DSDN 171 blog assignment 10

This course has been influential towards my position and approach as a designer. The weekly readings and lectures have helped to synthesise various themes and issues relevant to the practice of design and what historical influences different design shows.

I have certainly found this class helpful as it taught me so much more about the different design eras, what inspired them and what they were really about. Before the course I had only a braid knowledge of the fundamentals of the main design movements, nowhere near as in depth as we learned in this course. I not tell you who belonged to groups such as Deutsche Werkbund and the Memphis design group as well as the founding members of the Bauhaus. I was also surprised how much deeper design actually goes, changes in design were also dictated by political and social issues such as the industrial revolution effecting the arts and crafts movement to the cold war’s effect on modern design.

History has usually been a subject which I would steer clear of but I believe history has been the most helpful subject in the first year programme. It has provided skills and knowledge that can be applied to design in any form. I now know so much more about the evolution of design and will most likely use design/works studied in this course as precedents in assignments later in my degree. I value highly what I have learnt from this course and think the structure of the readings and lectures was very helpful to the learning process.

DSDN 171 blog assignment 9

Steven Heller wrote 'Historical reprise has been a mixed blessing.' Postmodernism or 'remix' design has become inconsistent in its redesigning of history. Some remix design has reprised design eras successfully so that the historical elements have become relevant and 'invisible', therefore served to educate and inspire creativity. However, at times, the reprise has served to be a 'cut-and-paste' job and becomes a cliche.

An example of postmodernist or contemporary design is the Carlton Bookcase by Ettore Sottass Jr. Sottass sourced from many different cultural references in his design and combined contemporary imagery with aspects derived from ancient mythology and symbolism. Sottass was one of the founders of the Memphis design group which at the time became the 'standard bearer of the 'new international style'', it is comparable to the Bauhaus in the aspect and had members from all over the world. They believed in the idea of banality, by redesigning everyday objects through the use of pattern, colour and other elements so that they became objects of 'aesthetic contemplation'. Sottass described this style himself 'non cultural imagery', meaning the design is devoid of historical or cultural recognition by aesthetics.

The Re mixer's Manifesto states that 'the past always tries to control the future.' The critics of the historical reprise feared postmodernist design would demand originality, which is why I chose Sottass as my example. I believe the idea of banality and the Carlton Bookcase itself display unique remix techniques without the need for quotation, irony, ornamentation or unnecessary abstraction.

Carlton Bookcase

Ettore Sottass Jr.

Memphis

1981

http://www.treadwaygallery.com/ONLINECATALOGS/MAY2005/images/0836.jpg