Leyan Chen (Elza) BA Graphic and Media Design Whether design emphasizes function or form is a question that artists have been trying to answer for many years, just as design and anti-design have been debated throughout history. The anti-design movement, known as the Radical Design period, began its rebellion in Italy in the 1960s (Martinique, 2016). It opposed the brand-controlled world in the framework of consumerism, and focused on the prevailing modernist design known for its simplicity and emphasis on function. The typical choices for anti-design are conflicting color palettes, illegible typography, and overlapping and crowded text images. Although it is defined as chaotic and aesthetically lacking, its purpose is not to actively seek destruction but to break free from the constraints of The Times and urge the reconsideration and innovation of outdated concepts of design (Levanier, 2022). In the exhibition of Object of Desire in the Design Museum, the 1960s donna red sofa designed by Italian industrial designer Gaetano Pesce is impressive. Its smooth, rounded form is as soft as a feminine in appearance, and is inspired by the silhouette of an ancient fertility goddess (Muraben, 2016). The circular footstool which is attached to the sofa enhances the whole work with the metaphor of female prisoners. The fact of the chair must be squeezed also symbolizes the prejudice and oppression that women endured from all sides and even themselves at that time. Nevertheless, this was met with explicit feminist protests during Milan Design Week (Pownall, 2019). This art piece, which undermines the principle that furniture puts utility first, provokes reflection and debate. It is a well-deserved radical design. Another instance of anti-design may be seen in the more than 1,000 posters created by Russian artist Petr Bankov. As graphic design work, his works discarded all grids and included complex collages and illustrations without any practical purpose instead. His work is full of pure experimentation in the search for aesthetic perfection. Whether it was old Dada, surrealism, or the critical design movement that has been gaining steam since the 2019 pandemic, the anti-design movement has never completely vanished from the art world. It might even be called the zeitgeist. In an uncertain society with limited travel freedom nowadays, people are paying more attention to freedom of expression and catharsis. It is another time to innovate with critical thinking and defy the rules. When restless eyes are wrapped in piles of visual garbage, they want to defy convention and reconsider the fundamentals. In other words, anti-design is a constant race against the audience’s aesthetic fatigue, a movement that defies current fashion and promotes unconventional thinking. The posters of the Iminente Festival designed by Solid Dogma surprise audiences every year with their own messy yet aesthetically experimental designs that do not rely on traditional grids. Solid Dogma, Iminente Festival, 2022. https://www.iminente.org/festival/
In terms of graphic design, movements led by designers like Bauhaus have established their proper development style and design principles. Designers may safely handle the majority of aesthetic issues using basic grids. And design, in my opinion, should not be limited by capitalism to form a static system. The emergence or re-emergence of anti-design is a challenge to the status quo under critical thinking. Design can be creative while anti-design supports innovation. They both contain critique, which is what they have in common. From my perspective, design and anti-design can coexist or be dynamically equilibrium since experimental anti-design can arouse inspiration. The combination can help designers step beyond their comfort zones, investigate fresh approaches to aesthetic issues, and overcome creative obstacles. While neither design nor anti-design can fundamentally solve social problems, critical thinking may nonetheless be effectively applied to identify issues and appeal to raise awareness. But even if design stops at entertaining the public, designers still need to strike a balance between expressing their individuality and confronting crucial problems. Reference Tutdesign (2014). 1000 и один постер. Available at: https://tutdesign.ru/cats/art/18250-1000-i-odin-poster.html (Accessed: 31 January 2023). Martinique, E (2016). Anti-Design Movement - Aestheticism of the Modern Era. Available at: https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/anti-design-italian-movement (Accessed: 31 January 2023). Levanier, J (2022). Anti-design: the anti-rule book redefining digital design. Available at: https://99designs.co.uk/blog/design-history-movements/anti-design/ (Accessed: 31 January 2023). Muraben, B (2016). Why These Five Objects Defined the Radical Design Movement. Available at: https://www.anothermag.com/design-living/8888/why-these-five-objects-defined-the-radical-design-movement (Accessed: 31 January 2023). Pownall, A (2019). "Feminists have not understood the meaning of my work" says Gaetano Pesce after Up armchair protest. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2019/04/29/gaetano-pesce-up-chair-interview-protest-milan-design-week/ (Accessed: 31 January 2023). Iminente (2022). Festival Iminente. Available at: https://www.iminente.org/festival/ (Accessed: 31 January 2023).
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By Mariana Fernandes GMD To Design is a choice, a passion, a gift. But not to Design or even to be Anti-Design is impossible. How can one be against it when Design keeps you alive every day? Design points you in the right direction. For instance, thanks to road signs and their universal Design, you know when to not make a wrong turn (in every part of the world). Design also tells you to go on Green and stop on Red, and I think we can all agree that it's the minimalism that gets the job done here. Yes, minimalism can save your life. So why are Anti-Designers so against minimalism? Design influences even the minor choices you make on a daily basis. From choosing a shirt to a phone to a car to a house, etc. That is the personal side of Design, the Design that will not save your life but will not kill you either. That's where the whole duality of Design vs. Anti-Design comes into action. To Anti-Design means to refute the simple, the clean and the symmetrical. It aims to bring back the loud and messy approach from the early 2000s. "Anti-design" might be a much too radical term for it. One is not really against designing, it's how you get the job done that differs. How you use negative space, typeface, grid, size, colour, etc. There's a difference between not liking Design and not liking minimalism. In this case, it all comes down to preferences, in which I believe there shouldn't be a debate on what is better. To be an "Anti-designer" you need to understand what design is in the first place. Like my teacher used to say, "you first need to learn the rules in order to break them" a great example of that is Picasso and Basquiat, two artists that actually know how to draw (realistic) and who started by doing so and then proceeded to bend the rules and build their own style (cubism and neo expressionism). Even David Cason, the father of 'Grunge Design' and the biggest Anti-designer I can think of, usually advises young artists to "break the rules but still know how to respect them". What I take from here is that even if you want to be Anti-design, you still need to learn and understand the rules of Design. Ironic, right? Grunge Layout inspired by David Carson's Anti-DesignBy definition, Design is something with a purpose, it answers a need (mostly the client's needs). Anti-Design is more of an experiment as a way to express yourself, just like Art is. They are two different matters with two different goals, and just like we're not discussing if realism is better than cubism, I don't think we should be discussing why or if Anti-design is better either.
