Manifeste du Surréalism (a graphic design take)

in france, by the mid 1920's dada had lost its momentum. simultaneously, many of the french dadaists joined the ranks of the surrealists led by André Breton who in 1924, published the Surrealist Manifesto.

what are the main points here for us? design the unconscious!

1- dreams,
2- represent your traumas as sublimation,
3- life as poesis,
4- reality is never what it seems,
5- tanatos (death) is always looking from the corners!

fortunato depero's dinamo

Fortunato Depero was tireless in his propagation of Futurist principles. He promoted the art of the Futurist book, founded and directed the machine-art magazine Dinamo, produced Futurist radio programs, designed costumes and furniture, opened the Casa d'Arte Futurista in Italy and New York, and invented an "onomalanguage," a free-word, free-sounding expressive verbal rigmarole. 

Representing the so- called second stage of Futurism (from 1919 to about 1930), Depero was the individual most responsible for putting the often inaccessible Futurist theory into practice, particularly in the service of business.

Here is Depero's contribution to Campari (all in black and white):

 

What do we have here? 

Abstraction: Depero's artworks often featured strong geometric shapes, sharp angles, and a machine-like aesthetic. 

Bright, Contrasting Colors: He used vibrant, high-contrast colors to create energy and movement. 

Dynamism and Motion: Inspired by Futurism, his work often suggested movement, echoing the speed and energy of modern life. Typography and Graphic 

Design: Depero pioneered advertising and branding, using DIY experimental typography and bold, graphic compositions. 

Mix of mechanization + human forms: Depero's figures looked robotic or puppet-like, emphasizing the fusion of humans and machines. 

Gesamtkunstwerk: Depero worked across multiple disciplines, including painting, sculpture, textiles, advertising, set design, and even book design.

dziga vertov & constructivist cinema

neoplasticism: from typeface, to furniture, to architecture, to fine art

van doesburg's

De Stijl, also known as Neoplasticism, was a Dutch art movement founded in 1917 in Leiden. De Stijl consisted of artists and architects. In a more narrow sense, the term De Stijl is used to refer to a body of work from 1917 to 1931 founded in the Netherlands.Proponents of De Stijl advocated pure abstraction and universality by a reduction to the essentials of form and colour. They simplified visual compositions to vertical and horizontal, using only black, white and primary colors. (WP)

typeface:

or, 

piet zwart's

only then you can infer this form:

mondrian's

and this,

rietveld's chair

see that all the objects above belong to the same function. 

1- color scheme (red, black, yellow, blue), 
2- abstract geometric essence (i.e., the parallelogram, preferably the rectangle), 
3- abstraction i.e., the relation between negative, positive,

then this follows,

jacobus oud's cafe de unie, rotterdam, 1925

rietveld's METZ

van doesburg's cinébal, strasbourg 

white stripes album cover

what is unique about neoplasticism? 

1. elegance, 

2. succinctness, 

3. geometric forms that breathe in minimal movement

4. no circle nor curve! 

Pure metaphysics.

Malevich: Russian Cubo Futurism

Malevich, Peasant Woman, early 1910s

Malevich, Morning after the Storm, circa 1910s

the woodcutter, 1912

self-portrait, 1909

What do we see here?

A unique synthesis between Cubism, Futurism and Russian vernacular (stained glass, orthodox iconography)

Russian Futurism

SLAP IN THE FACE OF PUBLIC TASTE

To the readers of our New First Unexpected. We alone are the face of our Time. Through us, the horn of time blows in the art of the word. The past is too tight. The Academy and Pushkin are less intelligible than hieroglyphics. Throw Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, etc. overboard from the Ship of Modernity. He who does not forget his first love will not recognize his last. Who, trustingly, would turn his last love toward Balmont's perfumed lechery? Is this the reflection of today's virile soul? Who, faintheartedly, would fear tearing from warrior Bryusov's black tuxedo the paper armorplate? Or does the dawn of unknown beauties shine from it? Wash your hands that have touched the filthy slime of the books written by those countless Leonid Andreyevs. All those Maxim Gorkys, Kuprins, Bloks, Sologubs, Remizovs, Averchenkos, Chomys, Kuzmins, Bunins, etc., need only a dacha on the river. Such is the reward fate gives tailors.  Believe it or not, Russian Futurism is more "avant-garde" than its Italian counterpart. 

Check this flicker selection of Russian avant-garde book covers.

