Wednesday, 8 December 2010

Postmodernism

firstly you must have an understanding of modernism
- initially born out of optimism, aspirational reaction to WW1
- form follows function
associated with
- experimentation
- innovation
- individualism
- progress
- purity
- originality
- seriousness

in contrast the postmodern condition is characterised by
- exhaustion
- pluralism
- pessimism
- disillusionment

Modernism = expression of modern life, technology, new materials, communication - modernity
Postmodernism = reaction to modern life, technology, new materials, communication - postmodernity

equivalent of the term "late capitalism" coined by Jameson

Postmodernism has an attitude of questioning conventions, however surely this can become a convention itself?

celebrates what otherwise may be known as kitsch

AT&T building - perfect example of postmodern architecture

Postmodern ethics
- complexity
- chaos
- mix of materials and styles
- reproduction of imagery ironically

high art/low art divide
Roy Lichenstein, Andy Warhol, David Shrigley, Piero Manzini ( Artist's Shit)

"Advertising is the greatest artform of the 20thC" - Marshall McLuhan

Crisis in confidence, but also freedom, questioning old conventions, women, sexual diversity and multiculturalism

Inconclusion
- vague debatable term
- attitude of questioning conventions
- postmodern aesthetic - multiplicity of styles and approaches
- shift in thought - crisis in confidence
- space for new voices
- rejection of technological determinism?

Wednesday, 1 December 2010

New Media and Visual Culture

Characteristic of new digital media
Definition of and critical look at the mass media
Relationship between art and the mass media

Late Age of Print - coined by media theorist Marshall McLuhan
Age of Print - started around 1450, Gutenberg's printing press

Electronic book, ebook, kindle etc - is it democratic?
reader takes on role of the author?

Mass Media Definition - modern systems of communication and distribution supplied by relatively small groups of cultural producers, but directed towards large numbers of consumers

negative criticisms
- superficial, uncritical, trivial
- viewing figures measure success
- audience is dispersed and disempowered
- encourages the status quo, it's conservative
- encourages apathy
- power held by the few motivated by profit or social control
- bland, escapist and standardised

positive criticisms
- not always low quality
- social problems and injustices are discussed by the media
- transmission of high art materials reaches a broader audience
- democratic potential

Can/should art be autonomous?
Jackson Pollock, Picasso, Richard Hamilton, Roy Lichenstein, Andy Warhol

Conclusions
- new media are changing the way we consume text and image
- theorists of mass media have different viewpoints seeing it either as negative and a threat or positive and democratic
- a lot of 20thC art has used the mass media - often to be critical of it
- art theory- should art be autonomous?

Wednesday, 24 November 2010

Advertising and New Media

Sutherland, 2009
"media that works through engagement and involvement"

19c - to compare the impact of NM to the TEchnological progress of colour printing

Radio - Robin Wright, responsible for "118 118", "The future's bright, the future's orange",
William Hesketh Lever, Lever Bros
Bill Bernach, copywriters and art directors

Unilever - owns over 900 brands including Ben and Jerry's, Bird's eye, Bertoli, Persil etc

George Cruikshank - All the World Going to see the Great Exhibition 1851, Levers Birthday

The beginning of pre-packaging,
Boom in Newspaper and Poster production
Abolished taxes on newspapers in 1855 and paper in 1861
Press Indispensable for advertising

Poster 1890's

Unilever Series, Miroslaw Balka Tate Modern 13th October 2009 - 5th April 2010

Medicine, chocolate and soap
Sunlight soap - first ever international advert

Capture the Children - rewards in the form of paper dolls and encyclopaedias
encourages brand loyalty

Art Direction
Plantol should depict tropical climates and express the care that is exercised in refining oils
main ingredients - palm oil, however the product was a result of slavery

Hegarty 2009 - the power of truth

Publications and Target Audience
Sunlight Soap spoke directly to working class housewives

British Imperial Mission
To civilize, wash and clothe the savage, cleanse the great unwashed of the British working classes

Victorians conquered the problem of corporeal aromas - body odour
still true today in products such as lynx