In my experience, a minimal look with a bold Sans Serif typeface on a clear grid has always done the job right, but that doesn't mean that I don't try different approaches too. There was a time when I would use Helvetica for everything, until I took each character and started deforming it, stretching it, puzzling it, and having fun with the "Mona Lisa" of all typefaces. I ended up creating my own type out of it which was praised on the very first second of the interview for my internship at Nomad studio a couple of months ago. I think the answer to this dilemma is just taking the best of both worlds and having fun with it, taking advantage of whatever is out there and using it in your own way, a way that fits your purpose and that shows your personality. Why choose one when you can have both? Yingkai Yu (BA) User Experience Design Since the pandemic struck in 2019, there has been growing evidence of critical writing on the subject of “anti-design”. With reference to your own experience and three sources, what is your perspective on the Design/Anti-design discourse? According to John Levanier, the definition of “Anti-design is a digital design approach that rejects convention and traditional aesthetics in favor of challenging, innovative layouts.” (Levanier,2022) This apparently is a meaningful approach for creative workers, it can generate new design approaches and unprecedented and memorable artwork through countless creative experiments and thinking outside the box. However, as a User Experiment Design student, what I have always been taught to remember is that the purpose of design is to serve the user’s needs sometimes we even reduce the value of the aesthetic to make the design more readable. This certainly goes against the definition of Anti-design. In the 2 years studied UX design, I found out that UX design is more commercial, less creative and aesthetic than other design majors, all our design works focus on users, and we often emphasize product’s readability, because we’d like to make our design user friendly and make them easy to access. However, anti-design challenged this point. Just like the Lounge chair by Gruppo Sturm, it turns the chair in to grass. It gets rid of the original shape and use of the lounge chair, I believe it artistic value is now higher than its practical value, this chair is now has become a successful work of art rather than a product. “Anti-design embraced various exaggerated and expressive qualities to undermine the purely functional value of an object.” (Matinique, 2016) Anti-design pursues the innovation and aesthetic of a product, it can turn product’s practical value to artistic value. This didn’t mean bad design, but in user experience design, this would not be seen on our final outcome. Now, I’m interring in a technical company, in my daily work, there are not many creative opportunities in my daily work, because we got restriction in fonts, typography and color patterns. The reason is that we have to follow the corporation image and unify whole design style, this is reasonable, and it makes my work lots easier by reduces a lot of my workload, since in my design process, idea generation and creation used to take a big part of it. All the task I have to do now is to puts different materials into a template and reorganized the text. Those restrictions will make creative work harder even resulting in unchanging design. Anti-design however can help with this situation. “To grasp the users’ attention and keep them engaged; to use it as a humorous piece; to divert from usual cookie-cutter design styles and bring complexity just for some change; if your brand is about creative fields then you can explore anti-design for your brand to make it more memorable. “(Khode, 2022)Just like Khode said,anti-design can bring positive effects to design process, sometimes changing an eyesight might help designer generates new ideas. One example is Nelson Heinemann’s website’s home page, he puts his name on the webpage, and when user scroll down, that text will not disappear. Undoubtedly, this website is not user friendly, but it certainly catches viewer’s eye and make them remember Heinemann’s name. Because of those reasons, if sometimes the goal of the products is trying to make it memorable and artistic, anti-design can be a great approach. In conclusion, I’d like to see Anti-design as a tool to help designers change an eyesight and think outside the box, so they can be more creative, find new design approach and output new creative artwork. However, in UX design anti-design is not going to be that helpful, UX designers sometimes even sacrifice products artistic value to enhance user experience. All in all, there is no such thing as good and bad design, anti-design is just a design approach but not suit for every design field.
