‘Is it possible to describe any aspect of
graphic design today as postmodern(ist)?’
Lisa
Collier // BAGD: OUGD401 // Context of Practice
Since the mid-late twentieth
century, Postmodernism is more commonly referred to as the most controversial
of all the art and design movements of that era, exhausting all concepts of
innovation, individualism and style. The definition according to the Oxford
Dictionaries for ‘Postmodernism’ is a late-twentieth century style and concept
in the arts, architecture and criticism, which represents a departure from
modernism and is characterised by the self-conscious use of earlier style and
conventions, a mixing of different artistic styles and media and general
distrust of theories [Oxford English Dictionary, 2011]. Postmodernism became
the unstable combination of theoretical and theatrical, bringing with it a
sense of freedom and self-awareness to art and design often through humourism
and irrational stereotypes. (Longo. R, 2011)
According
to Nigel Wheale (1995) Modernity is defined as the social condition brought
about by the development of the Western world’s characteristic economic
formation. He also believes that weak postmodernism welcomes the failure of
analytical rationality and moral argument and accepts this groundlessness as a
reason to act out of a pure relativism implied by postmodern thinking, whereas
strong postmodernism calls for even greater analysis and reflection on the
nature of modernity’s failure through self-critical practices, whether in
philosophy, the arts, or politics.
Postmodernism has become a
response to modernism over time, and both modernism and postmodernism are now
two of the most dominant and diverse terms applied to the twentieth century
culture. However postmodernism takes on a much ‘less-serious’ approach, and is
used increasingly more throughout the 21st Century. Although
postmodernism and modernism are very different things, some factors of the two
overlay; modern life, technology, new materials and communication. Modernism
was an expression of technology at the time, whereas postmodernism is a
reaction to the conditions of modernism.
Modernism is associated with
experimentation, innovation and individualism whereas postmodernism contradicts
these views and a postmodern artist would argue that there is no point in
experimenting because it’s all been done before. The future is all about
working collaboratively. This can be seen within the modern day design movement
and how it now forces us to work more collaboratively in a 21st
century environment. We see postmodern design around us in everyday life today,
primarily within architecture and famous buildings such as Phillip Johnson’s
Sony Building in New York City, and Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim museum, Bilbao,
who’s design and iconic status has overshadowed the modern original by Frank
Lloyd Wright.
Double coding is a
dominant trait of classical postmodernist design. Both Jencks and Hutcheon
refer to postmodernism as ‘doubleness’ or ‘duplicity’ within their writings.
Double coding meant that postmodernist designs conveyed two different meanings,
understandings or beliefs. In the example of the Sony building in New York, it
is both a tall skyscraper representing modern art and illustrating juxtaposition
to modern technology as well as the contradictory elements at the top of the
architectural design, which exemplify classical relic. Irony is another common
trait within postmodernism, probably best displayed in Charles Moore’s Piazza
d’Italia (1978). Moore uses aspects of both Italian renaissance and Roman
antiquity. He uses the two ironically by covering the pillars with steel.
In the late 1960’s and early 1970’s we saw a
vast range of experimental styles within postmodern design reflecting
architectural elements of the past. Hans Hollein’s façade for the Venice
Biennale in 1980 demonstrates a ‘presence of the past’ within his design. The
piece has ‘street of styles’ at it’s centre named the Strada Novissima. He
designed a set of historical columns beginning with an archaic garden scene,
expanding to classical ruins and on to a more modern skyscraper. This approach
to art was attacked at the time by critics, primarily Philosopher Jürgen
Habermas, who claimed it was a regression of artistic attitudes. Habermas
stated that it presented an ‘avant-garde of reversed fronts’.
Exaggeration, Vivid colour
and theatricality soon became the style statement of the 1980’s. What had begun,
as a radical fringe movement became the new style and appearance that people
craved. The greatest phase of this next stage in the postmodern era became
Posters and magazines. Postmodern graphics involved the use of bricolage,
fragmentation and quotation. Bricolage was a cut and paste technique which was
adopted by many important graphic designers and artists at the time (Longo. R,
2011). Postmodern bricolage can look like the modernist collages that preceded
it. Anthropologist Claude Levi Strauss defined the two-tone colour as someone
working with ‘oddments left over from human endeavours’.
