De Stijl Graphics vs ISOTYPE Pictography

ISOTYPE Pictography was influenced by De Stijl Graphics.

Cover of the journal De Stijl, vol. 4 no. 8 (1921)

De Stijl Graphics

The radically reductive Dutch graphic language of De Stijl — strict horizontals and verticals, primary colors with black and white, and geometric letterforms built only from rectangles and the right angle.

  • Strictly horizontal and vertical lines — no diagonals or curves
  • Primary colors plus black, white, and grey only
  • Letterforms constructed from rectangular elements
  • Asymmetric balance within an orthogonal grid
  • Flat rectangular fields of color as composition
Full De Stijl Graphics guide →
Original specimen in the ISOTYPE Pictography style

ISOTYPE Pictography

A system of pictorial statistics that conveys quantities by repeating simplified, standardized pictograms rather than scaling them. Clear, language-independent infographics built from a disciplined visual vocabulary.

  • Quantity shown by repeating, not scaling, icons
  • Standardized flat geometric silhouette pictograms
  • Each symbol equals a fixed unit value
  • Grid-based, comparable rows of icons
  • Restrained, coded flat color
Full ISOTYPE Pictography guide →

At a glance

De Stijl GraphicsISOTYPE Pictography
Era1917–19311920s–1940s
DisciplineGraphic DesignGraphic Design
RegionNetherlandsAustria, United Kingdom
FamilyAvant-Garde, ModernismSystems/Wayfinding
Formal traitsorthogonal, geometric, primary-color, asymmetricpictographic, flat-silhouette, grid-based, systematic

More comparisons

Advertisement