Reference List: Khode, K. (2022) Everything to know about the anti-design movement, 9Works Design Services Market. Available at: https://www.9works.co/blog/everything-to-know-about-the-anti-design-movement (Accessed: January 31, 2023). Levanier, J. (2022) Anti-design: The anti-rule book Redefining Digital Design - 99designs, 99designs. Available at: https://99designs.com/blog/design-history-movements/anti-design/ (Accessed: January 31, 2023). Martinique, E. (2016) Anti-design movement - aestheticism of the modern era, Widewalls. Available at: https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/anti-design-italian-movement (Accessed: January 31, 2023). Nelson Heinemann Nelson Heinemann. Available at: https://nelsonheinemann.com/ (Accessed: January 31, 2023). Sturm, G. (1966) lounge chair, https://www.connox.com/categories/furniture/seating-objects.html. (Accessed: January 31, 2023). Artificial Intelligence: Anti or Pro design? The role of AI, during and post a covid world1/31/2023 Carolina Fernandes Graphic Branding and Identity 1/2/2023 Movements related to the concept of ‘Anti’ have come after intense periods in history, usually post war, as a response to something, challenging conventions and ideals at their time. They often came with a collective on revolutionary inventions. As 2022 unfolded, humanity was a testimony to a panoply of historical events, most with negative and heavy connotations and true impact in communities, nations. From the infamous year of 2020 and the covid-19 pandemic, to the regression of women’s rights with the assassination of Mahsa Amini, to the invasion of Ukraine, to the passing of Queen Elizabeth the II, to the world cup being hosted in a country where lgbtq+ rights are not protected: these are all events that marked the last few years. Designers are now confronted with the rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence - a tool that can make or break the industry in the upcoming years. I aim to analyse the role of Artificial Intelligence and its polemic relation to Anti-design, positioning it in a during and post a covid world. I’ll be speculating what this means for the future of the world in a post-pandemic context regarding design going forward. Take Expressionism and Dada movements: both emerging in a post WWI context, presenting distorted notions, reimagining a new world without much logic or reason. Simultaneously, this was the time Einstein published the Theory of Relativity, Edison demonstrated the first talking motion picture, and the first automobile electrical ignition system was invented- all changing the course of everyday life for many. During the beginning of covid, most of us were isolated (physically and emotionally). During this time, we observed an increase of interactive technologies, helping fill the lack of interaction and communication. AI and VR were at its peak growth wise, having now progressed as being considered a design trend for 2023. Much like Anti-design, AI has made us consider our roles and future. Anti-design was known for dismissing standard design principles, like symmetry, function, legibility - it challenged the conventional in an almost brutal way. Likewise, Artificial Intelligence is majorly discussed as something that will take designers jobs. Midjourney is an AI software that creates imagery. I tried to make several experiments and concluded that a lot of images. Some did create immersive worlds but didn’t quite reach the level of intricacy of human-produced ones. At the same time, I found this a great tool for anyone transforming an idea into a visual, for a film background or storyboard. That software pushes your imagination and supports it by presenting different solutions at the speed of thinking of ideas. In this case, I was able to confirm first hand that AI proved to be helpful to the creative process, yet it didn’t quite reach a human level at that time. Just a few months later, the quality of the images became impressive. It is hard to predict if Artificial intelligence can break the role of creatives. It exists as anti-design for those not in favour. It might facilitate designers' jobs, just like the inventions coexisting with the post-war period, as described in a recent article from It’s Nice That: ‘If these tools are applied to creative work in the right way, they can help creatives improve their practices and, ultimately, the world.’ (Angelo, 2023) The world and the creative industry is constantly growing, and new tools will arise in coexistence with periods such as a post covid world. AI proved to be positive during isolation for many worldwide, so perhaps AI is on the positive side of the spectrum of new disruptive inventions, like the dada movement and anti-design was at their time. In the short term AI might take a few jobs, but maybe it will create new ones and make our lives easier by facilitating the way those jobs and the current jobs are executed. Bibliography And Agency (2022) Anti-design. Available at: https://and-agency.com/nl/blog/anti-design (Accessed: 17 January 2023). Barbican (2022) Postwar Modern. Available at: https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2022/event/postwar-modern-new-art-in-britain-1945-1965 (Accessed: 26 January 2023). Brody, N. (2010) Neville Brody: Anti-design Festival Manifesto. Available at: https://designmanifestos.org/neville-brody-anti-design-festival-manifesto/ (Accessed: 17 January 2023). Dal Bello, R. (2020) Citizen First, Designer Second. First Edition. United Kingdom: Counter-Print. Design after capitalism (Unknown) Anti-design. Available at: https://designaftercapitalism.org/anti-design (Accessed: 16 January). Losasso, M. (2022) The return of the 90s website. Available at: https://whynow.co.uk/read/anti-design-the-return-of-the-90s-website (Accessed:17 January 2023). Martinique, E. (2016) Anti-Design Movement - Aestheticism of the Modern Era. Available at: https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/anti-design-italian-movement (Accessed: 17 January 2023). Moma (2022) Abstract Expressionism. Available at: https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/themes/abstract-expressionism/ (Accessed: 26 January 2023). Signe Magazine (2020) Understanding post-war and contemporary art. Available at: https://signemagazine.com/artanddesign/understanding-post-war-and-contemporary-art/ (Accessed: 26 January). Tate (2023) Aftermath: Art in the wake of World War One . Available at: https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/aftermath/exhibition-guide (Accessed: 26 January 2023). Tate (2023) Nine Ways Artists responded to the First World War . Available at: https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/aftermath/nine-ways-artists-responded-first-world-war