Magritte, The Threatened Assassin, 1926
we had to go very fast, to cover thirty years of 20th century avant-garde:
deutscher werkbund, blue rider, expressionism (woodcut, film, graphic design, architecture), neue sachlichkeit circa 1926 (grosz, dix), cubism (analytic, synthetic, collage!), dada (political, metaphysic), futurism (music, graphic design, architecture), die neue typographie (tschichold), russian futurism, malevich geometric abstraction, russian constructivism (film, theater, architecture), rodchenko, lissitsky. BAUHAUS (pottery, architecture, textiles, theater, furniture, etc), surrealism (film, graphic design, photo).
keep in mid graphic design,
go ahead.
16 comments:
Last class I was unable to attend but I reviewed the blog. The subjects that stood out the most were Bauhaus, Futurism, Dadaism, and Surrealism. As an artist, I have grown to finally understand the ways these artists think. Kansdinsky is still one of my favorites in the Bauhaus movement. The previous school I attended made us do Bauhaus inspired sculptures and I found the Bauhaus to be more of a political movement than anything. Almost like a reaction to the world around them, these artists created a world of their own. The quote of the Bauhaus Manifesto really shows the thinking of the group of artists during that time.
I have never seen dada photography or collage but I find it interesting. Decoupage and other forms of manipulating an image are done very well in these movements. Dadaism and Futurism in writing really helped explain those movements even further. I think they show the movement in its purest form, with the audience making the final interpretation. These movements are a wonderful transition into one of my favorite movements, Surrealism. Dali is still my favorite artist and I am very influenced by this movement the most. I am glad I learned the scraping and smoking technique about surrealism, something I might use in my artworks. I have never heard about these techniques so I plan to explore them further.
-Ana
In my opinion, the most interesting topic from last week’s lecture was the modernist style of typography, the Die Nue Typographie. I think its very interesting to look into it because it had a very important quality which is that it was easy to recognize among many other styles. It was used in books, posters, brochures, etc. And in graphic design those are very popular means of communication. Many artists adopted this new style and it changed the way people looked at advertisements, propaganda, layouts, etc. I really like the asymmetrical approach because it leads your eye through the entire image and it makes you analyze it and appreciate more, unlike the more ordinary and typical symmetrical arrangement. As a graphic design major I find this fascinating and I think it is very interesting how this new typography, along with photography and photomontage, introduced modernist design.
-Anat Sterental
The subject of graphic design that I found most interesting in last weeks class was the Dada movement. Art can be subjective by the way that the viewer perceives it. When it comes the Dada movement, the artists were unbothered by the fact that their works made people feel uncomfortable. Primarily, what attracted me most to this style of art was your definition “anything goes.” Although they focus on the political and metaphysical aspects of art, Dadaists have an absurd surrealist approach that touches on satire. I appreciate the satire and criticism of political figures because their generation needed the comedic relief. Living through a time of war and dictatorship, it almost seems natural that people would respond via the arts. We see this happen in modern times (i.e. U2’s “Sunday Bloody Sunday).
-Bryan Vargas
The subject that I found the most interesting from last weeks class was that of Surrealism—and the many facets that it was able to permeate through. This idea of designing the unconscious, of bringing dreams to reality allowed for the creation of obscure though aesthetically beautiful pieces of work. I particularly enjoyed the integration of the idea into interior design and street art. These mediums allow for a much larger scale of this non-reality. In this, it allows for the viewer to become completely engulfed by the aesthetic and imagery, transporting them to the dimension created by the works. The artists, like that of the Maison Moschino and Dulwich, as well as Dali, are able to surround their audiences. Each work has its own personal reality. Even street artists, when not working with room instillations, are able to create an alternate world in the 2D that forces the message that reality is never what it seems.
