Danwen Xing

http://www.danwen.com/web/works/uf/index.html

This is a model made by Danwen Xing. They are made with a large amount of detail especially considereing the actual size of the models themselves.

In my opinion the most interesting and intriguing part of these models are the littles areas of detail that you can see on the streets of the models or in some of the windows for example.

They are so small, making achieving the level of detail amazing. The series is called Urban fictions and in each of the models there is a scene with smaller models and characters in the scene.

As well as these models that she produced there are many other photography works. A particular one that i am interested in is the series Born with Cultural Revolution.

                                            http://www.danwen.com/web/works/born/index.html

In these photographs you can see the naked body of a woman standing in a room in front of a photograph of Chaiman Mao. In my opinion, this is a response to the leading of Chairman Mao and i think that it is her showing us, using the photograph, that she has no respect for Chairman Mao or his teachings. This could also be the case with the sheet or flag with the countries colours on it as it has been draped over her and she seems to show it very little respect in the way she is lying on it.
These are two very different series of work in my opinion, as one seems to  be quite comical with the scenes of murder or just normal everyday scenes compared to the expressive photographs of the other series.

This type of expressive work is not what i would associate with a Chinese artist living with Chairman Mao therefore i believe it is safe to say that this was a result of her time spent studying abroad in New York, as it is almost as though she had been "westernised" in her artwork.

References

http://www.danwen.com/web/works/uf/index.html

Irma Boom

I had never heard of Irma Boom before now, but i instantly took a liking to her books. Irma Boom is a book maker from Gelderland in the Netherlands. After finding out how Boom goes about producing her books  and how she starts off the project by researching  her subject in great depth, i wanted to find out more about her and her work. Because of the time she spends researching the subject, the books usually take on the identity of the information Boom has found out. 

"Reading one of her books is like embarking on a visual adventure yet, by beginning each design project with rigorous research into the book’s contents and detailed discussions with its subjects, editor and author, Boom ensures that the aesthetic impact of her work is entirely empathetic with the text."

Irma Boom http://designmuseum.org/design/irma-boom
Book Designer (1960-)
The European Design Show
Design Museum Touring Exhibition

This shows how she wants the book to be almost a journey through the subject the book is about for the reader, and for the book to be undeniably a record of her reasearch and epitamize the subject.

SHV book, 1996
Irma Boom

SHV book, 1996
Irma Boom

These are images of the book she produced for SHV, a holdings company in the Netherlands. Whilst producing this book apparently she went to shareholders meetings, and  did further research for 3 and half years before starting production on the book.  In this way her books cannot be scrutinized for not being true to the subject as she has spent the time finding out the facts and getting the feel of the company  or brief she has been given.

“I can’t even work for someone telling me what size of book to make.” Irma Boom, http://designmuseum.org/design/irma-boom

This is a quote from Irma Boom after she completed the book for SHV. She feels it is difficult to the work to a brief after finishing the book as she had such freedom doing it for 5 years. This adds to the journey the reader feels as she was not working to a plan and was sort of on a journey herself as she produced it, so the readers would feel the same as they are reading.

References

http://designmuseum.org/design/irma-boom

http://www.shv.nl/

http://www.designws.com/pagina/1buch2006.htm - Translated

http://www.typotheque.com/authors/irma_boom

Dan Friedman - Radical Modernism

Daniel Friedman is a Graphic designer known for his efforts to distance himself from the ideas of modernism and postmodernism. He even went on to publish a book titled Radical Modernism a title he himself came up with.

http://www.uartsgd.com/GD40/Friedman/DanFriedman.html

                                                                Three Mile Island
                                                       Painted lamp with found objects
                                                                         1985

                                                      Logo for exhibit: Radical Moderism
                                                        Moore College of Art and Design
                                                               1994, Philadelphia, PA

Friedman believed that modernism was not very expressive as it had progressed. This work by Friedman shows how he brought his own ideas into his work and made it "exciting".

"Radical modernism is my reaffirmation of the idealistic roots of our modernity, adjusted to include more of our diverse cultures." In his text, Radical Modernism, Freedman illustrates his work in diverse mediums,- experimental furniture, sculpture, posters, logos, books, installations, typographic lessons, and his apartment. "Friedman argued that design was in crisis and urged designers to see their work in a larger cultural context..

This is a quote by Friedman expressing how he felt about the progression of the modernism.

Dan Friedman's work not only consists of the radical modernist design, posters and logo design, but also includes interior and product design which i am very interested in.

                                                           Friedman Apartment Interior
                                                                          NYC

                                                                  Interior Room Screen
                                                                    Painted fiberboard

Both these pieces are very expressive and would have, for some rejectors of the modernist era, been a welcome break.

Radical Modernism was not the only thing Daniel Friedman was known for. He was also one of the leading developers of the "New Typography" and "New Wave" movements. Which again further breaks free from the "rules" and traditions of design.   
 

References

http://www.uartsgd.com/GD40/Friedman/DanFriedman.html

http://eng.archinform.net/entry.htm?ID=2nuumaot9laq49oo3bv6s5rdl5&&loc=%2Fquellen%2F91242.htm

http://www.designhistory.org/Post_mod.html

http://www.eyemagazine.com/feature.php?id=45&fid=54

Post modernism / Richter?

