In this class we explored the postmodernist design movement and how it differed from the movements that came before it.
Postmodernism arose in a climate of cultural change (1960s/1970s) and challenged the order and clarity of modernism. The movement had spirit and individuality- it broke rules. The movement was inspired by punk movements of the time; it rebelled against the international style of the previous years.
This was my favourite seminar so far. I really enjoy the maximalist, rule breaking style of the postmodernists. I especially like the work of David Carson, who we looked into in this class; his experimental approach to typography and his grunge style have been a big inspiration in my personal work.
What’s the use of being legible, when nothing inspires you to take notice of it? - Wolfgang Weingart
Learning about the inherent link between music and design, and how they influenced each other (during this movement especially) was very eye opening to me. Listening to the Peter Saville interview about his process when designing the iconic Joy Division “Unknown Pleasures” album was very interesting. Seeing how he would take inspiration from many different sources, finding elements from his surroundings to use in his design work inspires me to be as resourceful in my own work.
This reminds me of of how Wolfgang Weingart had a similar process- taking a Zerox of a tissue to use as a representation of the Matterhorn in one of his posters, show to the left. This poster is titled “The Swiss Poster”.
This resourceful, multi-faceted and experimental approach along with the combination of physical and digital technology of working is at the heart of postmodernist design.
This is the work of Peter Saville. Pictured on the left is the science journal which the unknown pleasures album came from. According to the Scientific American, the picture represents as follows: “Time for each line reads from left to right, and successive pulses are stacked from bottom to top. Peaks represent relatively strong radio signals. This particular plot shows data collected at a frequency of 318 Megahertz.” (source). This scientific diagram becoming one of the most iconic and recognisable album covers of the 21st century really emphasises the importance of finding inspiration from all possible sources and not limiting oneself when doing design work.
I personally love postmodernist style. A lot of the artists we looked at in this class e.g Jamie Reid, Vaughan Olive and Neville Brody have all designed album covers for some of my favourite musicians. I think in todays age there is a huge push for minimalist design, as this is what is most popular, professional and corporate, so being able to study post-modernist work is quite refreshing, as it is the antithesis of all those things. Despite this, I still recognise and enjoy the importance of the International style and legibility.