-Tami Lake
(Sorry, reposting this because I forgot to put my name on the first one)
Russian Constructivism, while not mentioned explicitly was a product of the Russian revolution and the creation of a communist state in Russia. Most design and artwork seen up to this point had some aspect of its period instilled into it but constructivism was the Russian Revolution, the embodiment of Communist Russia during the early 20th century and being the modern image of communism and the soviets. The goals of Constructivists and Communists were eerily similar, to break from the past, a vehicle of social change, social responsibility, and a disregard, bordering on hatred on what came before. In its pursuit of it goals, to create a break from the past, it created a well known style that has outlived its political counterpart. In an even greater sense of Irony then the propaganda outliving the regime, constructivisms break from the past ensnares itself to the past, because constructivism only make complete sense if looked at through a historical lense. (same could be said for dada, but dada does not fall into the same pitfalls because of their attempts to work in a historical vacuum)
GO CUBS GO
Surrealism has always been one of my favorite art movements and styles, with Dali always being the main artist that I think about when I think about surrealism. Seeing the different manifestations of surrealism in other arts such as graphic design and interior design was very interesting because of the underlying theme of focusing on a dream like reality. The surrealist furniture and interior design is very interesting because it challenges the preset ideas of what furniture and rooms should be like. The furniture has things that make it different and unsettling for the viewer, which is very interesting because it allows for the art to convey an idea or at least provoke thought from the audience. Perhaps the most interesting part of surrealism for me is that whether or not you like it, pretty much everyone can connect to it because of the focus on the dream like and subconscious qualities that guide the artists.
-Martina Sandoval
The topic I enjoyed learning about most was the Dada movement. I thought the definition you gave of “anything goes,” was really interesting. I studied abroad in London last semester and actually saw the Urinal by Duchamp in person, so it was exciting to learn about it in a lecture slide. I like the fact that this movement involves all fields of arts, such as visual, literature, poetry, art theory, etc. I really loved the collage examples you showed in the lecture, I thought they were really cool. To see their take on “photoshopping” when our technology was no where near available yet was really cool. I also liked learning about the Die Neue Typography. I really like learning about fonts used in posters, and I thought the introduction of photography replacing illustration was interesting to learn about.
-Emily Warren
To me the most interesting thing about last class was surrealism graffiti, street art and interior. It is something different than just art as a picture, painting or sculpture. It shows that art can be anywhere and I think it is very creative to come up with something like that. What was very interesting to me was the surrealism furniture. The functionality in general is taken away and something artistic is added to the piece. Like the chairs, you can't use the chairs anymore to sit on, but the piece is made into a piece of art, almost like a sort of sculpture. The lili jang chair and sofa really caught my attention. I also liked Dada. I find the Dada collages very interesting because it really catches your attention and you just keep looking at it, trying to figure out what the meaning is or what the artist wants to say. But it is hard to actually figure it out, it can have a lot of meaning, or it is just nonsense.
One of the most interesting topics to me was the gesamtkunstwerk movement. How art invades interior design through another angle, from simple décor to creating an environment or a feeling to the space. Compared to the arts and crafts movement which was mostly about an abundance of decoration rather that the unity of elements in an interior space, this unity is what I found most interesting about the gesamtkunstwerk movement. Each piece felt more carefully mediated and planned out before becoming part of the space’s design. One of the pieces I enjoyed from this movement was royal hotel in Copenhagen by Jacobsen, the dynamic within the placement of rugs to the shapes of the chairs, through the arrangement of the light fixtures, creates a specific feeling and united feeling through the space.
-Liliette Ferro
Graphic design in terms of architecture started the lecture interesting with the concept that less is more. Then moving into the 20th century, innovation and persuasion became key elements in graphic design which influenced some architectural movements and designs. With the introduction of glass and steel as new materials, this transition into modernity allowed for less is more architecture. With new possibilities of structure such as the concept of the piloti, as well as expanded to open floor concepts, hence less is more. As someone who studies materiality in the sense of buildings, seeing glass described as purity and cleanliness rather than an element of connection between two spaces was thought provoking. It always makes me interested when architecture is a subset of the subject of graphic design. The idea that interior design allows one to become apart of graphic design just expands the overall idea that graphic design in conclusion is just a mark we place, we design, that we create.