From my understanding, postmodernism is essentially the moving away from modernism. . Post modernism art is also art which is made using "non artistic" methods. In my opinion it involves a very wide range of things, such as modern architecture, modern design and paintings that are made just for the sake of it. From my reading i beleive that postmodernism was the name given to the period after modernism where artist tried to break away from the ideas of modernism completely.
An artist associated with the post modernist movement is Gerhard Richter, alhough he himself does not have the same belief.

Schütz: Stylistic changes, stylistic breaks, quotations and perhaps also irony — these are all phenomena which have been called "postmodern." Do confront these issues? Do you consider yourself a postmodern pioneer?

Richter: I don't believe so, it has not interested me that much. But in a certain sense you could call me so; because I never had that consciousness of belonging to the avant-garde, and it also was never a concern of mine. Avant-garde — I find that usually too dogmatic and aggressive.

http://www.jca-online.com/richter.html
This was taken from an interview with Richter. It shows that Richter does not believe that the work he produces should be put into this one catagory. It shows that the idea and movement of postmodernism is quite far removed from the avant-garde ideas of modernism. Therefore the question is posed, is the work produced by Richter post mordern even when he himself does not consider it to be?

Post modernism is also highly linked to architecture and the designs of 1960's. Experimentation with textures, symbolism and colour took place in house designs, thus a radical change in designs of houses and how they are built. When i think of a postmodern building, i picture a highly "modern" looking building and almost experimental in design.

References
http://www.jca-online.com/richter.html

Modern ism/ Post modernism - Modern Rebel

In short i believe that modernism can be defined as a change in the way art was produced following a rejection of all previous thoughts and feelings towards realism and traditional example of art. Enter "surrealism" and the "avant - garde" era. Artists such as Pablo Picasso were the leaders in this new way of looking and thinking about art. Producing artwork that was not a direct copy of a "lovey-dovey" scene or a pompous high class figure, sitting on a chair surrounded by their over priced worldy goods.

Pablo Picasso was the archetypal modern artist, and his work raises all sorts of questions about modernism. He was an artistic rebel who became fantastically wealthy. He was an experimental artist who hated much about the modern world, and his paintings, which so often baffled and shocked the establishment, are among the most reproduced images in the world ­ part of our visual language

Chris Nineham

Issue 204 of SOCIALIST REVIEW Published January 1997 Copyright © Socialist Review

(http://pubs.socialistreviewindex.org.uk/sr204/picasso.htm)

In this article called "Modern Rebel - Pablo Picasso" Picasso is labelled a rebel, as he was one of the first artists to embrace this new style of producing artwork. I suppose rebel is an appropriate name as he broke away from the norm and the traditional methods and subjects of painting.

                                     http://www.artchive.com/artchive/P/picasso_protocubism.html

                                                 Pablo Picasso, 1908, Seated Woman

This is a painting made by Pablo Picasso in the early stage of Cubism. In my opinion this is obviously an early Cubist painting as the form of the woman is still recognisable however it is somewhat distorted by the lines cutting the image which is a recognisable trait of Cubist paintings.  From these early attempts at distoring images and breaking away from the realistic looking paintings, Picasso started his collage based Cubist work. Which in some respects, you could say took him full circle as what is more realistic that the object itself?

                                          Glass and Bottle of Suze (1912), Pablo Picasso

This is an observational painting of a Glass and bottle, however i do not think it is too bold to say that it is not immedietely clear. You can really see the transition from his early Cubist paintings to his later attempts, even if it was only in a space of a few years. I will follow on from this post quite fittingly with the next step on the timeline, Postmodernism!!!


References
http://www.ehow.com/facts_5751030_early-modernism_.html
http://pubs.socialistreviewindex.org.uk/sr204/picasso.htm
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/P/picasso_syntheticcubism.html

Daniel Rozin - Interaction Action

I first came across this designer not too long ago, when i went to the Decode Exhibition at the V & A. I was interested in interactive design, but didnt know very much about it. I was blown away by the interactive pieces that i saw there, especially the "Weave Mirror" produced by Daniel Rozin.

                                      Weave Mirror, Daniel Rozin V&A Decode Exhibition

                                      http://www.smoothware.com/danny/weavemirror.html

When someone stands infront of the mirror, the weaves change shape and position so that the person' s reflection would be shown in the mirror. It works and moves to show  the shape by the sounds that are made by the person standing in front and the movements that they make.

                                       http://www.smoothware.com/danny/weavemirror.html

Design and exhibitions like this show how design has changed and progressed from simple posters to interactive design such as this. More often than not when you they think of design people think of a simple poster, and typography. However design has changed to so much more than that as this exhibition shows.

http://www.vam.ac.uk/microsites/decode/exhibition

Following on from my previous post, the change in technology and the public's taste and preference means that design and in particular advertising (such as the viral ads) has to change and progress as we do. I found this quote in an online discussion about the change in advertising to interaction design. This is the description for an event, talking about the change in design and advertising that took place in San Francisco.

"The future of advertising is in digital media, as people stop reading newspapers and people turn off their TVs in favor of Facebook, advertising agencies are struggling to redefine themselves as fast as the audience their trying to reach"  Added by IxDA San Francisco  November 2009

http://ixdasf.ning.com/events/interaction-design

I think this sums up how and why design has to change and why it is doing so rapidly, in order to beat their competitors. By the time i get out of university what i know will be futile and obselite.

References
http://ixdasf.ning.com/events/interaction-design
http://www.vam.ac.uk/microsites/decode/exhibition
http://www.smoothware.com/danny/weavemirror.html
V & A Exhibition guide