DADADADADADADADADADA

duchamp, urinal, 1912

what's the best definition of dada?

anything goes.

 duchamp, readymade

dada starts as a cultural movement in neutral Zurich, Switzerland, during WWI and peaked from 1916 to 1920. the movement primarily involved visual arts, literature, poetry, art manifestos, art theory, theatre and graphic design and concentrated its antiwar politic through a rejections of the prevailing standards in art through anti-art cultural works. \

dada photography is collage (either visual or formal)

 erwin blumenfeld, leinie spoor, 1932

or like this

 george grosz, remember uncle august, 1920

or illustration:

 max ernst, l'evade (1926)

or collage:

 hausmann, self portrait, 1920

dada "events" included public gatherings, demonstrations, and publication of art/literary journals. passionate coverage of art, politics, and culture filled their publications.

Paul Klee (and the mark of the child)

paul klee has been called many things: a father of abstract art, a bauhaus master, the progenitor of surrealism —a very hard man to pin down. 

klee's weird paintings are tied to numerous groundbreaking 20th-century movements, from german expressionism to dada. 

paul klee, portrait of a yellow man, 1921 

                                                        paul klee, angelus novo, 1920

what's klee's mark? 

*anaglyptographic skills (his mark appears to be carved in low relief). 

*mystical symbols (glowing stars and suns, topsy-turvy checkerboards, disembodied heads).

* children doodlings,

* incorporating the art of people with psychological disorder ("they have the power to see").

By the 1920s technology is the "new frontier" of art

El Lissitzky, Lenin Tribune, 1925

1920s &1930s' coordinated typography indicate a new professionalism in graphic design

binder's plakatstil poster (1930s)

Designing the modern life style

Roger Brothers, Vichy, 1926

Kaspar E. Graff, Franklin Car Co. 1929

Adolphe JM Cassandre, Sports cap, 1925

F. S. May Schweppes Table Waters, 1931

What do we have here? 

1. Geometric shapes and symmetry, bold colors: gold, black, red, and metallics, 

2. Streamlined, futuristic elements reflecting progress and luxury.

2. Elegant typography with sans-serif and decorative fonts.

3. Hand-drawn, idealized figures often portraying luxury and leisure.

4. Look at the exaggerated poses in fashion ads.

5. The backgrounds are minimalist, to illustrate the product and lifestyle.

6. Airbrushed effects for a smooth, glamorous look. 

the culture of consumption

Coles Phillips, Holeproof Hoisery, 1921.

As sheer and draped material expertly rendered in Coles Phillips' illustration, women's stockings possess an aura of intangible but definite desirability. Comodities served a symbolic purpose and satisfied a psychological need. (GDAHG)

asasasas

the reason you see geometric abstraction being used in graphic design is that it was adopted by art & technology as a sign of functionality

ed lissitzky, the isms of art, 1924

the cubist poetry of Juan Gris

how about looking a the work above as POSTER ART? they are extremely effective, partly because of their beautiful designs. they squeeze the content out of the form & the end result is direct and beautiful.

by the 1920s-1930s the notion that graphic design had a mission higher than mere presentation crept into the profession. graphic designers were perceived as "consumer engineers"

Mehemed Fehmy Agha (the reform of American graphic design between wars)

Who is Mehemed Fehmy Agha?

When the extraordinary art director Dr. Mehemed Fehmy Agha arrived at Vogue’s New York offices in 1929, he ignited a thrilling design revolution, re-imagining and revamping the magazine—as well as its sister publications Vanity Fair and House & Garden—while redefining his profession for generations to come.

Vanity Fair cover by Fortunato Depero (1930)

What do we get here?

1- No more Vogue’s old-fashioned appearance,
2- Graceful Art Deco curves and the clean lines of Constructivism.
3- No more italic lettering. Instead, we get sans serif fonts like Futura,
3- All unnecessary elements are eliminated from the pages (borders around photos, column rules, sidebars),
4- the magazine gets a latest European avant-garde look,

Welcome to Plakatstil!

lucien bernhard poster 

"Plakatstil" means "poster style" in German. Plakatstil, was an early poster style of art that began in the early 1890's and originated out of Germany.

lucien bernhard poster

Characteristics: 

1- usually bold, straight font with very simple design. 

2- flat presentation, 

3- shapes and objects are simplified, while the subject of the poster remains detailed.

julius klinger poster

What's the aim? Standardization!

lucien bernhard

The smoother the image, the better consumer identification. 

Plakatstil shied away from the tentacle/like complexity of Art Nouveau to emphasize a more modern outlook on poster art. 

hans rudi, manori, 1920

You can tell that Plakatstil has adopted the simplification proposed almost 40 years earlier by the Beggarstaffs' general shape and simple outline which become standard. 

hans rudi, neverfail, 1911

Famous Plakatstil artists include Lucian Bernhard and artist Ludwig Hohlwein.