 20th century who united many contradictions, but who can in any case be seen as an important pioneer of modern marketing.

A brochure has been produced to accompany the exhibition.