Represent - Design and its double

Page 1

workshops

360 in 5


3. Represent

“Design and its double”


1. The effects of representation in society


Doc Brown: Then tell me, Future Boy. Who’s President of the United States in 1985? Marty: Ronald Reagan. Doc Brown: Ronald Reagan? The actor!? [chuckles in disbelief] Then who’s vice-president, Jerry Lewis? I I suppose Jane Wyman is the First Lady? And John Wayne is Secretary of defence! Robert Zemeckis, “Back to the future”, 1985


“Modern politics is made of characters rather than politicians”

Zygmunt Bauman

To the question: “who is this person?”...


...over 50% of American people answers:

“Terminator!”


Other candidates were mostly mediatic characters:

Larry Flynt porn editor


Gary Coleman a.k.a. Arnold


Jack Grisham rock/punk singer


Angelyne a.k.a. LA billboard queen


Mary Carey pornstar


This is what you buy


You end up eating something like this


It’s the real product that looks like its representation, not vice-versa.


2. representation of design / design of representation



Thonet was one of the first designers who used catalogues and illustrations in a very effective way Meubles en bois courbĂŠ - Thonet catalogue, 1904 -


Italian design had its “official� photographer:

Aldo Ballo

Enzo Mari, Cardboard Library


“If you wanted a beautiful photograph, a really beautiful, up-to-date photograph of objects in those 50’s you really had to go to Aldo Ballo” Ettore Sottsass, 16/07/1996

Nanda Vico, Blocco seat

Marcello Nizzoli, Olivetti Lexicon 80

Vico Magistretti, Selene chair

Ettore Sottsass, Super Loto table


Marcel Wander’s Knotted chair was initially produced in 12 pieces. Reproduced on media thousands of times contributed in placing Wander’s name on the international world map of design


What happens if the medium is the museum then?

Monumental size Studio Job - Totem

Monumental materials


What if the context is an exclusive event?

Maarten Baas, Wind

Boyms, Buildings of disaster


Surface becomes the subject?

During an exhibition the interaction is limited to the sense of sight, still it’s important to communicate the value of an object Maarten Baas, Wind

Boyms, Buildings of disaster


Different events

different surfaces

A cheap chair made of EPS produced in large numbers is given for free at Trafalgar Square (public space) in 2006.

The same chair made of EPS and covered with nanocrystalline copper in limited edition is sold for extremly high prices at Miami Design 2007


When concept is the subject

Objects go in the background

Front design, Rat Wallpaper


Objects that most of the times don’t make it to design magazines


Designer

Project

Manufacturing

Product

Users

industrial design system Image


Designer

Project

Manufacturing

Product

Users

• quality of the execution

Image Internet

Spotlights

P



Designer

Project

Manufacturing

Product

Users

industrial design system Image

Media Internet

Galleries

TV

Visitors

Spotlights

Fairs

Publications

Viewer/Readers

Exhibitions

Image

Viewer/Readers

Media Internet

Publications

TV

mediatic design system


Manufacturing

Product

Users

Image

Media

Image Internet

• decisions of the photographer

Galleries

TV

Visitors

Spotlights

Fairs

Publications

Viewer/Readers

Exhibitions

Image

Viewer/Readers

Media Internet

Publications

TV


Manufacturing Designer

Project

Product Manufacturing

Users Product

Users

Image

Image

Media

Image

Internet

Internet

• decisions of the photographer

Galleries

Galleries

Publications

TV

• aesthetics of the medium • authority Visitors

Exhibitions

Visitors

Spotlights

Fairs

Viewer/Readers

MediumTV

Publications

Spotlights

Fairs

Viewer/Readers

Media

Exhibitions

Image

Viewer/Readers

Media Internet

Publications

Image

TV

Viewer/Readers

Media Internet

Publications

TV


Designer

Project

Manufacturing

Product

Users

Image

Media Internet

Manufacturing Designer

Project

Product Manufacturing

Users Product

Publications

Viewer/Readers TV

Users

Image

Image

Media

Image

Internet

Internet

• decisions of the photographer

Galleries

Viewer/Readers Spotlights Context

MediumTV TV

• aesthetics of the medium • authority

Exhibitions • Fairs values,Galleries meanings and prestige of the context • external elements

Visitors

Exhibitions

Image

Visitors

Spotlights

Visitors

Publications

Publications

Spotlights

Fairs

Viewer/Readers

Media

Media Internet

Fairs

Galleries

Exhibitions

Image

Viewer/Readers

Media Internet

Publications

Image

TV

Viewer/Readers

Media Internet

Publications

TV

Publications

TV


These interferences are the subject of representation





Image object

User


object

Image

User





Visual Consumerism: It’s the climax of consumerism in which the product has

tangibility=0 and

reproducibility=∞


On design magazines

+30% of images 1970-2008


Amount of images published by design websites per day

Mocoloco.com

923612 px2

Dezeen.com

607500 px2

The Economist

221700 px2

Mocoloco.com

Dezeen.com

The Economist

Survey executed on an avarage of 3 days


design websites publish

+400%

of images compared to The Economist.com


This is one of the most popular chairs in media



I mean this one


but that you know better as this


the chair as you see it in these images you won’t see it often in your life, unless you are 1m tall or you like sitting on the floor and look at a chair


Making a representation

Object

Camera

{

Position Lights Context Lens Focus White balance Exposure Aperture ISO

Image Print

Medium

Projection Screen

{ { {

Representation

Size/resolution Paper Ink Size/resolution Light/contrast/colour adjustment Surface Size/resolution Light/contrast Colour adjustment


Representation is a product of its own right


Which one is the original?



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