Accessed:26 January 2023). The Art story (unknown) Movements Timeline . Available at: https://www.theartstory.org/section-movements-timeline.htm Accessed: 26 January 2023). Williams, M. (2021) The Rise of Anti design. Available at: https://www.creativereview.co.uk/anti-digital-graphic-design/ (Accessed: 26 January 2023). Flora Lu - BA Illustration and Visual Media I’m Flora Lu, currently study in BA Illustration and Visual Media with the placement year of Diploma in Professional Studies. My major pathway is focus on illustration and animation, also work on some projects of moving image and Virtual Reality. Thinking through about “anti-design” The definition of anti-design is “an approach that bucks the rules of conventional design in favor of challenging experimental layouts and reacts traditional aesthetics. ” Also “the last thing that expect to use on a design project.” For a rising number of digital designer, it is the go-to aesthetic of choice, even if it is defined by its lack of aesthetic. The name of “anti-design” might sound like an aggressive stance, but in most cases anti-design is not about negativity. Some argue that it is the strongest advocate for the users and audience, seeking to create memorable experiences that both respect and challenge their intelligence as it also doesn’t replace “design” with nothing. Instead, anti-design seeks to expand what signs can be, encouraging viewers to reconsider what kind of design constitutes beauty and usability (Figure 1). Anti-design convention would be more accurate that only describe as “anti-design” by this word might be a bit of a misnomer. For something which a bit wordy to say. Anti-design is not seeking destruction, or ugliness for the sake of ugliness, but to offer an alternative to accepted design standards. What is “anti-design” for me ? As an illustrator or designer, refer to my experience anti-design may be a good thing for illustrators. We can put aside mainstream and traditional aesthetics and find our own styles without being dominated by consumerism. When I create illustrations, I never follow the style and way of “conventional design”, so I have adhere to working on hand-drawings for many years, which is meaningful to me. Put it here which just like the description of “anti-design”. Although I’m starting to create with digital and following the “conventional design”, I’m still trying to build up my own style. “Anti-design” for me, just like I added Chinese culture elements to my DPS project/Live Briefing creation. What impressed me was one previous Live Briefing Project for LEGO. I abandoned LEGO’s traditional design concept of “only beautiful and exquisite building blocks”, added the elements of storytelling Chinese history/legend with illustration books, and formed a contrast to LEGO’s previous “Chinese style” conventional design (Figure 2). This is an example of “anti-design” that I can give based on my personal experience in DPS. Anti-design communicates about our own style and brand, as creating a unique and authored experience. The value of design: Between pandemic struck in 2019 and post-epidemic As we enter the post-epidemic after three years of pandemic, it’s tempting to wonder what our life will be like once the pandemic is over. During the global pandemic, some critics reflected that “design” did not contribute very much at all to the catastrophe and a reappraisal began. How is design industry going to be affected?Before and after the pandemic, how valuable do we perceive design to be ? The pandemic has heightened the people’s awareness of what is true and what is not. They can easily tell what website or social media profile to trust based on how the visuals looks like. As simple as proper usage of fonts and colors will not escape the scrutiny. Visual design is a vital tool for communication. There are some social media pages that invest in storytelling using artistic and creative illustrations aimed at showing the brighter side of internet. Great examples of designing positively in a time of crisis include those that give hop to anxiety-ridden communities, and visual content that comforts and instructs people on what to do at a time like this. I remember after the pandemic outbreak in Britain, I stay in London for a long time of lockdown as continuing my study. The impact is huge, but creation and visual arts can appease my emotions in this uneasy period. As an illustrator, I think this creative process is valuable as communication during the pandemic, to designers and audience or whatever. “Design” definitely contribute very much at all to this catastrophe and a reappraisal began. Reference list: Levanier, J. (2022) Anti-design: The anti-rule book Redefining Digital Design - 99designs, 99designs. Johnny Levanier. Available at: https://99designs.com/blog/design-history-movements/anti-design/ (Accessed: January 30, 2023). Adams, B., Marenko, B. and Traganou, J. (2021) Design in the pandemic: Dispatches from the early months, Taylor & Francis. Barbara Adams, Betti Marenko, Jilly Traganou. Available at: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17547075.2021.1873667 (Accessed: January 30, 2023). Lombardo, G. (2022) Imagining a post-pandemic world with three designers, Medium. DeMagSign. Available at: https://medium.com/demagsign/imagining-a-post-pandemic-world-with-three-designers-7ae3c8f30be4 (Accessed: January 30, 2023). Cab, S. (2021) The importance of visual design in the post-pandemic world, Digiters, a tech service provider in Geneva, Switzerland and around the World. Spencer Cab. Available at: https://digiters.co/founders-notes/the-importance-of-visual-design-in-the-post-pandemic-world/ (Accessed: January 30, 2023). Stringer, L. (2020) Shaping what's next: The role of design in pandemics, Work Design Magazine. Leigh Stringer. Available at: https://www.workdesign.com/2020/11/shaping-whats-next-the-role-of-design-in-pandemics/ (Accessed: January 30, 2023). Emily Duong | BA (Hons) Graphic Branding and IdentityAnti-design was a movement that originated in Italy between 1966-1980. According to art history archive (Moffat, 2011), “The movement emphasized striking colours, scale distortion (i.e giant chairs that made you look small), and used irony and kitsch”, the designs were opposing to Modernism as they focussed more on functionality than the aesthetic. In contrast, Modernism was about ‘form follows function’. Anti-Designers felt that “objects should be temporary, as quick to throw away and be replaced by something new and more functional” (Moffat, 2011). It was a rebellious art form, resulting in interesting and bold formats with mixed bright colours. It created groundbreaking designs as they were literally breaking the