Extra Credit 3 “Design as Cultural Value” image choice + essay
The great American graphic artist Milton Glaser often spoke of “design as cultural value”.Glaser had a long and storied career (check out the documentary Milton Glaser: To Inform andDelight), but he's most closely associated with the work he produced in the 1960s and 70s…playful, expressive, cartoon-y illustrations that seemed to perfectly capture the spirit of thecounterculture and Psychedelia in America at that time… it's hard to think of 60s graphic designwithout immediately thinking of Glaser. So in hindsight, it may be easy to see that work within -and part of, a broader cultural context… that it is more than just design, it's design as culturalvalue.
In today's lecture we discussed how “identity”, both individual as well as cultural, is linked todesign and art (which of course are expressions of individuality and culture) …and the ways inwhich individuals, or groups of peoples, attempt to control that identity by controlling theexpression of it. Can design be something more than just design… can it also have culturalsignificance… can it define or represent an era or culture?
Can you think of an example of contemporary graphic design (or industrial design) that you thinkis more than just design… but is design that has cultural value? Not simply in what the contentis… but the style, the look of it, the aesthetic. That it is so prominent, recognizable, orrepeated… that in the future we will be able to look back and say this – this work… was morethan just design. That it rose to the level of having cultural value… that perhaps in some way itdefined the culture of the day, at least aesthetically.
Assignment:
Choose an example.Write an essay (min. 500 words) describing your choice, and why you have chosen it. Explainyour choice as it pertains to the assignment’s questions/parameters (above). 10-11pt/singlespaced. Images of your choice must be included with the essay. Video choices may besent as a link, .mov, .mp4, or other movie file.Submit essay (with image included) into Blackboard.
EXTRA CREDIT / Possible +3 points towards your final grade.
