Praxis
ISSUE 1 / WINTER 2017
Letter from the Editor
What is typography? Why does it matter? How does it impact our lives? The Merriam-Webster definition of “typography” is: “the work of producing printed pages from written material” or “the style, arrangement, or appearance of printed letters on a page.” How those letters, words, and sentences are styled and arranged affects how they are perceived. Good typography clarifies content, establishes hierarchy, and presents information in a manner that makes it easier to read, and, therefore, to understand. Good typography is good communication: it can start a dialog or advance an idea or make a difference in the world. Typography is also intertwined with our daily lives—we encounter type in everything from the products we buy, the signage around us, the books we read, the news we consume, and the directions we follow. Typography can be beautiful, functional, persuasive, and inviting. It can also fail, especially when there is a disconnect between how the type looks and what the text says. This debut issue of Praxis examines typography and design viewed through the lens of activism and social justice. Topics range from the recent presidential election to ethics within the design industry to the power of the poster as a means of expression and protest. The content was conceptualized, collected, curated, and created by students in Art 338: Typography II at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo during winter quarter 2017. The magazine reflects the diverse interests and talents of the students who brought this project to life. Charmaine Martinez Editor, Instructor and Type Enthusiast
6 Feature:
History of Protest Art
12
The Draw of War:
Walt Disney WWII
18 Music Focus:
Album Revie
TABLE OF CONTENTS
HISTOR
y and
ew
RY
Feature:
22
Fred Martins
28
Feature:
How Can Design Stop Cultural Appropriation
Street Art:
54
Jr. and Activism
36 Hope Artist:
Shepard Fairey
42 Punk Yet Peaceful Positivity:
Marius Jopen
50
Feature:
Why Tattoo is Universal?
60 Campaign Design:
Hillary vs. Trump
68 Feature:
What Women are Worth?
PEOPLE
CULTURE
HISTORY OF PROTEST ART BY BELINDA LANKS
Y
T
TOP DESIGNERS ON THE IMAGES THAT COALESCED MOVEMENTS AND COMPELLED CHANGE. GET INSPIRED.
Homemade posters can pack a punch. But well-designed images can deliver powerful messages that resonate for decades, as these examples, chosen by prominent designers, make clear. From a gold-swallowing Hitler and babies killed in Vietnam to the “I AM A MAN” posters used by black sanitation workers in Memphis to protest poor working conditions, these images harken back to disturbing moments in history. But they’re also reminders of the progress that we’ve made, the challenges we still face, the dangers of sliding backward, and the vital importance of staying engaged in the good fight.
WINTER / ISSUE 1 7
“John Heartfield was the greatest instrumentalist artist/ designer. His activism reached beyond his art, leading him to change his name from Helmut Herzfeld to John Heartfield to further distance himself from German’s Nazi regime. His poster Adolf the Superman portrays Hitler as a heartless puppet who swallows gold and spews junk in return. It’s a striking image, and was only one of many anti-Nazi works he made in his career.”
ADOLF THE SUPERMAN: SWALLOWS GOLD AND SPITS TIN BY JOHN HEARTFIELD, 1932 Chosen by Amy Nicole Schwartz, design director at Cards Against Humanity
8 PRAXIS
THIS IS NAZI BRUTALITY BY BEN SHAHN 1942 Chosen by Steven Heller, design critic and co-chair of SVA’s Design MFA program “Without caricature or stereotype, Shahn created a piece of protest journalism that helped inform the world about the horrors that were not being duly covered in the U.S. Ironically, it also suggests something even more contemporary:”
WINTER / ISSUE 1 9
VICTORY 1945 BY SHIGEO FUKUDA, 1975 Chosen by Jesse Reed, associate partner at Pentagram, where he helped design Hillary’s Clinton’s campaign logo “The message is clear as day, even if you’re not sure of the specific context. It was designed for the Warsaw Poster Contest in 1975, but is arguably one of the most timeless images ever created. You could call it a graphic rebus, simply implying ‘put down your weapon,’ or even easier, ‘stop war.’”