traditional design elements such as: hierarchy, grid, scale and colour theory. The characteristics of Anti-Design are asymmetric, overcrowd, non-existent grids, mismatch elements and odd colours. According to 99design, Anti-designers are “seeking to create memorable experiences that both respect and challenge their intelligence” (Levanier, 2022), this allows them to be explorative and extend the view of design, rather let it stay stuck in the normality of Modernism’s timeless style. An Anti-design example: The Selene chair by Vico Magistertetti (1966) manufactured by Artemide (Moffat, 2011). It was a new creation of stackable chairs to enable easy storage and optimise space. The radical design was complex but proved to be useful and allowed users to participate in the design. As Widewalls magazine stated, “Anti-designers wanted to make people think about the object they were buying” (Martinique, 2016). This demonstrated the power of interaction and its importance; it definitely was impactful on users and made them think more. However, due to the Anti-Design idea of generating more and creating products to be replaced later, turns it into maximalism and increase consumerism. The limitation of the movement is that it promotes more waste. Additionally, in the minimalism packaging trend, there is a growing concept of refill packaging to be more environmentally friendly. One example would be the ‘SKKN’ line by Kim Kardashian. It portrays how a refill design has gone wrong. The branding is geometric and minimal, similar to the Modernist features. The cleanser refill is identical to the original packaging except for the product case. There is no difference between the original and ‘refill’ product as they are both mass produced using the same materials. Other brands that I have seen reduce the packaging a lot more for refills to save cost and resources. The purpose of the case is to look aesthetic on the bathroom counter but lacks a useful function. Making this an example that simple can also be wasteful. I am not against the minimalism style and refills, but I feel that the refill design can be improved; anti-designs work well in these scenarios as would create better alternatives and solutions. But who said single-use packaging is bad? A biodegradable water exists! This is an Anti-Packaging example: It is more like a pre-recycling concept than an Anti-Design. It is different compared to the conventional bottled water. From dieline, the idea of pre-recycling is “a way to eliminate waste before it’s even created.” (Freeman, 2016) The Ooho edible water appears like a transparent jelly, and provides a large drop of biodegradable water. This is an example of innovative Anti-Packaging, moving towards a sustainable and eco-friendly environment. In conclusion, the Anti-Design movement can be seen as a waste but it is innovative, meaning it will strive more efficiently, by optimising materials/products better. The rebellious approach to design encourages exploration and experimentation. Challenging the intuitive objects of everyday life led to creating a new packaging for water, as plastic bottles are something we are still trying to reduce the usage of. Minimalist designs create organised and clean environments, which is beneficial for our lives to work quickly with less distractions - giving us more time for other things and be more intentional. I believe Anti-design is a good concept to help innovate existing packagings as there are many more that are still inconvenient such as, Capri-Sun - it has the same packaging but with a paper straw which makes it even difficult to use. “Anti-design seeks to expand what design can be, encouraging viewers to reconsider what constitutes beauty and usability” (Levanier, 2022)
Isabella Edwards - BA Illustration and Visual Media Since the pandemic struck in 2019, there has been growing evidence of critical writing on the subject of “anti-design”. With reference to your own experience and three sources, what is your perspective on the Design/Anti-design discourse? Anti-design can be described as a “design approach that rejects conventions and traditional aesthetics”. There has been a growing amount of critical writing and a rise in the movement since the pandemic due to the shift in brands and companies opting for a more minimalistic design approach amongst rising trends, which inevitably takes away from issues such as diversity and inclusivity. These minority groups, such as the LGBTQ+ community have used anti-design as a tool to enhance their voices in an authentic manner, paralleling to their movement of breaking out of social norms and making their own space in society. Through my experience as a young queer designer, I have noticed a shift in attitude toward design and I recognise that these trends do not challenge the status quo or bring about originality, but in fact, make the design more rigid and goes against the very idea of creativity and inclusivity. In many corporations today we see them use a “safe and lazy” (Gabert-Doyon, 2021) style of design in their illustrations. The intentions behind the design is to make it “relatable” and to express “everyday stories with simple shapes…and minimal line work” (Railton, 2021) but this inevitably takes away from the uniqueness and character of the brand. Though this may not be their intention as many corporate art companies “use vivid non-human skin tones” (Railton, 2021) it does not tackle the issue of inclusivity and diversity but is some form of “token diversity”. (Facebook: Algeria, 2018) This may be because their ambitions under a capitalist regime are to not think about the real-world issues of the public but simply care for shareholders’ interests to boost their profits. This is inevitably reflected in their poor design choices of a lack of authenticity and true ambition in the brand and the design. Further exemplifying this message is the way corporate art as overly joyful and “depicts a world whose problems are already solved” (Gabert-Doyon, 2021). The poor design does not reflect the brand’s values or history but simply follows the theme of “over-active characters” where people are “forced to smile 24/7, with jobs and hobbies that seemingly never end” (Railton, 2021). The ignorance of these designs makes them feel out of touch with modern society. Design basics are still important to lay the foundation for other movements and developments, like anti-design. Anti-design is increasingly popular with various movements and minorities, like the queer community as it coincides with their goals and ambitions for the movement is not “breaking the rules but…re-interpreting” (Khode, 2022) them to spark a change with societal expectations and rigid norms. ‘Moross