Psychology of Advertising 1908 - Walter Dill Scott
discrepancy between self image and ideal image
"9/10 screen stars care for their skin with Lux soap"

American Radio - Birth of Soap Operas

Advertising creates more jobs - Hogarty and Leverhume - Economic Liberals

The shit from Masss Media to My Media

Viral Advertising
voluntary viewings, such as viral videos, youtube etc, in comparison to forced viewings, tv adverts, posters etc

Trevor Beattie
referred to the internet as being the biggest idea since the wheel
emphasised the fact if many little ideas instead of one big one
example - Coke and Mento viral - worth $10 million, more than half its annual advertising budget

Old Spice adverts - viral, facebook group, twitter, intersctive media as well?

Current era is the best time to be in advertising - Hogarty

November 2010
Youtube Advertising Awards
Winner - Embrace Live, seatbelt campaign

The Third Screen
tv, computer, phone (fastest growing scheme)

The Kairos Factor - principle of presenting a desired message at the opportune moment

The impact of New Media itself has a direct effect on creativity

Giant Hydra - social network of advertisers and creatives
essentially a mass collaboration unit

Tuesday, 23 November 2010

Portfolio Task 2 - Modernist Graphic Design

The easiest way to do this is to first establish a set of paradigms associated with modernist design, below are some of the most noticeable factors behind modernist design
- the idea that form follows function
- the idea that ornament is crime, put forward by Adolf Loos
- sans serif fonts
- internationalism
- use of new materials and processes


Designer Unknown (June 1960) "Neue Grafik", http://wiedler.ch/felix/books/story/260

The above piece of design is strikingly obvious as modern, it embellishes three of the aformentioned traits of modernism at a first glance through its use of various languages and use of sans serif fonts. Furthermore the grid layout and lack of any unecessary details follow the premise that ornament is crime.


Norburg, H (1904-1983) "Zürcher Künstler im Helmhaus", http://www.flickr.com/photos/blankaposters/4422092902/

This image breaks the mould of traditional grid layouts and has everything at a 45 degree angle, on top of this it utilises sans serif fonts, use of simple block colour and new printing methods.


Rodchenko (1923) "Older Lef" cover, http://www.flickr.com/photos/20745656@N00/576280459/

Here we can see use of new printing processes, distinct use of sans serif fonts and block colour, it also makes use of photographic like imagery. This could also been seen as constructivist design, often in favour of design to be used for social purposes as opposed to ornamentation.


Beck, H (1933) "London Underground Map", http://daithaic.blogspot.com/2009_11_01_archive.html

This is a strong example of form following function shown in a printed map, the map also takes into account use of sans serif fonts and a certain level of grid layout. It can also be said that it shows a certain level of internationalism in that it can be recognised by anyone from anywhere, since its creation it has also been copied to create maps for various other underground systems recognised all over the world.


Haara, H (1936) "Poster for 1940 Olympics held in Tokyo", http://pinktentacle.com/2011/02/japanese-graphic-design-from-the-1920s-30s/

This piece of design again utilises sans serif fonts and follows a basic grid layout, however it also features the olympic rings, an internationally known symbol. It is also very simple, rejecting fancy imagery and following the school of thought that ornament is crime.

Photography - The document

(see handout for further details and photgraphers)

Susan Sontag 1979 - something predatory in the act of taking a picture.

Documenting for history's sake or to make a point?

Documentary Photography - a subjective stance in an attempt to persuade, for the benefit of humanity.
Debunks the idea that the camera is only truthful, it is neutral, it is unbiased.

Displacement from the scene, having no effect on the events, giving the impression the recorded event is unbiased.
In contrast with being within the scene, affecting it yourself.

The Decisive Moment
Henri Cartier Bresson
Photography achieves the highest commendation

Jacob Riis, 1888, Bandits Roast
using photos as a doorway into how other people live
people present themselves to the camera, not a true depiction of the world
how the photographer represents you vs how you want to be presented - conflict of interest.

Artificial representation - staged photograph

Lewis Hine 1908
shows more empathy, humanity, reality?