10 PRAXIS
“I worked with Glenn in the past and always found this piece to be so iconic, striking, and utterly visceral. “It’s a representation of the signs used by 1,300 black sanitation workers in Memphis who where striking in protest at bad working conditions (two workers died because of them) and low wages. The wording derives from the great African-American author Ralph Ellison’s masterpiece, Invisible Man. In 1968, the photographer Ernest Withers captured the protests with this stoic, powerful black and white photographs. “The whole fact that the workers omitted the word ‘invisible’ so that they can be seen is so strong it makes me want to cry.”
UNTITLED (I AM A MAN) BY GLENN LIGON, 1980 Chosen by Eddie Opara, partner at Pentagram
WINTER / ISSUE 1 11
WALT DISNEY AND WWII
The Draw of War In December 1941, Time magazine was about to print its end of year issue, its front cover carrying a big picture of Dumbo—that loveable elephant with the gigantic ears who had helped The Walt Disney Studio achieve soaring box office figures that year. But on 7 December, Japanese aircraft attacked Pearl Harbor, abruptly bringing America into World War Two—and ousting Walt’s latest creation from the front page.
Yet, if the war led to a dip in Disney’s fortunes, it was only a temporary one. Within just six months, The Walt Disney Studio in Burbank, California, was declared a war plant. Its filmmaking capacity was given over to the Allied effort and its well-loved cartoon characters all enlisted to do their bit for their country—from Donald Duck and Pluto to Mickey Mouse, Snow White and beyond. Through a mix of groundbreaking military training films, features and propaganda shorts, as well as insignia, books, posters, and much more, Disney sought to boost troops’ morale on the frontline and promote government policies on the home front. This article has been edited.
WINTER / ISSUE 1 13
Disney artists
created a war-related material for many eral, state, and local governme ments and agencies besides This illustration was designed f Manpower Commission in 1943, convince employees to stay at th were trained to do and help ease manpower shortage caused by drafted into the military. It appea eral magazines and was issued a
14 PRAXIS
wealth of other fedent departTreasury. for the War , to try and he jobs they e the critical men being ared in sevas a poster.
Christmas
was often a depressing time of the year for men serving overseas. To help raise morale, many units created their own custom holiday greeting cards. Units with Disney-designed insignia often incorporated their insignia into the design of their cards. This particular postcard was sent out by men serving aboard the navy fleet oiler USS Housatanic (AO-35). This tanker saw action in both the Atlantic and South Pacific, where she delivered fuel oil for warships and high-octane gasoline for aircraft.
The USS Bunker Hill (CV-17) was an Essex-
class aircraft carrier that saw extensive action in the South Pacific. Supporting the invasion of Okinawa, Bunker Hill was severely damaged when two Japanese kamikaze pilots successfully crashed into her. The resulting explosions killed more than 340 crewmen.
WINTER / ISSUE 1 15
During the war Ameri
venience of food rationing first items to be rationed, f and meat and dairy produc was held ration coupons. M Pluto are pictured on the cov expressions, after leaving th their purchases.
16 PRAXIS
icans had to deal the incon. Sugar and coffee were the followed by processed foods cts. This circa 1943 booklet Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and ver, with seemingly satisfied he Super Duper Market with
The insignia
for the USS Escambia (AO-80) fleet refueler was created by famed Disney artist Hank Porter, the man responsible for creating the lion’s share of combat designs at the studio during the war. Escambia, named after a river that flows through Georgia and Florida, fueled ships during the invasion of the Marshall Islands, aircraft carriers as they launched strikes against the Philippines, task forces vessels supporting the invasion of Okinawa, and aircraft flying raids against Japan. This mobile naval gas station was represented by a 50-gallon drum and Jose Carioca, a character made famous in Disney’s two South American films, Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros. Virgil Grier, who served aboard the Escambia said, “Ken Hackett reproduced the insignia on each side of the bridge, where it drew admiring chuckles from the crews of the ships we refueled.”