Tadanori Yokoo is a Japanese
Graphic Designer born in 1936. He reflects on postmodernist elements within his
designs and he became a pioneer of postmodern appropriation and bricolage. He
became famous for his poster designs created for Tatsumi Hijikata and the
Garumella Dance Company. The two posters were created three years apart and
show how he encircles back on own tracks, the second design cannibalises the
first. He uses the same images throughout both designs, tweaking minor parts of
his work, which allows us to see how he uses his past reflection and use of
postmodernist aspects to inspire his more modern pieces. The sun is taken from
the Japanese flag and the pair of nudes are inspired from a 16th century French
painting. These two features appear in both his designs, however more prominent
in the earlier piece than the later. His work was created in 1965 and then
re-designed in 1968. He used a screen print techniques to produce both his
designs.
Tadanori's designs reflect many aspects of postmodern
art. His pieces show a contrast with one another reflecting his 'humour' by
using two nude women touching one another's nipples as the main focal piece. He
creates a very controversial feel within his designs by placing the Sun taken
from the Japanese flag (a very serious element) and placing two nude women in
front of it. He has also clouded over their faces giving this 'hidden' identity
approach to the design. The first piece created in 1965 (featured on the left
below) is much more classic and follows typical conventions of a Postmodern
design by using vivid bold colours and humorous or ironic imagery. In his
second piece created in 1968 these aspects are much more disguised, however
still typically postmodern. Because of his use of colour and postmodern
characteristics he is often described as the 'Japanese Andy Warhol'.
Modern day
artists such as Jackson Pollock and Marcel Duchamp are great influences in the postmodern
discipline. The public became contempt when the Australian Government, using
taxpayer’s money, bought Pollock’s work ‘Blue Poles’. They shared a mixed
emotion of both anger and disgust. However, now they have grown to love his
controversy and style as his work has become a great success. Marcel Duchamp is
one of the largest names in the postmodern industry, one of his most famous
designs was a humour based version of Leonardo Da Vinci’s ‘Mona Lisa’ which is
very contentious and bridges the gap between modernism and society today. (Salberg.
D, 2009)
Charles Jencks believes that postmodernism
is not necessarily more mature or better than its 'parent' form: Modernism. It
is just, however, here to stay. He believes that this is the reason for the
increasing number of books we see in today's culture based around Postmodernism
compared with the number we see relating to Modernism. Whilst Charles
Jencks discusses how postmodernism has become increasingly more popular than
it’s predecessor modernism, Glenn Ward however reviews the way in which others
have moved on from postmodernism or at least still remain skeptical about its
usefulness. He quotes, ‘Postmodernism has led such a complicated life that it
is perhaps more accurate to speak of the existence of several postmodernisms. On the one hand, it
continues to circulate in popular culture. On the other hand, it remains a
controversial subject. For some, postmodernism is firmly established as a
shorthand tern for a range of social and cultural transformations. Still others
have grown out of it or remain skeptical about its usefulness’. (Ward, 2011;2)
Postmodernism peaked in the 1980’s and became a hit in
the fashion world with dancers, choreographers, art directors, performance
artists, pop stars, and drag queens. Mick Rock and Annie Lennox were just two
of postmodernism’s most influential style statements at the time. The
alternative ‘Miss World’ pageant founded by Jeweler and sculpted by Andrew
Logan became a showpiece for London fashion designers, artists and drag queens
alike. In an early example of postmodern gender play Logan Styled himself as
the ‘host/hostess’ in a cross gender outfit. Annie Lennox then went on to
become a distinctive postmodern celebrity of the times and introduced freedom
with regard to the gender norms. (Longo.
R, 2011)
By the End of the 1980’s
postmodernism, in similar ways to modernism, has begun to disintegrate. It was
no longer a subcultural style or radical solution to design. It had now become
mainstream. The movement of postmodernism at the time was hugely influential in
all disciplines. If postmodernism has died it certainly left behind a set of
unresolved questions. However, do we still live in a post-modern era? Some
would argue that yes, we do whereas other would disagree stating that we have
now moved on again and are living in a post-postmodern era. Personally I
believe many aspects of the postmodern era are still with us today,
particularly in architecture.
To conclude Postmodernism is
a reflection and response to the movements of Modernism. It is appreciated both
by designers and the public in today’s society unlike in the late nineties when
Postmodernism first expanded and the public couldn’t understand why artists
found it acceptable to deface famous drawings or throw paint on to a canvas and
sell it for millions of pounds. However, over the years it has become
increasingly popular and as our understanding of postmodernism and design has
advanced, the world has grown to appreciate this fine movement within the arts.
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