2. Design Defined
Design - To plan or
organize
Used in all art
disciplines
All art involves
Design
John Kuchera. It ﾕ s Time to Get Organized. 1986. Poster.
Art Director and Designer: Hutchins/Y&R.
3. Visual Organization
“Design is essentially the
opposite of chance.”
“Artists or designers plan
the arrangement of
elements to form a
visual pattern.”
Steve Mehalo. Make Jobs Not War. Poster design.
Copyright: free art for public use.
4. “Art seeks visual solutions.”
The design process involves seeking
visual solutions to problems.
5. Creative Problem Solving
Sometimes it uses visual representation and
sometimes it may use a play on words.
“There are no rules in art!”
The arts are called “creative fields” because there
are no predetermined correct answers.
6. There are guidelines, though.
“However, the ‘no rules’ phrase does not mean that all
devices are equally valid and visually successful.”
“Artistic practices and criteria have been developed
from successful works.”
In other words you should look at and learn from
the work of other artists.
Look at what is successful and what is not.
7. Content and Form
Discussions of art distinguish between 2 aspects.
Content – The subject matter, story, or info that the
artwork tries to communicate.
(Content = What the artist is trying to say. )
Form – The purely visual aspect. How it looks.
Use of the elements and principles of Design.
(Form – How they say it.)
8. Aesthetic
Aesthetic – When a piece does not have a message,
the artwork is just for ‘aesthetic’ purposes.
(In other words, it’s just meant to look nice.)
For example, adornment like jewelry or crown
molding isn’t necessary, but it looks good.
Decorative art can reveal new ways of seeing.
Most importantly, art is supposed to be a form of
visual communication.
9. “A picture is worth a thousand
words.”
– Pictures are a great way to
communicate without words or
in a different language.
10. Art as Communication
The artist or designer is trying
to say something to the viewer.
A successful design
communicates an idea.
Even purely abstract lines,
color and shapes can express
an idea or a feeling.
Symbols are a great way to
communicate a theme or
message.
Often words are combined with
a visual to strengthen the
message. Stop Torture. 1985. Poster for Amnesty International. Art Director
and Designer: Stephan Bundi. Atelier Bundi, Bern, Switzerland.
11. The Creative Process:
1. Thinking
2. Looking
3. Doing
(You don’t have to do these in order. They can happen in any order or at
any time.)
Louis Pasteur said that “chance favors the prepared mind”.
12. Getting Started:
1. Thinking About the Problem.
Precisely what is to be achieved?
(What specific visual or intellectual effect is
desired?)
Are there visual stylistic requirements?
(Illustrative, abstract, nonobjective, and so on?)
What are the physical limitations?
(Size, color, media…)
When is the solution needed? (Deadlines!)
13. 2. Thinking About the Solution
Ask yourself, how can the concept be shown?
Steps in thinking:
1. Make a list of images or symbols that could represent the
theme or idea.
2. Quickly sketch them.
3. Expand the list by discussing it with other artists or doing
research. (For example some designers may reference
market surveys to expand their list.)
4. Narrow the list down to a few ideas.
5. Then ask yourself how you will use or show the image in a
unique or original way to convey the idea.
14. Example: How will you show your
symbol in a unique and original way?
Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen. ﾒ Having a talent isn ﾕ t worth much unless you know what to do with it. ﾓ 1978. Poster for the School
of Visual Arts. Art director: Silas H. Rhodes. Designer/illustrator: Tony Palladino. Copywriter: Dee Ito. Courtesy of School of Visual Arts.
15. 3. Thinking about the Audience
The selection of your symbol may depend on the size, color, medium,
etc…
It might also depend on your Target Audience
Target Audience - who is going to see your design? Knowing who the
visual message is going to address is key.
16. Thinking: Form and Content
What will be presented?
How will it be presented?
How can this process go
through revision and change?
Raymond Loewy. Original logo for
Greyhound Bus Co.
.
Raymond Loewy. Redesigned logo, 1933
17. Example: Form and Content
Here the artist designs icons or pictograms for signs,
buttons, and web or desktop applications.
Chris Rooney. Picnic Icons. From Blackcoffee Design Inc.,
editor, 1,000 Icons, Symbols, and Pictograms: Visual
Communication for Every Language (1000 Series)
(Beverly, Mass.: Rockport Publishers, 2009).
18. Thinking: Form and Function
“Form Follows Function”
Purpose defines the look and shape of an object,
and the efficiency should be obvious.