Who’ (2021) Aries Moross This can be seen in the work of artist Aries Moross, using their art to express their identity such as expressing their identity in ‘Moross Who’. Through recently expressing their identity of being non-binary they said that by using their name now know as Aries (formlay Kate) shows “how people understand who you are and it can also be how you create space for yourself to be seen”. Redefining society must come with a constant flow of new ideas, which Aries has shown throughout their career as a creative, transforming their art from bold and colourful graphics to a more expressive anti-design. Like with our identities, we must break out of a conventional mold and find their own identity, anti-design must adapt and grow and form new rules to design. Since 2019, when the pandemic began I have found time to understand myself and my own identity through design. The pandemic was a time of mass isolation, loneliness and a shared feeling of solidarity. After the lockdowns, people began to rediscover the world and go out and explore themselves and new experiences. With the drastic change in the world’s feelings of renewal and discovery came the rise of anti-design as it reflected people’s newfound freedom to find “experiences, meaningful interactions, mystery, the unexpected.” (Levanier, 2022) Despite this, much of the design field still felt stagnant and followed trends of “minimalism and simplicity” (Railton, 2021) but what people really wanted was what anti-design had to offer, it stood to “seeks to expand what design can be, encouraging viewers to reconsider what constitutes beauty and usability.” (Levanier, 2022) This is why my experience with anti-design has been a positive and liberating one. Not only have I been able to express my identity as a queer designer, but it has allowed me to view the world through a different lens and enabled me to express my feelings and introspection in design. In my opinion, this element of anti-design is vital to allow minorities and movements to have a voice in society. In conclusion, I think that anti-design is a useful method to express what is contained by design and societal agendas. It is a tool to enable people to express a form of identity, and culture and inject their own sense of self in it. Despite this, we must remember that it-design would not be eligible without the original design foundations and basics. Only from learning this can we transform it into something that does not bring about segregation but an understanding of all perspectives, cultures, and people when creating new illustrations and designs. Reference list
Facebook: Algeria (2018). MUSIC EVENTS QUICK PROMOTIONS. Available at: https://jsweisart.com/facebook-alegria [Accessed 26 Jan. 2023]. Gabert-Doyon, J. (2021). Why does every advert look the same? Blame Corporate Memphis. [online] Wired UK. Available at: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/corporate-memphis-design-tech. Glover, E. (2022). Why Web Designers Are Embracing Anti-Design | Built In. [online] builtin.com. Available at: https://builtin.com/design-ux/anti-design. Harrison-Baker, S. (2021). ‘Anti-Brand’, ‘Anti-Design’ or is it all just a ‘trend’? [online] WAYS OF WORKING. Available at: http://www.diplomainprofessionalstudies.com/202021/anti-brand-anti-design-or-is-it-all-just-a-trend1681165 [Accessed 26 Jan. 2023]. Khode, K. (2022). Everything to know about the anti-design movement - 9Works Design Services Market. [online] www.9works.co. Available at: https://www.9works.co/blog/everything-to-know-about-the-anti-design-movement. Levanier, J. (2022). Anti-design: the anti-rule book redefining digital design. [online] 99designs. Available at: https://99designs.co.uk/blog/design-history-movements/anti-design/. Moross, A. (2021). Moross Who. Available at: https://www.ariesmoross.com/Moross-Who [Accessed 26 Jan. 2023]. Railton, M. (2021). Why Do Some People Hate The ‘Corporate Art Style’ (and What Can You Do About It)? [online] Explanimate! Available at: https://www.explanimate.com.au/why-do-some-people-hate-the-corporate-art-style/. Smith, L. (2022). A practical approach to queering design. [online] Shaping Design Blog. Available at: https://www.editorx.com/shaping-design/article/queering-design-john-voss [Accessed 26 Jan. 2023]. Maria Lorena Ortega- BA Graphic Branding and Identity We live in a fast-paced world, where innovation is at the core centre. When we talk about fashion design, innovation plays a big role. The fashion audience is increasingly demanding more, especially the audience of haute-couture and designer brands, as most consumers want to wear unique and stand out. Therefore, I believe innovation is key to meet the audience needs and key for a fashion house to remain relevant and contemporary in this fast-paced world. In my opinion, when we refer to innovation in terms of fashion design, we are talking about disruptive designs in relation to classic / neutral fashion, the ability to be creative outside the boundaries and to challenge the conventional and traditional aesthetics of design to create something completely bizarre and creative, yet functional. Which can sound similar to what is considered anti-design, a movement that started in 1960 in Italy that challenged the modernist style by introducing striking and bold colours, embracing ornamentation and decoration. Characterised by kitsch, irony, and the distortion of scale with the function of subverting the conventional way of what people thought about design, with the purpose of creating pieces that were meant to stand out for their extravagance and to be looked at and enjoyed. Therefore, would a haute couture brand or a fashion designer who takes an innovative approach towards design and produces distinctive and uncommon designs be considered anti-design? For instance, Virgil Abloh. Virgil was one of the world’s most disruptive and innovative voices and was best known for being Louis Vuitton Men’s Artistic Director. He was the seminal boundary breaker in a notoriously bordered business. “I operate by my own rules, in my own logic, and I’m not fearful.” (Abloh, 2021) With his own street style, Virgil masterfully altered the rules of luxury fashion with cutting-edge designs while upholding the history and heritage of Louis Vuitton. The highlight of his career with Louis Vuitton was his 2020-2021 show where he looked to conventional dress norms and reinterpreted them under the term of "streetwear". The outcome was a wide range of classy styles with innovative and unique details. Louis Vuitton Fall-Winter 2020-2021 Collection A more radical brand who has broken completely the rules of fashion design is Balenciaga for example. Balenciaga has recently shifted from its