At the start of WW2, Huber moved to Milan to avoid being drafted by the Swiss army. It was here that his Zurich education came in handy as he joined Studio Boggeri - one of the most important and influential graphic design studios in the world that brought Italian and Swiss design together in a beautiful combination. When Huber left his calling card at Antonio Boggari’s studio - upon the first look it appeared to be well printed. However, on further inspection the card was delicately hand written with perfect penmanship and careful spacing. Boggari hired Huber immediately, despite him knowing virtually no Italian. Milan design was a melting pot of illustration, painting, photography, and printing.
Huber created his best work in Milan, however, when Italy entered the war in 1941, he was forced to move back to Switzerland where he began a collaboration with Werner Bischof and Emil Schultness for the influential art magazine Du. It was also here between 1942 and 1944 he spent time with the members of the Alliance Association of Modern Swiss Artists in Zurich, a group of modern Swiss artists led by Max Bill - and worked closely alongside Reid Miles. But after the war, Huber was drawn back to Milan and immigrated there permanently. Huber believed that in the aftermath of war, design had the capacity to restore human values.
"He was a splendid mix; he had irrepressible natural talent and a faultless drawing hand; he possessed the lively candour of the eternal child; he was a true product of the Swiss School; he loved innovatory research; he boasted a lively curiosity, being quick to latch on - not without irony - to the most unpredictable ideas, and he worked with the serious precision of the first-rate professional."
- Giampiero Bosoni
He never used his images in a strict sense. He often mixed unframed flat photographic and typographic elements with strips of colour to convey a certain feeling of dynamism and speed, in the same way that Reid miles conveyed Jazz so well in his album covers. He used recognizable elements in his design, without having them tell a story. His work concentrated on photographic experiments and clear type combined with the use of bold shapes and primary colors. His strict grids were easily identifiable. Huber favoured clarity, rhythm and synthesis. He used succinct texts, composed from different hierarchical groups; a large title with secondary information in a smaller type, a sequence of levels. Again, similarly to Miles, Huber’s work favours Modernism.
When looking back on Huber’s influences you see a lot of personal and professional friendships. He was inspired by other designers that he met, possibly even Reid Miles. I like to think so, as I feel such a connection between both when looking at their designs. One of the freelance jobs he executed with great enthusiasm was the design of record covers, posters and publications for jazz events. He was fond of jazz-music and linked it to his own design by bringing the rhythm into his visuals. The music was represented through the relationship between signs and colours.
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