WINTER / ISSUE 1 17
1960
The Last Poets This Is Madness The Last Poets was an amorphous, ever-shifting collective of poets and musicians who arose from the late 1960s black nationalist movement. The staunchly Africanist imagery, flame-coated backdrop and Black Power salutes tell the whole revolutionary story on the cover of their album This is Madness.
1971
We Insi Max Roach’s F Suite
The cover of this imp classic jazz record r sit-in movements rights movement w in Greensboro, Nort 1960. As with To Pim the confrontational image is accentuate that everyone in the ing straight down th
ALBUM REVIEW
A stroll down memory lane as we look at the art and story behind each of these timeless albums. 18 PRAXIS
1
ist! Freedom e
patiently titled, references the of the civil which started th Carolina in mp a Butterfly, nature of the ed by the fact frame is starhe camera.
W
.
1973
1976
Sun Ra Space is the Place
Scorpions Virgin Killer
Born Herman Poole Blount in the Jim Crow hotspot Birmingham, Alabama in 1914, Ra maintained he was not of this planet and painstakingly crafted a mythical persona that fused sci-fi ideas and aesthetics with Egyptian mysticism. In his sole fictional film appearance—an adaptation of the album of the same name—Ra plays a seer whose mission is to get the disenfranchised black youth of the day to relocate to the Utopian haven of space. Its allegorical take on a blasted, post-civil rights urban America as no place for black people was hardly subtle.
The Scorpions have several controversial covers in their discography, but this one of an erotically posed 10-year-old girl takes the cake (the shattered glass pattern obscuring her genitals is part of the image). The inspiration came solely from label RCA Records’ marketing personnel; the band members had nothing to do with it, but early on they did stand behind it and tried to defend its use as being an artistically symbolic representation of the title track’s lyrical theme: that time is the killer of virgin innocence. Not surprisingly, it was soon replaced by a more acceptable alternative cover depicting the band (in a rather ridiculous pose). More recently, some band members, in particular former lead guitarist Uli Roth, have expressed regret over the cover and their original support of it.
WINTER / ISSUE 1 19
1988
1999
NWA Straight Outta Compton
The Roots Things Fall Apart
The forthcoming biopic of LA gangsta rappers NWA, named after their debut LP, illustrates that their influence is far from waning. Straight Outta Compton has one of the all-time great covers—a shot taken from the point of view of a man (very possibly a cop, if the song Fuck Tha Police is anything to go by) about to be dispatched by a gun-toting Eazy-E. The rest of the group glower with a memorable ferocity intended to strike fear into the hearts of white America.
Taking its title from the classic 1958 novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe, the artwork for Things Fall Apart draws a terrifying line between the past and the present in its use of a stark, monochrome photograph from the civil rights movement era. It depicts the terrifying sight of riot police chasing two black teenagers—one boy, one girl—down the streets of Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant.
20 PRAXIS
2010
2015
Kanye West My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Kendrick Lamar To Pimp a Butterfly
Kanye West is all about pushing the envelope, whether that means singing an entire album in AutoTune, creating a 35-minute art movie to promote his new album or giving that disc a controversial piece of cover art that is sure to turn heads. West revealed the provocative image on the cover of his upcoming album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, over the weekend on his Twitter and immediately claimed that it had been banned. The colorful illustration by contemporary American painter/sculptor George Condo— who also provided the image for West’s “Power” single—depicts a nude, demonically grimacing West reclining on a blue couch and gripping a green bottle while a naked winged woman with a polka-dotted tail straddles him.
On Wednesday morning, Compton rapper Kendrick Lamar posted the cover art for his forthcoming LP, To Pimp a Butterfly, on Instagram, prompting much excitement. To call its vivid imagery confrontational would be an understatement. Shot in striking monochrome with the quality of a vintage Polaroid, it features a large group of mostly shirtless black men and children plus one baby, cradled by Lamar himself and, possibly, one woman–arranged in a victory tableau on the lawn in front of the White House.