heritage roots to the opposite of what the traditional fashion industry stands for, becoming a meme of haute couture, inspired by the sarcasm and humour of Gen Z. The brand has transformed the way the fashion industry views exclusivity, by making it less about who can afford it and more on who actually buys and wears it. And through its distinctive and original designs and concepts Balenciaga has resonated with current generations looking for something cool and different to stand out from the typical styles of other fashion houses. Balenciaga Crocs Balenciaga Resort 2022 Balenciaga IKEA Bag Finally, The Met Gala. The Metropolitan Museum of Art hosts an annual fundraising gala celebrating the Costume Institute’s magnificent new exhibition on a changing theme. Here the guests wear extravagant and disruptive outfits designed by the top designers and fashion houses. The revolutionary dress of Rihanna at the Met Gala of 2017 by Comme des Garçons In conclusion, now days there are many designers and fashion houses that are opting for innovative approaches towards design. Some as Balenciaga, more radical than others. But I wouldn’t consider them anti-design as I strongly believe that design innovates and should not be repetitive, but unique. Therefore, I admire fashion houses that have distinctive styles as it is what makes them stand out and stay relevant within new generations, while keeping at the core the main essence and historic heritage of the brands. However, I do believe that the anti-design movement has strongly influenced the fashion industry now days and has encouraged designers such as Virgil Abloh to have a strong voice when it comes to make a statement in fashion and become world influential designer. In relation to the Met gala, I do consider that is an event that represents what the anti-design movement stands for influencing the fashion industry. It is an event that by encouraging designers to create disruptive designs, opens the doors to new forms and different possibilities of innovative design. References
Balenciaga: Leading the anti-fashion revolution? (2020) Available at: https://thinkalt.co.uk/balenciaga-leading-the-anti-fashion-revolution/ (Accessed: 29 January 2023) Cheng, A. (2017) ‘Rihanna Wins the 2017 Met Gala With This Insane Comme des Garçons Dress’, Glamour, 1/May. Available at: https://www.glamour.com/story/met-gala-2017-rihanna-comme-des-garcons-dress (Accessed: 29 January 2023). Khode, K. (2022) ‘Everything to know about the anti-design movement’, 9works, 23/December. Available at: https://www.9works.co/blog/everything-to-know-about-the-anti-design-movement (Accessed: 29 January 2023). Leitch, L. (2021) ‘Virgil Abloh Discusses How Skateboarding Has Influenced His Career’, GQ Middle East, 16/June. Available at: https://www.gqmiddleeast.com/culture/virgil-abloh-unpacks-his-passion-for-skateboarding (Accessed: 29 January 2023). Leitch, L. (2021) ‘Virgil Abloh’s Influence Will Be Remembered Well Beyond Fashion’, Vogue Britain, 29/November. Available at: https://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/article/virgil-abloh-impact-on-fashion (Accessed: 29 January 2023). Marain, A. (2021) ‘How Virgil Abloh redefined the codes of Louis Vuitton’s menswear collection in just three years’, Vogue France, 3/December. Available at: https://www.vogue.fr/vogue-hommes-en/galerie/virgil-abloh-louis-vuittons-menswear-collections (Accessed: 29 January 2023). Martinique, E. (2016) ‘Anti-Design Movement - Aestheticism of the Modern Era’, Widewalls, 25/June. Available at: https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/anti-design-italian-movement (Accessed: 29 January 2023). Selina Toh | BA User Experience Design
As a designer, one of the key steps in our process is finding inspiration, as a user experience (UX) designer, unique inspiration is even harder to come by. Today’s internet is boring and bland. Everything looks the same, generic fonts, identical layouts and the absence of unique identity. UX designers have grown accustomed to following the same set of rules, principles and law to create what has been defined as a user-friendly look and experience. The UX strategy has been reduced to a systematic and predictable approach to achieve the ultimate goal of UX today, meeting users' needs and providing effective solutions to enhance user experience. A classic UX process includes extensive research, data analysis, solution design and testing, this systematic approach serves in formulating practical design methods and providing the best user experience. Because of how UX research dictates design decisions, the look, layout, etc, many modern websites and applications, ecommerce, social media, product pages, marketing landing pages, blogs, portfolios and even video sharing platforms have conformed to the standard layouts prevalent in each industry, leading to my cry that everything looks the same. In my journey, transitioning from a UX student to a real world UX designer I often find myself questioning if UX is indeed a creative field, the systematic and predictable approach is quickly creeping in, killing the creativity in UX. The topic of debate in question in this essay is Anti-design and I believe it is a philosophy that can break the formulated structure of UX today, pushing UX designers out of the UX norms into exploring creative and riskier solutions that pushes the boundaries of UX today. Anti-Design “It’s taking the principles of fine art and that ability to be creative outside of boundaries, and applying them to a world that has historically been very structured.” as described by Julia Tylor, who works as the creative director of design consulting firm Throughline. The conventional and traditional UX aesthetics of these days is usually simplicity. We are taught that simple equates to intuitive and frictionless design, the key to good UX. The idea is that while users want websites that are aesthetically pleasing, they also don't want their journey on the website to be disrupted by distractions or obstacles put in their way, meaning to avoid using any extraneous design elements. During a talk at the 2017 AIGA Digital Design Conference by product manager Daniel Kalick, Simplicity becomes a sort of assumption that it’s what every human wants in every experience everywhere. Anti-design refutes that notion by exploring other kinds of experiences one could get out of being online. “Think about the best experiences, or the most memorable experiences, that you’ve had in your life — first date, a festival or a concert, a game, a vacation. I don’t think that what is memorable about any of those things is their simplicity,” Kalick said. “I think the point anti-design is making is that we don’t always want