-Adrianna Rivera
The art movement I found most interesting from topics of the last class is Dada. I am more of an art "purist" per se, and like more romantic, classical pieces, so to see such abstract and outlandish pieces take center stage was interesting for me. For example, I still don't think the Urinal by Duchamp classifies as "art" in my eyes. That being said, what I find fascinating about Dada is that it was more than an "art" movement and involved the publications, presentations, and poetry pieces. My favorite Dada pieces are the collages, as even though they're random and non-sensical, I find them visually interesting, more so than a straightforward photograph or painting. A lot of time could be spent trying to make sense of the nonsensical Dada pieces, and I think that aspect of of Dada is fun. The same applies to the automatic drawing pieces. It is interesting to try to makes sense of what is just stream of consciousness drawing--there may be a story behind it, or there may not. What can be perceived as just nothing to one person who views a Dada piece can mean something totally different to somebody else. Looking back, I can see how Dada rose in popularity to the large movement it was.
-kelly
The most interesting topic from last class was Plakatstil, which means “poster style” in German. The bold, straight fonts used in Bernhaed’s posters are very eye catching and very straightforward in reflecting the subject matter of each of the posters. I love the flat presentation of the objects. Although the shapes are quite simplified, they make the images look clean and even easier to be understood. I love the empty space around the titles and objects in the posters. It gives viewers opportunity to imagine what is the story behind the artwork and to understand the meaning in their own ways. Bernhard’s posters reflect the principle of minimalism. Using bold straight font to point out the motif of the poster and using a simple object to represent the idea is the trend in graphic design nowadays. It seems like the poster does not give viewers enough visual information to describe the topic, while it includes all information in the empty space in the poster.
--Yiming Zhou
For me the most interesting topic discussed in last week’s class was the Neue Sachlichkieit movement around 1926. I thought it was interesting how this “New Objectivity” was discovered so simultaneously by so many different artists in 1926 and also how their works are so similar in their themes of personal biography. I thought it was interesting how important the portrait or self-portrait was to these artists and I wonder why so many of the artists felt that painting portraiture was the highest form of new objectivity. I also think it is interesting to view these paintings through the lens of Kriegstrauma, and how the artists’ disillusionment from the first World War is reflected in their portrayals of themselves and their friends.
--Will Uelk
The most interesting part of the last week's lecture was surrealism. All throughout the history artists had been using their imagination to create. However, the imaginations were often restricted within the tradition. For example, to paint Bacchus artist would have to first imagine what the mythological god would look like. The painting of Bacchus would be a painting of something that does not exist but still recognizable, and meant to be look like Bacchus. However, surrealist artists brought their imagination out of the tradition. Their works are from unrestricted dreams. It made me think that surrealists are the real dreamers. Another artistic movement that was interesting to me was Dadaism. For me Marcel Duchamp's fountain is always hard to comprehend. The philosophy of "Anything Goes" makes me think about the distinction between what is art and what is not.
It was also striking to see Picasso's influence in many different artistic movements.
-MinA Jang
Despite seeming like an art form of the past, collage’s popularity has been revived in recent years. Today, when most people think of creating art they think of painting an image of a sunset or painting a portrait of a famous person. With that being said, collage is likely not the first thing that pops into the minds of people when they think of creating art. Collage is a type of cubism. Further, collage is a type of synthetic cubism. Collage was created by the legendary Picasso. The very first collage that Picasso made was created by pasting oil cloth on canvas. In today’s world, collages are created much differently. In fact, they are created electronically via an app. An app places photos in a grid, creating a modern collage.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/photo-grid-photo-collage-maker/id543577420?mt=8
-Emily Griffith
In my mind, the most interesting part from the last lecture is Dadaism. Especially, urinal which is a 1912 work produced by Marcel Duchamp. The piece was a porcelain urinal, which was signed "R. Mutt" and titled Fountain. I think Marcel Duchamp is a really crazy person because we can't get his creating purport form the first glance of that urinal. I think Dadaism art work gives us an uncomfortable feeling. As we known, Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century. the movement primarily involved visual arts, and graphic design... and concentrated its antiwar politic through a rejections of the prevailing standards in art through anti-art cultural works. I think Dadaism artworks' creating purport is to claim anti-art or anti-politic so Dadaism artists created so many unrealistic and eye catching works.
- Yaoli Wang
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