WINTER / ISSUE 1 21
All images are illustrations by Fred Martins
Fred Martins
THE AFRO COMB AND AFRICAN CONSCIOUSNESS BY KATIE DE KLEE FROM DESIGN INDABA
WINTER / ISSUE 1 23
Nigerian artist Fred Martins shares his latest collection of politically charged art with Design Indaba. His previous series drew attention to the serious issue of climate change, which was aimed at triggering an emotional response in the viewer—which might then lead to better global stewardship. This new project celebrates African activists, who were jailed for trying to enforce the freedom and fairness for Africans. Using the symbol of the “afro comb,” Martins’ series includes portraits of Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, Patrice Lumumba and Fela Kuti.
24 PRAXIS
WINTER / ISSUE 1 25
26 PRAXIS
Tell me more about the image of the comb? Lately, I started listening to some early 90’s West African highlife music, the nostalgic feeling from that retro world inspired me. Their passé style made me brood on our music and culture and later, on the African struggle for freedom, social justice and fairness. And on those that gave
combating lice, ticks and fleas. The over 5500-year-old Afrocombs discovered in Kemet (Egypt) disproves the present theories that denies Egypt its blackness. It connects Africans to their ancestors. Why the bold orange background? The orange color is associated to prison. I realized that most of
“And for sharing the same goal and struggle they should be uniformly honored.” their all, breaking into pieces like a comb trying to liberate the scalp from lice. So I illustrated strong and symbolic images in honour of some celebrated African activists and past leaders that still inspire a lot of people. What do you think is so strong about the comb as a symbol? Afro combs were worn in the 70’s by fluffy-afroed youths in America as a protest against repression and it goes beyond style and adornment, a comb has a strong historical play for Africans. Combs were connected to both cultural and religious beliefs, even though they were fashionable and also used for
these legendary activists—from Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King Jr, Nelson Mandela, Patrice Lumumba, Fela Kuti to Angela Davis—were at some point jailed for enforcing the African consciousness. Your characters are not only Africans who lived on the continent, was it important for you to included the diaspora Africans? Africans for me are indivisible, not even by geography. They are treated as one people across the globe and it does not matter their birth place so they are not limited by global mapping. And for sharing the same goal and struggle they should be uniformly honored.*
This article has been edited. Read the original version here.
WINTER / ISSUE 1 27
JR turns Amsterdam Inside Out during the Unseen Photo Fair
28 PRAXIS
The Artist On a Crusade Ana Bambic Kostov
WINTER / ISSUE 1 29
H
e started on the houses of Paris by writing his name on rooftops. After realizing he could make use of photography to tell a wider story, he began pasting images he took on walls in numerous illegal sidewalk galleries. When Paris was caught by the riot fire in the mid 2000s, his social consciousness reached a new level of lucidity, and his activist crusade began. His moniker is JR and he is probably the most globally spread street artist. It’s obvious that JR’s art comes from activism, but the manner in which this TED prize winner conducts his affairs is entirely different. He does not focus only on several concrete issues as Keith
30 PRAXIS
Haring did, nor does he engage in advocating revolution in style of Carrie Reichardt. JR thinks wider, always bearing a universal picture in mind, even if he focuses on concrete, local issues in any of his continuous travels. Recognized by the art world as a prodigy, JR is today known as an activist for women’s rights, peace and equality, always having one common quality in all his projects – an idealistic belief in humanity.
JR—Rooftop Beginnings The beginnings of JR’s activism stem from his firm convictions that people are often served with wrong ideas
from right to left: top: Portrait of a Generation, Byron, Paris, 20th arrondissement, 2004/bottom: Women are Heroes, Action in Phnom Pen, Old Station, Cambodia, 2009/top: Expo 2 Rue / bottom: Inside Out. JR/top: 28 Millimeters, Face2Face. Nuns in Action, Separation Wall, Security Fence, Palestinian Side, Bethlehem , 2007/ bottom: The pyramid of the Louvre disappears, 2016
about anything ‘other’, while he seeks his subjects in areas where there were no museums, or other cultural institutions. In the Portrait of a Generation project, realized in Paris between 2004 and 2006, JR turned his focus towards the marginal groups of society. Initially, those were kids against whom the prejudice of Parisian bourgeoisie was overwhelming, so pasting posters with their faces across the posh arrondissements of the City of Light had an immense impact. So immense in fact, that the Paris City Hall allowed for JR’s photographs to be wrapped around its outer walls. The word prejudice played the crucial role here, as it did in the next
adventure of JR, located in the dangerous West Bank area.
