Assignment Week Eleven

'The Handle' the carbon fibre guitar design by American designer Peter Solomon.

Swiss born architect, Hannes Meyer was made director of the Bauhaus in 1928. Meyer had an innovative and rationalised view of design being a result of a mathematical equation of Function x Economy. His theory was that design should be the simple multiplication of how well a design fulfils a purpose and how much money it would cost  to buy. He said that the consumer would buy a product based on its efficiency and cost and not how it looks, that (Raizman, 2004)(Petty, 2011)

 I disagree with this. I think Function x Economy is a suitable foundation for design, but in my opinion, a third and far more important factor in any good design is its aesthetic qualities. However relating back to 'form follows function' I think that if designed for a purpose, a products functionality should always come first .
 I think in the 1920's, barely 10 years out from the war, German design certainly needed to be cheap and functional in order to help the country progress. But in our modern world, the average person does not buy something just because it works, but also how it looks. The people with the money are more likely to buy products that work well and look good, with the factor of Economy/Cost often overlooked. (Petty, 2011)

 ‘The Handle’, the beautifully crafted electric guitar designed by Peter Solomon is a perfect example of how something can be designed in an artistic way that increases functionality. This inspiring aesthetics of this guitar were crafted using carbon fibre to maximize its acoustics. Even with the price range being rather steep a guitarist with money to spare would easily prefer this guitar over an ugly cheaper one.
 Products are bought on how well they’re marketed and the role they give in the Symbolic Universes talked about last week. I think there is definitely room for mathematical equation as for some function x economy is all they are looking for. (Petty, 2011)

When I think of design, I prefer to think of it as an ‘Art’ but I can’t deny ‘Science’ behind it. As our generation is progressing, so is design as a ‘science’. Modern design is becoming more about product efficiency and less about art and craft. Designers have lost sight with society’s increasing need to make money and progress toward the distant utopia. In my opinion design needs to be both, we as designers need to show our innovation in terms of Function x Economy but also our creativeness as artists; something not to be taken for granted.  I think design should not be an equation, but what feels right with all possible factors considered.
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Raizman, D. (2004). The First Machine Age in Europe in The History of Modern Design. (February 2004) America

Petty, M. (2011). Victoria University DSDN171 Week 11 Lecture: Modernism, Standardisation, Rationalisation, and the Universal. Victoria University School of Design and Architecture.

Petty, M. (2011). Victoria University DSDN171 Week 10 Lecture: Narratives of Progress. Victoria University School of Design and Architecture.

Picture. 'The Handle'. by Peter Solomon. sited at http://www.carbonfibergear.com/6-sexy-carbon-fiber-guitars/

Assignment Week Ten

All Black Daniel Carter with Rexona Deodorant.

Peter L Berger and Thomas Luckmann, authors of The Social Construction of Reality wrote that “the symbolic universe links men with their successors in a meaningful totality, serving to transcend the finitude of individual existence and bestowing meaning upon the individuals death. All members of society can now conceive of themselves as belonging to a meaningful universe, which was there before they were born and will be there after they die.” (Berger, Luckmann, 1966)


Berger and Luckmann describe their idea of a Symbolic Universe as a fictional reality where by doing something or having something you can belong to something much larger than ones individual self. Looking at the idea of a Symbolic Universe and its relevance in the late 19th century, we can relate it to society today where we can very clearly identify a broad range of symbolic universes relevant to design.  A large aspect of today's society for which Symbolic Universes are created is advertising.  Advertisers construct these universes, these fictional, almost Utopian worlds, with the goal of selling a product.  A great example of a Symbolic Universe in advertising is the All Blacks involvement in the promotion of Rexona deodorant. 


Rexona's new TV advert looks at the emotional pregame 'rituals of confidence' of the New Zealand All Blacks, one of which is the use of Rexona Deodorant, the official deodorant of the team. Rugby is an important part of New Zealand at the moment with the country hosting the 2011 world cup and what better way to be part of that hype than to use our teams official deodorant. As ridiculous as it sounds, the deodorant is portrayed in a way that triggers the social need to be included and consumers begin buying Rexona to feel they have a part in World Cup aura. From products like Rexona, to games and movies, we see symbolic universes come to life everywhere through today's advanced use of Media and Design. 

Media and design are both major parts of marketing and advertising in our modern world and are therefore have a major influence on the creation and construction of today's symbolic universes. Both design and media are implicated as they are used to enhance these visual perception of these universes. With the constant development of technology and the ability to make things seem real and more beautiful, these symbolic universes are well and truly brought to life.

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Peter L Berger, Thomas Luckmann (1966) The Social Construction of Reality, America: Anchor Books.

Image sourced at http://www.adnews.com.au/campaign/a-ritual-of-confidence

Assignment Week Nine

In The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction (1936), an essay by Walter Benjamin, Benjamin is quoted as saying "To an ever greater degree the work of art reproduced becomes the work of art designed for reproducibility. From a photographic negative, for example, one can make any number of prints; to ask for the authentic print makes no sense." 

In the new age of photography and digital art in the 1930's, Walter Benjamin, a German cultural critic was expressing his views on the pointlessness of an authentic copy where the reproductions are all exactly the same. Never before had any type of art been able to be copied exactly. Previously painting and sculpture had been the closest method to capturing reality, Both painting and sculpture were able to be copied but copies were never an exact replica of the original. But with the introduction of photography, all aura in authenticity was lost.


I personally agree with Benjamin, I think that authenticity was lost as art became no longer a one of a kind experience. If there are multiple copies of an authentic piece of art, how authentic really is it? If a person has seen copies, exact replicas, what would be so special, what aura would there really be, about seeing the original work? I think that back then and even now, reproduction has limited that value of real honest art.


In today's age of digital design and manufacture, I still think there is a role for the 'authentic', however little of a role that might be. Walter Benjamin saw this reproduction of art as a good thing; a way of 'giving to the masses', even back in the 1930's, I think that this is still applicable now. Products designed today are without a doubt manufactured for the the masses but a reproduction of art can still become authentic with the addition of something as simple as an artist signature. If a limited number of prints are made, owning a copy, even these days, can still give the slightest yet limited sense of aura knowing you have one of a only a few ever produced. Yet it is the history behind art, and especially the art before the introduction of photography, before digital design, that you know is authentic, that has the most aura and presence about it.