Assignment 9: Politics of Design

While the United States was recovering from the Cold War, there was an agenda for society to rebuild conventions, and the solution for “healing” the nation was distracting people with rich consumerism. The designs of industrial products were a celebration of wealth, abundance and pleasure. The media depicted the ideal nuclear family lifestyle.

 When we look at the messages we receive in the media today, what is expressed? How does media and design reflect society’s contemporary values, or agendas?

 When one looks at the medium of advertising, three main “selling tools” are used: sex, humour and inspiration. Advertisers play on our desire for pleasure and enjoyment. To an extent sensuality has been used in media and design since the dawn of time, but not in such a blatantly sexual manner as today. When asked about media today, someone did not miss a beat when replying “sex”. And with a plethora of advertisement for organisations such as Tui’s, Burger King’s and even Rubik’s Cube Tournaments, it is undoubtable why sex may be considered one of the strongest cultural influences of society today. A part of this reason is because we live in a post-sexual revolution age.

 In terms of design, we can see products such as cars, television sets, and even font becoming more streamline, environmentally friendly and compact. The Warehouse changed their block letter logo to a slicker design. Also due to communication technology and the internet opening up the world, we can see influences in design between cultures, such as the influence of anime on a lot of western children, and the influence of western designs in eastern architecture.

 So today’s design and media has a generally slicker style, partially due to computer animation technology, but also to reflect the more increasingly humanised products. Products are now increasingly intuitive and user friendly, and pleasurable to use.

Resource: (2009). Truck Advert. Retrieved at 29/09/2011 from http://www.tui.co.nz/default.asp?s1=Cool%20Shit&s2=WallPaper

Assignment 8: Modernism

Design is both function and aesthetics. While it has been influenced by art to a degree, the most basic form of design has function in mind. Yet aesthetics is important because it allows design to be communicable, enjoyable and easier to understand and use.

 The aesthetics of design respond to society’s social, political and economic state, and the design’s functionalities are driven by society’s environmental and economic needs and scientific resources.

 Both art and science are aspects of design; they are linked, not divided. The art of design and the science of design are often influenced by the same factors.

 And while Hannes Meyers argued that design is a result of creating purely from functional and economical aspects, one must consider that even the Bauhaus’ design had an aesthetic that to this day holds it’s legacy. Namely, the rounded font of Bauhaus is definitely an aesthetic statement on functionality. In design function and aesthetics are intrinsically linked, with both being influenced by society and technology. For example, in the 1980s computer technology helped create the pixilated aesthetic, while in 15^th century Italy society’s evolving ideals and influences of antiquity caused a Renaissance, refining both art and architecture.

 Today’s design is so wide ranging and democratic, that one cannot define our time with one set of design such as “Bauhaus”, but the common link in recent industrial designs of the past 20 years is the influence of Bauhaus. We can see the economical and aesthetically pleasing use of the rounded edges in technology, as design that endeavors to be environmentally economical. For example, the evolution of car design has seen cars become more and more streamline, and with the relatively recent release of the SmartCar, car design has reached a stage of such compact and minimalistic forms, that we can see an aspect of where design is heading. And whether design will become continually more minimalistic, or we may see a return of “decoration”, design will always be influenced by both art and science, because like humanity, design encompasses both.

Resources: DaimlerChrysler (1998 - 2006) Smart Fortwo Coupe Pure. Retrieved 22/09/2011 from http://auto.howstuffworks.com/smart-car.htm

Assignment 7: The Symbolic Universe

Symbolic universes have helped communicate visions for an ideal future, and for defining progress. One of the key issues of our time is how to preserve our resources for the future, and the Taipei International Flora Expo is a great celebration of the how we can harmonise design with the environment. There is a focus on plant life, to emphasise the importance and the value of preserving nature.

 A quintessential example of an ideal vision of the future is the Pavilion of the Future, a construction that displays a surprising design of future domestic architecture. Instead of the past designs of home appliances synthesised with shiny, streamlined chrome, the Pavilion of the Future is predominantly nature-based, with a kitchen that contrasts with today’s typical “modern” design. The aesthetic is still slick, but not robotic. The sign made of hundreds of little lights proclaiming “FUTURE” is an acknowledgement of this outdated concept of future design. It allows the expo inside to become even more of a surprise by preceding it with a “futuristic” sign. In this pavilion there is a presence of floral life that is utilised within this future kitchen, integrating technology with nature, showing the ideal ways people could interact with the environment. It is done in such an innovative way, that visitors of the expo can be inspired to change kitchens and home settings to reflect these visions, whether it’s through gradual perceptive change, or actual renovation.

 The implications of media and design in influencing society’s universe are very strong, almost omnipresent. The internet has democratised media in such a revolutionary way, so that visions of the future in the media are widely and directly communicated.

Resources: Taipei International Flora Expo (2010): Pavilion of the Future. Retrieved 15/09/2011 from http://www.2010taipeiexpo.tw/public/data/11111119653.jpg

Assignment 6: Modern Vision

Unauthentic.

Authentic.

Walter Benjamin, a philosopher of the early 20^th Century, wrote in 1935 essay The Work of Art in the Age of Reproduction “to ask for the ‘authentic’ print makes no sense”, essentially because modern technology such as photography and film revolutionised the way images were seen. A major part of this was the power of distribution had become much more accessible.

 Although Benjamin suggests that the authenticity of art has been usurped by mass production, I believe that the authentic still exists even in this age of digital design and manufacturing. Rapid sharing of images has also resulted in design being freely edited. In photography the authentic print is the version that the artist intended the negative film to produce. In digital media the versions of design that has not been edited by others, or “remixed”, can be considered authentic.

 Yet this authenticity may be so accessible that design becomes free, unexclusive. The internet allows us to directly access the design portfolios of contemporary designers. While this may mean design can be given less exclusivity and aura of canonisation, the possibility of global connection due to this age of digital media means that there can be a wider appreciation of not just manufactured designs, and the concept of aura can be questioned on an individuated basis, as each person has their own subjective experience of the design, instead of design being canonised by word-of-mouth with few people actually experiencing it for themselves, which gives a sense of mystery and aura.

 So, the idea of authenticity becoming redundant in digital media is questionable, as originality still exists as seen in the contrast between these digital images above – the one on the left being authentic, the other edited. And while aura can be figuratively watered down through mass production, and digital media design itself may not always emanate reverence, that does not mean that the digital realm and mass manufacturing cannot communicate and enhance aura. Even with millions of books with images of famous paintings being printed, and billions of images of great artworks floating in cyberspace, to stand in front of the actual Mona Lisa would be a completely different experience, and with digital media such an experience may be more greatly anticipated. The wide distribution gives the Mona Lisa a sense of omnipresence, giving the experience of standing before the original, the origin of all the reproductions, a great sense of aura.

Resources:

Gustafson M., Eric (2006): Ft. Myers. Retrieved 08/09/2011 from http://antilimit.com/nature/27