Face 2 Face and Women are Heroes Hearing a lot about the Israeli– Palestinian conflict, the artist embarked on a journey wanting to experience the situation and, perhaps, help overcome it on some level. Fighting against prejudicial ‘other’, he pasted photographed portraits of Palestine and Israeli people on the West Bank barrier, one next to the other, on both sides of the wall. He called the project Face 2 Face, and as he was looked disapprovingly by
WINTER / ISSUE 1 31
some for putting pictures of Israelis or Palestinians in the enemy zone, rarely could those people tell apart which one was which. By confronting two opposites, putting them in the same place and leveling them, JR did the unthinkable in a way, which aided in the understanding of absurdity of their discord. His actions stood for tolerance and acceptance, for peace, suggesting an alternative of friendship instead of clash. The development of JR’s evolving artistic and socially engaged practice took him in the direction of advocating women’s rights as well. He started this initiative in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, and spread it across places with the highest rate of social distress. Women are Heroes project went from Brazil to Sierra Leone, Liberia, Kenya, India, and Cambodia highlighting women as the most vulnerable and the strongest survivors of any given problem they encounter in the unsettling conditions they live in.
Art to the People It’s hardly surprising that JR chose public art for his primary expression. The illicit nature of his works is there to emphasize the direct communication with the people, his partners in crime.
32 PRAXIS
The response and the reaction if what JR is trying to provoke, while the opinions of the stale elite are of little interest to him. He wants to move the masses, propagating equality and human values with every step of the way. Even his more sentimental projects, Unframed and Wrinkles of the City, posses a clear critical or empowering tone, fighting for everyman, or the too-frequently overlooked social groups. Still, his latest concept, the one that made him a global phenomenon, is what embodies JR’s activism the best.
Inside Out Can Change the World Already a king of street art, JR decided to involve people in his ideas. When giving his inaugural TED talk in 2011, JR asked a crucial question—Can art change the world? He did not offer a yes or no answer at the time, stating that art definitely can change how people perceive the world, altering the viewing angle, while proclaiming his wish—to use art to turn the world inside out. Then and there, the biggest participatory art project in the world was born—Inside Out Project. As the winner of a million dollar prize, JR started engaging people across the world to make a photographic
statement, to stand for their beliefs, to make their mark, The response was (and still is) vast, as the photobooths aiding in photographing people and the exhibitions spread from the USA to China. Using photography as activism, JR achieved in reaching out to millions, who dared in making themselves to be, visible and thus, known and heard. Accomplishments of JR’s artistic engagements have surpassed all expectations. The success and the acceptance they get from local communities testify to the purposefulness of his actions, as he succeeded in changing the dynamics of various, tightly knit, groups of people. Acting locally, they made an impact on the global scene, reintroducing the most universal human values into a over-stratified global society. People have become their own brand, while the artist insists on not having any logos, sponsors or credits on his art, giving it
from right to left: 28 Millimeters, Face2Face Holy Tryptich, 2006/28 Millimeters, Women Are Heroes Action dans la Favela Morro da Providência, Escaliers, Quelques Jours Plus Tard, Rio de Janeiro, Brésil, 2008/Inside Out. Karachi, Pakistan. 21 portaits to expose the persecution of minorities in Pakistan/Inside Out. Naplouse, Palestine, 2011