This is most obvious in items of utilitarian use.
19. Thinking: Form and Function
“Form Follows Function” Example
Grumman HU–16 Albatross, post-WWII “utility and rescue amphibian.” Bill Gunston, consultant editor,
The Encyclopedia of World Air Power (London: Aerospace Publishing Limited, 1980), p. 165.
Pygmy Right Whale (Caperea marginata), Southern Hemisphere, 18'–21 1/2 ' (5.5–6.5 m). From Mark
Cawardine and Martin Camm, Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises (London: Dorling Kindersley, 1995), p. 48.
20. Example: Form Follows Function
Ron Arad. Bookworm Shelf. Thermoplastic
technopolymer, shelf
height 71⁄2", width 10' 6", depth 8".
21. II. Looking
Sources:
1. Nature – Natural world,
animals, human
artifacts, etc…
2. Artifacts- Events, other
artworks and artists,
etc…
3. History and Culture -
TV, society, fashion,
mass media, etc…
Georgia O’Keeffe. Shell No. 1. 1928. Oil on canvas, overall: 17.8 x
17.8 cm (7” x 7"), framed: 20.3 x 20.3 x 3.3 cm (8” x 8” x 1 ⁄16").
Nancy Crow. Mexican Tiger Masks.
From the Collection of Nancy Crow.
22. Source vs. Subject
You have to differentiate between the source and the
subject.
Source = the stimulus for the image or idea.
(The source for artwork is often found in nature.)
Examples: Bones looking like sculpture, animals
used as basis of form, etc…
Subject = the content of the work or the way the
artist’s saw the object.
23. 2. History and Culture
Visual training and Retraining
We are often trained at a young age by
exposure to mass media such as TV and
Internet..
The idea that we can retrain ourselves to
slow down and see more carefully.
25. Note:
“…An awareness of the power of familiar images
is fundamental to understanding visual
communications.”
&
Looking can be influenced by mass media
images.
26. Vernacular
When an image becomes
commonly known through
frequent reproduction.
How might an artist play
with this concept?
Robert Colescott. George Washington Carver Crossing the
Delaware. 1975. Acrylic on canvas, 4' 6” x 9'. Phyllis Kind
Gallery, New York.
27. III. Doing: Thinking with Materials
Doing starts with visual
experimentation….”thinking
with the materials.”
Two Points of view:
1.Materials are lifeless until
given shape by a creator.
2.Materials by their own
potential create their end.
Sarah Weinstock. Untitled. 2006. Ink and soap bubbles
on paper, 61/ ﾓ × 91/ ﾓ . (Detail.)
Eva Hesse. Studio. 1966. Installation photograph by Gretchen
Lambert. Courtesy Robert Miller Gallery.
28. Thinking with Materials:
Ways to do this include:
Trial and Error
Intuition
Application of a
System
David Smith. DS 1958. 1958. Spray and stenciled enamel on paper,
1' 5 1/2 ” x 11 ½ " (44.5 x 29.2 cm). Gift of Candida and Rebecca
Smith, 1994 (1994.399).
29. Doing and Redoing:
Revision is necessary!
Starting over often occurs
Try to overcome your
attachment to your first
idea.
Revision allows for an
idea to grow beyond an
obvious or familiar
starting point.
Henri Matisse. Large Reclining Nude/The Pink Nude.
1935. Oil on canvas, 2' 2” x 3’ 1/2 " (66 x 92.7 cm).
Henri Matisse. Large Reclining Nude/The Pink Nude: One Stage in
Process (one of seventeen photographed by the artist). 1935. Oil on
canvas (with cut paper), 2' 2” x 3’ 1/2 " (66 x 92.7 cm).
31. IV. Critique: Constructive Criticism
Critique is a VERY important part of Design!
Forms of critique:
Dialogue with a Professor
Review by peers or classmates
Self – Critique - example: a journal entry
32. Example:
Design words like size, emphasis, perspective
should be employed.
A critique is most valid when linked to the criteria
for the artwork. What was assigned? Were goals
met?
This may also include a cultural or historical
perspective, or what it meant in the historical past.
33. A Model for Critique:
Description – A verbal or
spoken account of what is
there.
Analysis – A discussion of
how things are presented.
Including thoughts of how
things are contrasted or
different.
Example: Bigger than,
brighter than, to the left of
Interpretation – What is
the meaning, implication,
or effect of the piece.
Students review and critique each other ﾕ s work.