simplicity. We want to be challenged, we want complexity.” Anti-design in the context of UX can be a great way for companies to communicate their brand, building a memorable digital experience and interacting with the users in fresh and engaging ways. There is no definition of what makes a good or bad design but “It should make someone think and feel something,” Hoefkens said. “If it’s being used to communicate the right message, in the right place, for the right audience then it’s a good piece of anti-design.” When everything looks like “good design” (Adobe Wireframe with Khoi Vinh) https://open.spotify.com/show/5ykZ7DGfxkdhuCvn3jwP3X?go=1&sp_cid=40b1ddfa908748c0cdfe283b7abfec48&utm_source=embed_player_p&utm_medium=desktop User Experience | The rise of Anti-Design https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1CLA2MgvrA Yuqing Pan / BA Graphic and Media Design The aesthetic of modern graphic design is defined as clarity and simplicity after World War. Bauhaus, De Stijl, and Swiss International provide designers with design principles and elements that function as self-correction tools. From grid systems to legible but not decorative sans-serif, from elementary geometry to dynamic asymmetry, all these assets build a foundation of design education. After mastering basic principles, designers can park in a safe harbour of aesthetic values. On the contrary, anti-design is about low-fi images, disordered typography, or colour palette with strong contrast. It is believed that a professional graphic designer would not consort with ugliness, untidiness and disorder. Traced back to the 1970s, DIY aesthetic that appeared during punk movement featured grainy black-and-white images, cut-n-paste letterforms and photocopied printing. Its chaotic typography puts no effort into creating an enjoyable reading experience, completely ignoring the holy rule 'emphasise clarity over any other element' by Moholy-Nagy. Ransom note style has become a symbol of defiance for decades. The visual language of punk proves the power of rule-breaking design in shaping culture. Ugliness is no longer a pure taboo in design. Steven Heller wrote in his article, "Designers used to stand for beauty and order. Now beauty is passé and ugliness is smart." More and more design cases appearing in recent years prove designers' eagerness to explore this intelligent track. The traditional standard requires typographers to do their job following handwriting habits and taste in calligraphy to achieve a perfect balance. Latin-America-based type foundry Latinotype subtly break the rules in their Magazine Grotesque published in 2020. The outstroke extends beyond body in some letters. Even though considered as the fixture of the 'ugly' type, the overbite 'a' and the underbite 'g' creates a unique awkwardness and humour. Another imperfect typeface example is about ink trap. Ink trap was born to solve undesirable spreading under terrible printing conditions last century. To avoid excess ink would soak outwards and ruin the crisp edge, Matthew Carter cut the inside corner deeply and made a slim junction. The typeface has a strange silhouette as rugged as a random paper cut, but it performs excellently in small size. Now lots of type designers inspired by this special strategy include it in their designs. ABC Whyte from type foundry Dinamo revives and rethinks about ink trap in the context of variable font technology. Combining curt and curvy lines, ink trap in Whyte brings an impressive personality to the typeface. Yui Takada, probably the most controversial designer in Japan, is also a fierce supporter of ugly design. His style featuring violent contrast colours, twisted typography, and intentionally strange layout, is directly named as 'new ugliness' — seemingly unmethodical design results from his observation of street design. Rather than creating decent work, He values the urge to express and a sincere attitude behind the creation of people who never receive design education. His shift from aesthetic design to ugliness leaves a deafening question: Are we going to obey the establishment forever, or jump out from the design formulary to absorb something new? Ugly design questions the assumptions and values underlying tradition in the form of intentional untidiness. The embrace of ugliness promotes critical thinking and experimental working method in graphic design realms. It is an opportunity of creating a new visual language. In an era when people are weary of disciplined and sugarcoated aesthetics, ugly design joins the carnival of celebrating flaws, manifesting its power in shaping culture, and leading us to a realism playground. While ugly design provides a fantastic opportunity to break, to explore, to innovate in graphic design world, is it a possible threat to the creation process? New technology, like big data, has already changed the way we get information. People cannot stop switching Tiktok and refreshing Instagram once they connect to the Internet. Audiences nowadays might be more design-literate than ever but also more short-tempered and impatient than ever. To please these irritable eyes, designers, willful or not, are more likely to create frenetic pastiches. Mike White also suggests that the rapid stream could confuse the research process. The original design insight tends to be diluted or even misunderstood as its content description would not be saved and read with the visual reference. When a particular visual language is singled out as a trend, it is worth doubting that its critical core can still be preserved. Bibliography Triggs, T. (2006). Scissors and Glue: Punk Fanzines and the Creation of a DIY Aesthetic. Journal of Design History, 19(1), Pp.69-83. Available at: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3838674 (Accessed June 2, 2021). Worley, M. (2015). Punk, Politics and British (fan)zines, 1976-84: 'While the world was dying, did you wonder why?" History Workshop Journal, Pp.76-106. Available at: http://www.jstor.org/stable/ 43917310 (Accessed June 2, 2021). Eskilson, S. (2007). Graphic design : a new history. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press. Trabucco-Campos, A. (2021). The case for ugly design. [online] Fast Company. Available at: https://www.fastcompany.com/90672231/the-case-for-ugly-design. Bennett, H. (2021). Is graphic design too trendy? [online] www.itsnicethat.com. Available at: https://www.itsnicethat.com/features/is-graphic-design-too-trendy-graphic-design-080221. TOKYO TDC (2020). TDCDAY2020: Yui Takada / Presentation, Chiharu Watabe / Message. [online] www.youtube.com. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnuIAW2IjII [Accessed 29 Jan. 2023]. |
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