back to the people. Therefore, JR’s anonymity is logical and deliberate, as he is only the vessel of the community. His photographic activism takes him to where he is needed the most, where he endeavors to put an ordinary man on the global map, so that when he is looked at, he can always look back.*
WINTER / ISSUE 1 33
36 PRAXIS
image by Los Angeles Times
HOPE ARTIST
Shepard Fairey REVEALS POSTERS TO PROTEST TRUMP BY STEPHY CHUNG
WINTER / ISSUE 1 37
Shepard Fairey—the artist behind the 2008 “Hope” poster depicting then presidential candidate Barack Obama—has produced a new set of images in time for President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration this Friday. The three posters feature Muslim, Latino, and African-American women. “We thought (they) were the three groups that had been maybe criticized by Trump and maybe were going to be most, if not necessarily vulnerable in a literal sense, most feeling that their needs would be neglected in a Trump administration,” Fairey told CNN. Fairey, along with artists Jessica Sabogal and Ernesto Yerena, teamed up with the non-
38 PRAXIS
profit Amplifier Foundation—a self-described “art machine for social change”—to produce works for the organization’s We the People campaign. It’s really about making sure that people remember that ‘we the people’ means everyone, it means all the people,” Fairey said. “I think the campaigns were very divisive, more from one side than the other. But (it’s) just reminding people to find their common humanity, and look beyond maybe one narrow definition of what it means to be American.” The campaign’s objective, as stated in its Kickstarter campaign, is to “flood” Washington with symbols of hope on Jan. 20.
“On January 20th, if this campaign succeeds, we’re going to take out full-page ads in the Washington Post with these images, so that people across the capitol and across the country will be able to carry them into the streets, hang them in windows, or paste them on walls,” organizers wrote. So far, more than $1.3 million has been pledged, exceeding the Amplifier Foundation’s $60,000 target. Fairey, who has previously depicted him in an image inspired by George Orwell’s “1984,” has long been vocal about Trump. “Trump is dangerous,” Fairey told CNN in the lead-up to the 2016 election. “He’s a dema-
gogue who’s a bigot and is sexist. He really has no respect for a lot of different people, no experience in politics, and is pursuing the presidency out of his own ego rather than a desire to create the greatest good for the greatest number of people.” Fairey is not the only artist making a statement against Trump. Los Angeles-based artist Illma Gore recently revealed a mural painted with human blood to protest Trump, and actress Meryl Streep earned the Presidentelect’s scorn when she spoke out against him in a speech at the Golden Globes earlier this month.*
WINTER / ISSUE 1 39
It’s really ab sure that peop that ‘we the p everyone, it m people….”
40 PRAXIS
bout making ple remember people’ means means all the —Shepard Fairey
WINTER / ISSUE 1 41
Marius Jopen, The Love Foundation poster
42 PRAXIS
Punk Yet Peaceful Positivity THE SECRET TO ETHICAL DESIGN BY MADELEINE MORLEY
WINTER / ISSUE 1 43
This young Berlin designer walk
A
rt director and graphic designer Marius Jopen’s work first came to me in the form of a quote from H. G. Wells, written in an off-kilter, cursive style with thick black Sharpie. It was hung on the door of my co-working studio, where he was set up for a brief stint. “More than machinery, we need humanity, more than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness,” it read. This hand-written style is a signature of his, appearing across the board on identities and posters that he penned throughout his time working for Mirko Borsche and Stefan Sagmeister. It continues to be a staple, featuring throughout the continual scroll of the young designer’s website and on his work for cultural clients in Berlin and Amsterdam. Having worked for two of Germany’s most in-demand designers and having recently garnered attention as a finalist for the Dutch Design Awards’ young designer category, starting his own studio is the logical next step for the 2014 Rietveld Academy graduate.