F.S.A Photographers - 1935-44
used as both photojournalism and emotive lobbying tool
All participants given a "shooting script" of staged photos
total agenda, falsified images

Russel lee, 1939, "Interior of a Black Farmer's House

Dorethea Lange, 1936 - "Migrant Mother"
Often attempts to make direct comparisons to recognised images and truths.

Disguised as neutral, essentially propaganda?

Walker Evans - reminder of our own mortality

Victorian Era - photography in a colonial context
John Lamprey, 1868, front and profile views of a malaysian male
about power + imperial agenda vs scientific image

Mass Observation 1937-1960's

Robert Capa, 1945, Normandy Photographs

Seems unfair to question the truth in these pictures as nobody else would go there?
"Capa Shudder" - actually scared or his own devices?

Magnum Group
Bresson + Capa
- documenting the world + its social problems
internationalism + stability

Robert Haeberle
"People about to be shot" - the last moment of a persons life
moral question - should he have intervened?

Key Features of Documentary Photography:
- offers a humanitarian perspective
- tend to portray society + politics
- tend to be objective (debatable)
- people tend to be the subject matter

Tuesday, 16 November 2010

Portfolio Task 1- Image Analysis exercise

The first notable difference between “The Uncle Sam Range” (Schumacher and Ettlinger) and the “Daddy, what did you do in the Great War?” (Lumley) posters is the purpose, the first is an advertisement for a cooking range while the second is a conscription poster.
The main text in Schumacher and Ettlinger’s poster reading “The Uncle Sam Range” is very bold and in a typeface often associated with American colleges and establishments, thus giving an American feel right from the start. This contrasts with the softer and spoken text in Lumley’s poster coming from the young girl within the picture. On top of this it conveys a message asking the father “Daddy, what did you do in the Great War?” “You” being both capitalized and underlined. The point of this, and the poster in general, is to make the father/reader think about their contribution to the Great War. Those that haven’t contributed would feel guilty having not helped, this playing on the posters main action to make the reader feel guilty and as a result sign up for the army.
Though unclear, the purpose of Schumacher and Ettlinger’s image is to sell the Uncle Sam Range by giving the impression that it could cook for the whole world both in terms of quality and quantity. The heavy stars and stripes clad interior of the house adds a sense of patriotism to the image and gives the impression that they are selling much more than a cooking range but in fact they are selling the American Dream and to go without it is to no be truly American. This targets those who feel themselves to be truly American and in general America is very proud of who and what it is, furthermore it portrays wealth and a high level of social status, things desired by most people. This is considerably different to Lumley’s conscription poster, by 1915 those that had intended to join the army probably already had and so it was time to start convincing those that hadn’t. The poster works on the principle of guilt, years later no father would want to say that he paid no contribution to the events of the Great War and regardless of how important his role was.
It should also be noted that the times on the clock in Schumacher and Ettlinger’s poster illustrate America’s first 100 years as a country, marking the event as a birthday and thus a type of celebration. Again this is quite different to Lumley’s guilt trip poster, however if people were to join the Army and fight for their country they could then celebrate when asked of what they had done to benefit the Great War.
Overall it can be said that both posters are very different in terms of both visual style and the message they convey. Furthermore the messages are so different that it makes it hard to make such a direct comparison without questioning the priorities of both posters and arguably both countries. It is safe to say that Lumley’s poster is clearer and portrays its message in a much efficient way, of the two I think it would definitely be the one to have had the most success in achieving what it had set out to do.

Graphic Design: A Medium for the Masses

10th November
James-Beighton@leeds-art.ac.uk

Bison and Houses, C15,000 - 10,000 BC, Cave Painting, France
First documented form of Visual Communication prior to any form of literacy.

Does adding text to an image make it an advert?

William Addison, 1922 - first coinage of the term "Graphic Design"
"This calls for a faculty of common sense, not Art"

Herbert Spencer - Mechanised Art
Max Bill + james Muller-Brockman - Visual Communication
Richard Hollis - the making and choosing or choosing of marks and arranging them in a way that conveys a message

Steven Heller, Eye, No. 17, 1995 - Graphics vs Advertising, publicity and promotion?

Fine Art imager or GRaphic Design?

