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Week 4 - 50s American Kitsch

50's American Kitsch

American kitsch was a trend of the 50s. Kitsch basically means decorative crap. Kitsch is a German word used to refer to art that is considered inferior or tasteless. 50s Kitsch design featured dynamic curves and lines. Typography was much looser with free flowing, hand drawn type used in posters and other forms of graphic design.

Although quite different to Bauhaus, kitsch gained some influence from the simple geometric shapes used a lot in early Bauhaus design. The kidney shape was very popular in kitsch and was used in many of its designs. Sexy shapes and pastel colours were typical of 50s design. Smegg fridges are a good example of design from this time. Air travel and the atomic bomb were the big things to talk about in the time. Many kitsch designs had a strong aerodynamic feel to them, including cars, jukeboxes and domestics household items such as telephones.

The Atomic bomb was featured largely in posters and advertisements and was used to sell everything. There was a romantic notion about the atomic bomb. Advertisements and movie posters that show People with exaggerated expressions and dramatic poses are typical of 50s American Kitsch. Graphic designers from this time took some influence from Victorian design with the reappearance of borders and text banners in posters.

Punch Magazine

Punch Magazine

Cartoons from the punch.co.uk cartoon library

Cover of Punch Magazine from 26 April 1916

Week 4 - Marshall Mcluhan

Marshall Mcluhan

Marshall McLuhan was an educator, philosopher, literary critic, rhetorician, communication theorist and professor of English literature. Mcluhan received a M.A in English literature from the University of Manitoba in 1934. During his life, he excelled in communication. During his life, Mcluhan wrote books that explored and looked into the way that communication influences society. He was an expert on media culture. Mcluhan believed that how a message is interpreted is strongly effected by what method of communication is used. Mcluhan said that media are an extension of our senses and that each different medium has an effect on our senses.

The Medium is the Massage is a book by Mcluhan, written in 1967. In this book, Mcluhan reinforces his suggestions about media and the human sensorium. Understanding Media is a book by Mcluhan, written in 1964. In Understanding Media, Mcluhan states that a medium and how he message is delivered has more effect that the actual message. Each medium has unique characteristics that will draw in viewers in different ways. He controversially suggested that actual content had little effect on society As an example from the book, he said that it doesn’t matter if a tv station shows children’s shows or violent programs, the effect of television on society would be the same.

Understanding Media by Mcluhan in 1964

Week 3 - Modernism

Modernism

When speaking about design, modernism is the period following the Industrial Revolution and Contemporary is the current period.

Feudalism was the dominant social system in medieval Europe. This system had only two classes, nobility and peasants. The nobility were wealthy and the peasants were poor. In this social system, there was no gaining of wealth or moving from one class to another. The rich stayed rich and the poor stayed poor. This was changed with the scientific revolution, which introduced a middle class between nobility and peasants. The Industrial Revolution was a direct result of the scientific revolution. During the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions, the lower classes were put to work in factories for long hours each day. These factories often had limited or no rules regarding the safety and wellbeing of its workers. This limitation of rules lead to a reaction by people such as William Morris, who was closely connected to the Arts and Crafts Movement.

Modernism in design followed the Arts and Crafts period. Bauhaus was a very well known school of design and is a good example of modern design. It was open between 1919 and 1933. Constructivism was a Russian design movement that was happening at the same time as Bauhaus. Constructivism began in 1919 and lasted until the 1930s. During that period, everything in design was happening in Germany and Russia.

Constructivism utilized ideas from Bauhaus. Asymmetrical balance, diagonal shapes and lines and the use of red, yellow and black are all visual characteristics of Constructivist design. Constructivism was about politics and propaganda. Alexander Rodchenko was a well-known constructivist. Constructivists absorbed Cubism and Futurism to create a new movement, which unified communist ideology with visual form.The Bauhaus was very much about rules for design. They had a ‘less is more’ approach and liked to reduce designs down to their simplest forms. One Bauhaus rule was to use asymmetrical balance instead of symmetrical balance. Piet Mondrian was a painter who strongly represented modernism through his paintings. Mondrian was very well known for his composition paintings which included only simple shapes and lines, primary colours and a large use of negative or white space. Mondrian definitely used a less is more approach in these paintings. Mondrian was closely associated with the Dutch De Stijl movement. The famous Red and Blue Chair, created by De Stijl designer Gerrit Rietveld is iconic of Bauhuas design

Some visual characteristics of modernist design are

• Reds, yellows and blacks used in posters
• Dramatic colours
• Simplicity and lack of ornamentation
• San serif type
• Bold rules
• Diagonal shapes and lines
• Asymmetrical balance

There were many different design and art movements that were linked to modernism. All of these movements were about experimenting. They were developed as a result of dissatisfaction of the past and they were all linked to a need for radical change in society.

