Willy Fleckhaus was one of the most innovative and influential designers of the postwar era. His graphic work unites the imaginative American editorial design style with the stringently austere Swiss school approach. Willy Fleckhaus started out in journalism. In 1948 Fleckhaus was editor of "Fährmann" magazine published by Christophorus Verlag in Freiburg and in 1950 he became editor of the trade union magazine "Aufwärts", published by Bund Verlag. Since he came to be much more interested in the design side of publishing than in writing, Willy Fleckhaus was only consistent in becoming design director of the youth magazine in 1953. In 1959 Willy Fleckhaus designed "Welt der Arbeit" magazine for Bund Verlag. That same year, however, Willy Fleckhaus became self-employed as a graphic designer. He advised the Cologne publishers DuMont-Schauberg and designed the book covers of several pocketbook editions for both Suhrkamp Verlag and Insel Verlag. From 1956 until 1976 Willy Fleckhaus worked as a graphic artist for Photokina, designing the Photokina catalogues and exhibitions. In addition, Willy Fleckhaus designed the magazine section of the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" and designed the logos of "Quick" magazine and Westdeutscher Rundfunk as well as the children's charity campaign "Ein Herz für Kinder". Willy Fleckhaus is best known as the designer of the lifestyle magazine "Twen", which Willy Fleckhaus co-founded with Adolf Theobald and Stephan Wolf in 1956, with Fleckhaus as art director. In 1974 Willy Fleckhaus became a professor at the Folkwangschule in Essen. Willy Fleckhaus taught typography in the communications design department of Bergische Universität Wuppertal from 1980 until 1983.