Josef Muller-Brockman's impassioned and sudden appearance on the stage of constructive graphic design in the early 50s, at the age of almost 40, gives pause. What biographical developments proceded this energetic statement? What context created the conditions for an abrupt change from a subjective and illustrative view of design to one that was objective and constructive? The answer takes us back to the 30s, to the formative days when MB, the designer, and Swiss Graphic Design were still separate paths.