OBJECTS Geometry Alfred Roller (1864–1932) XIV. Ausstellung Secession, 1902 Colour lithograph on paper; 95 x 62 cm Posters for the 12th–16th Secession exhibitions (1901–1902) are clearly the most original achievements among the art group’s contributions to the development of graphic design in terms of geometric abstraction. They all share a narrow, vertical format, evidently inspired by Japanese stencil prints, and experimentations with typefaces. The poster advertising the 14th Secession exhibition (devoted to Ludwig van Beethoven), a true piece of Gesamtkunstwerk, was basically designed by Roller as a cut-out from his painting Die sinkende Nacht (The Falling Night), created using his own stencils. The bending female figure (Genius) with wings and a mane of hair, which – like her dress – is composed of a repeating geometric pattern, is perhaps the most extreme stylisation of the human figure in the visual arts of the period.