Charles Rennie Mackintosh, 1896, Scottish Musical Review

European Graphic Design > British Graphic Design

Conscription posers - Daddy, what did you do in the war?
- Briton
- Uncle Sam

Wassily Kandinsky - 1923, abstract compositions
Beat the white with the red wedge, 1919

FH Stingemore - First tube map
Harry Beck - most recent incarnation of it
Original map attempted to show actual distances whereas the newest version has standardised space between each stop, serves as a map of station and not an accurate representation of distance.

1937 - British Design is essentially still behind

1959 - "think small" campaign for Volkswagen

Saul Bass- Hitchcock film posters

Paul Brand - cornerstone for branding - IBM
-ABC

Ken Garland - First things first manifesto, 1964
(newer edition in 2000)

Campaign For Nuclear Disarmament

Art Works Coalition
Q. And babies?
A. And babies.
Adding small amounts of text bridging the gap between photography and graphic design

Jamie Reid, Sex Pistols, Nevermind the Bollocks, 1977

Peter Saville, Factory Records 001,
- Blue Monday 1983, New Order

David Carson - Don't mistake communication for legibility

Peter Blake - Do they know it's Christmas?
Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club

The Coup, Party Music - withdrawn CD cover, August 2001
Twin Towers incident, September 11th 2001

Jonathan Barnbrook - Olympaches

Barbara Kruger - I shop therefore I am, 1987
reused in Selfridges stores throughout 2006

Monday, 8 November 2010

Modernity & Modernism: An Introduction

3rd November

1750-1960 - the time depicting modernity?
Present time - Post Modernism

Paris 1900 - the hub of modernity in it's time
Urbanisation - a shift in society
- people moving from rural areas to urban areas based on levels of work, factories etc
Telegraph, Telephone, Railways expanding, Transportation develops
Fundamental changes in life
Music Halls, Cinema, Galleries, Shopping - increase in leisure activities
Paris - both historic and modern

World Time Standardised - essentially linking the world together, making it smaller?
Working defined by shifts and set start/end times

Enlightenment - period in the 18thC when Scientific/Philosophical thinking leapt ahead, replacing/leaving Religion behind

Shift in artistic responses, change in the definition of art. Documentation?

Haussmanisation - Haussman, CIty Architect reddesigns Paris
1850's - a new Paris
City centre becmes an expensive middle/upper class area
Grand boulevards replace tiny backstreets - a form of social control, a more socially desirable city

Portraits of Modernism - of Alienation?

Psychology - has an affect on everybody
- emerges as a discipline

Modernity - Produces a fragile attention span, speeds up life but also makes its scarier

Condensed social space - rich/poor divide

New techniques - pointalism
depicting class division + leisure activities
paddling vs yachting

Degan 1876 - L'Absinthe - depression?

Kaiserpanorama 1883,
erotica, art, pictures of the modern world,
viewed through a lens, not in person

Cinema - The Lumiere Brothers,
cinematic footage of a train pulling in - caused spectators to flee the cinema
advances in technology debunk the idea of God

Modernism emerges out of the subjective response of artists and designers to Modernity

Photography replaces painting as a form of documentation

Alfred Stieglitz - FLat Iron Building 1903
skyscrapers give a new, empowering perspective

Paul Citroen - Metropolis, 1923 (photo montage)

Modernism in Design
- anti-historian
- truth to materials
- form follows function
- technology - new materials and mass production
- Internationalism

Adolf Loos, 1908 - Ornament is Crime

The Bauhaus - cornerstone of modernism, shut down by Nazi's due to being to forward thinking
Foundation courses still defined by this

Modernism haunts Humanity

Internationalism- Design that could be recognised anywhere, by anyone on an international basis

Harry Beck - London Underground Map, 1933

Herbert Bayer - sans serif typeface
- argued for the abolition of upper case letters

Times New Roman, 1932 - Stanley Morison



Conclusion
Modern is not a neutral term, it suggests improvement, sometimes novelty

Modernity defined by 1750 - 1960
- the ideas and styles that came as a direct product of Modernism

Importance of Modernism - Vocabulary of style
- Art and Design Education
- Idea that Form follows Function

(see handouts/notebook for reading list and books of interest)