Does Design = Art?

According to Kees Dorst’s article “But, is it art?” “An artist determines his or her own goals” whereas a graphic designer’s goals are “partly determined by others.” This statement is very true in a sense. However, I do agree with her last two sentences which says, “a designer who develops his own goals […] is something of an artist, as far as I’m concerned. The medium may be a little odd, but still.” Designers use every project as way of developing who they are as a designer. Every designer wants to “reach his ideal” which is why different projects contribute to their personal development. As a designer working on my thesis right now, I can completely see how design can be art. A design thesis is conceptual and designed upon something personal the individual wants to explore. There are no clients involved; therefore thesis work is a great example of how a project can contribute to ones personal development. On the other hand, I partly agree with Rick Poynor in his article “Art’s Little Brother” where he says that design is meant to be functional and serve a purpose whereas artists are free to do what they want “in pursuit of their self-chosen goals.” When working for a client, a designer ultimately has to do what the client wants. However, to argue Dorst’s point again, there is always a personal relationship between a designer and any given project.

Poynor also brings up the argument that, “There are more passionate, less detached designers just as there are highly cerebral artists.” He goes on to say that many artists (like designers) use other means to create their art; whether it is photography, computers, video, or any other means. The key difference however is that design again is meant to be practical and functional. So there is this split between function and vision. Also, according to M/M in “Royal College of Art discussion with David Blamey” designers are very much engaged with society, whereas artists can use their work to detach from society. “Art isn’t supposed to be practical or even sensible.” This statement, as sad as it may sound, is true. Artists can create whatever they please and call it “contemporary art” but designers have to stay true to their function, which is creating something that is practical and ironically has a function.

Speculative Prehistory of Humanity

In Fuller’s article he discuses the advance and efficiency of technology in industrial design. He also makes a point to let society know that we are wasteful of our energy (which most of us already know) he states, “we have on average of two million automobiles standing in front of red spotlights with their engines going, the energy for which amounts to that generated by the full efforts of 200 million horses being completed wasted as they jump up and down going nowhere.” Besides humans being wasteful of energy, Fuller states, “"The architectural profession-civil, naval, aeronautical, and astronautical-has always been the place where the most competent thinking is conducted regarding livingry, as opposed to weaponry." He is referring to livingry as human-life advantaging and environment-controlling. Humans should be using their resources (naval, aeronautical, etc.) to enhance living on Earth. Humans should be using such ideas as spherical buildings which are environment-controlling buildings, instead of using tall vertical buildings which have the maximum possible energy losing capability. Fuller states that war is obsolete, meaning that we should no longer be using the military’s and NASA’s competent thinking individuals to create weapons, instead we should be collaborating on how to use what we know about energy to improve human life, which will give humanity the option of becoming “enduringly successful.” We have the knowledge and technology to shift design in a more useful direction, we just need society to take part in it.

Oh, Helvetica, I love you so.

Ever since we watched Helvetica in class I have been seeing the typeface everywhere! It’s used in television advertisements, billboards, and magazine layouts. It really is everywhere. Everywhere except in Adobe CS4 (on my computer that is) I was actually stunned to find that the typeface wasn’t standard on the CS4 applications. I am definitely a Helvetica fan. It is a strong and sleek typeface that is so versatile. It is a simple yet bold typeface. I personally use it in a lot of my work because the space in between the actual letter forms seems so concrete and confident. Yes, Helvetica maybe be overused, but when used properly it dominates other typefaces. I don’t associate the typeface with any brand or company in particular. Some people do, which is why they may hate the typeface. I found a couple of blogs online with strong arguments for and against the typeface, whoever reads this blog should check them out. They are quite amusing.

http://www.lovehelvetica.com/

http://www.nikibrown.com/designoblog/2009/01/23/do-you-hate-helvetica/

Byker Wall

The Byker Wall video was hard to take seriously due to Beatrix’s heavy accent. Epic music played in the background as the camera angled up towards Byker Wall. The video montages were almost humorous. All joking aside, the Byker Wall did not look too interesting to me. Maybe it was the specific footage in the movie, or maybe it really isn’t good design. I was expecting something more grand, (maybe because of the music!) than what I saw in the video. The Byker Wall is an interesting concept so that people can view something better than tall high rises, but the design was just not up to par with the concept. The clip from the destruction of the Pruitt Igoe helped me realize how easily a “modern style” apartment complex could fail; especially in the location it was built. Again, I think the concept of these modern apartment complexes is refreshing in regards to architecture now, but they concept and design need to be coherent.

BRAND ON THE RUN

This article brings up a couple interesting points. The first statement that stood out to me is how issues that deal with big brands are kept out of the mainstream media. This is because the mainstream media is “run by big corporations with a vested interest in the status quo.” The three short stories in the beginning of the article caught my attention. Bernard Kemp is right, the design and brand doesn’t mean anything if it’s made in the same place as lesser known brands, or cheaply designed commodities. I personally feel that we are all playing a big game of monopoly and the big corporations are monopolizing the industries. They are devouring small businesses who work so much harder to deliver a better product. The Adbusters organization uses parodies and protest to try to defeat the almighty “BIG CORPORATION.” I think their ads are genius. Taking ads from Calvin Klein, Camel, and Absolut and twisting them to spite the brand is a smart idea because they are taking the most recognizable ads which help catch the attention of the everyday consumer. Also, I admire the “pranksters” that the article mentions. Their “media terrorism” activism is an interesting way to spite big corporations. I am talking of course about the Barbie Liberation Front who attacked the big corporation Mattel by buying up Barbie and GI Joe dolls, swapping their voice boxes, then returning them to he stores. I think it is a great idea to make life difficult for big brands in small ways.