Through modernism, more thought was being put into graphic design, where lines, shapes and colours were placed on a page to serve a specific function or purpose. Elements and colours would lead the viewer around the page and make them feel a certain way. Modernism was pulling away from the overcrowded chaotic style of Victorian Graphic Design.

John Heartfield

John Heartfield

John Heartfield was a German designer, painter and journalist. Heartfield pioneered the photomontage technique and is one of the most well known users of photomontage in design.

Heartfield’s work was largely a reaction against The Nazis and World War II. His work included images of Adolf Hitler and Nazi symbols in a satirical and undermining way. His photomontages were often in the form of book covers and posters, which where designed as a response and protest against the Second World War.

Hurrah, die Butter ist Alle! Is one of Heartfields well known pieces. It was made in 1935 and translates in English as Hurray, the butter is gone! The photomontage shows a family sitting at a dining table, who are trying to eat pieces of metal such as chains and rifles. The montage includes a large portrait of Hitler hanging on the wall and swastika wallpaper. Visually, Heartfield has designed this photmontage in a similar way to propaganda posters. This work was designed as a satirical response to a military speech by Herman Goering during a food shortage. The montage included a quote from goering “Iron has always made a nation strong, butter and lard have only made the people fat" Through the use of a photomontage technique, Heartfield has created some very strong and clear imagery, that has been used to visually communicate his message.

More of Heartfields Work

Week 2 - Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau

The Arts and Crafts Movement

The arts and crafts movement started in the 1950s and finished in the early 1900s. The Arts and Crafts Movement was a reaction against the poor quality products being made as a result of the industrial revolution. It was a socialist reform group that embraced all different types of art and design and its designers. The arts and crafts movement was for all the designers and craftsmen who were being ignored because of the industrial revolution. The industrial revolution was largely about producing cheap mass produced products. Designers and craftsmen were not a part of the mass production process as it was largely driven with the motive of making money. Money was saved by not taking as much consideration into what a product looked like, or how well made it was. The Arts and Crafts movement had a form follows function approach while mass production had more of a function follows function approach.

William Morris is one of the main designers associated with the movement. Through the Arts and Crafts Movement, William Morris wanted to rediscover traditional standards and fight ugliness in all its forms. Through this movement, Morris helped to establish the ethics of modern design. Frank Lloyd Wright is another well-known designer who was strongly influenced by the Arts and Crafts Movement.

William Morris created book covers, manuscripts and other forms of graphic design. His designs featured, natural colours, detailed and organic patterns and ornamental text. Goudy is an Arts and Crafts inspired font that is still commonly used today.

Visually, designs from the arts and crafts movement had a very natural feel to them. The style focused on proportion and simplicity of form. Morris loved patterns and textures inspired by natural forms and nature. Natural and earthy colours were most commonly used. The arts and crafts movement also has a sense of simplicity and unity. The movement was a reaction against the cluttered, careless designs of the Victorian period. William Morris created book covers, manuscripts and other forms of graphic design. His designs featured, natural colours, detailed and organic patterns and ornamental text. Goudy is an Arts and Crafts inspired font that is still commonly used today.

Art Nouveau

Art Nouveau is a design movement that is a direct descendent of the Arts and Crafts Movement. Many previous movements such Arts and Crafts were only popular in the country they originated from, and were not widespread. Art Nouveau was the first style to become widely popular on an international level. Often when people think of Art Nouveau they think of Paris. This connection with Paris has given Art Nouveau an association with glamour.

One of the goals of Art Nouveau was to enhance the beauty of industrial products. Like the Arts and Crafts Movement, Art Nouveau was also a reaction against the values of the Victorian period. Art Nouveau was not just about how a design looked. Each part of a design was included not only to look good but also to serve a specific function. Unlike Victorian design, Art Nouveau lacked unnecessary embellishments and decorations

Similar to Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau also had an organic feel to it. Some of the visual characteristics are

• Organic Shapes
• Energy
• Decorative
• Illustrated motifs integrated into interior design

The Art Nouveau style is more refined that the Arts and Crafts but is still decorative. Art nouveau also takes influence from Asian art and woodblock printing.

The style was also applied to graphic design in the form of posters. A distinct visual characteristic of art nouveau posters is flat simple drawings. This characteristic is largely influenced from Asian art. Some other characteristics are

• Organic forms
• Hand drawn type
• Heavy type
• Organic shaped type
• Strong lighting
• Dynamic diagonal shapes and lines

Unlike Victorian graphic design, these posters used design elements and principles such as line, shape and balance to create particular effects and lead the viewer around the poster. The posters were often for dance halls or other night entertainment and commonly portrayed self assured and happy people.

As Art Nouveau posters continued to be developed, the designs became simpler, more focused on shapes and more abstract. The 1960s design movement, Physadelic Art was influenced by Art Nouveau.