Marius Jopen and Max Kuwertz, poster for Het Nieuwe Institute’s ‘The Body’
44 PRAXIS
I’m not one for inspirational design quotes by any means, but this wasn’t what his Welles poster was; the scruffiness of Jopen’s style makes it seem punk, not twee. It has the same effect on client work. For a recent campaign and identity
ks the line, steering clear of twee Marius Jopen, Poster Diary
system for the Rotterdam museum Het Nieuwe Institute’s The Body exhibition, Jopen, in collaboration with Berlin-based designer Max Kuwertz, created a system in which clean grids collide with scrawled felt-tip pen. While studying in Amsterdam, Jopen began a project akin to the Daily Drop Cap or poster-a-day craze that has become an almost compulsory exercise for students. For almost two years he created a poster reflecting on the news headlines, printing out a grid he’d put together on InDesign and scrawling across it in felt-tip pen, collaging and illustrating to articulate complex issues with striking simplicity. Eventually he found the routine frustrating, feeling as if he was participating in a merry-goround of negative news. Perhaps as an antidote to submerging himself in daily disasters, around the same time Jopen co-founded The Love Foundation. The open network of students and artists raises money by putting on music nights, using the profits to provide clean drinking water for people in the Busia region of Kenya. Instead of invoking guilt through distressing imagery, Jopen—in line with the sweeping positive news movement—believes design with an optimistic message creates a conducive atmosphere
WINTER / ISSUE 1 45
“Instead o imagery, J positive n an optimi atmosphe 46 PRAXIS
Marius Jopen, The Love Foundation poster
for social causes. In order to connect all members of the foundation together (which now has branches in Amsterdam, Berlin, Dresden, Perth, and Santa Cruz, California), he designed a “Love Logo” of two interlocking rings that have become the only recurring motif for the posters promoting events. This is what Jopen’s work does— it elevates—but its aesthetic is wild, quick, and cut-and-paste enough, so that there’s nothing too sentimental about it. It’s vital to consider the role of ethics for contemporary graphic designers, an area often over looked, and to highlight who is using their skills for ideological or political purposes. Jopen’s approach—as symbolized in that small act of tacking a Charlie Chaplin quote to a door— is one that communicates heart and heft.*
of invoking guilt through distressing Jopen—in line with the sweeping news movement—believes design with istic message creates a conducive ere for social causes.” WINTER / ISSUE 1 47
48 PRAXIS
Marius Jopen, The Love Foundation poster
WINTER / ISSUE 1 49
How can design stop cultural appropriation
BY CANDICE ZAMORA
50 PRAXIS
Wikipedia defines Cultural appropriation as a sociological concept which views the adoption or use of elements of one culture by members of a different culture as a largely negative phenomenon. Generally, an assumption that the culture being borrowed from is also being oppressed by the culture doing the borrowing is prerequisite to the concept. If you thought our politically-correct society has eliminated issues of race and stereotypes from advertisements, brand logos, and the fields of web and graphic design, you thought wrong. A more complex and extremely controversial topic is creeping up in American culture: cultural appropriation. The Professional Association for Design (AIGA), which is the oldest and largest professional membership organization for design, reports that 86% of graphic designers in the field are Caucasian American. The remaining demographic breakdown is as follows: 2% are Black, 4% are Hispanic/Latino, 6% are Asian/ Pacific Islander, and 2% are “other�. This lack of diversity makes the entire career field less credible—after all, how can graphic design be taken seriously if only a certain demographic is creating everything? The real problem is designers are being denied the chance to advocate for certain viewpoints from the actual source of the information. This increases the chances of appropriation appearing in real life and stereotypes appearing in graphic design work.
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
WINTER / ISSUE 1 51
Is Diversity Really That Important in Design? In a word, yes. Technology and globalism make diversity and inclusion more necessary than ever in today’s world. From a design standpoint, diversity and inclusion within the field leads to more innovation—we can’t advance without different ideas from different viewpoints. As Americans, we absorb brands, logos, and visual representations into our identities—so they need to be accurate and respectful. It’s important that our culture welcomes expression and participation from all ethnic, gender and socioeconomic populations because their insights and experiences can inform and enrich the lives of our whole society.
So How Can We Fix It? In order to successfully lead improvement and change, design companies must openly embrace more diverse practitioners and retain them through inclusion. The industry as a whole has a responsibility to foster new talent and create communities of contributors who represent more realistic gender and ethnic ratios in order to give everyone an equal chance succeed. Additionally, designers can take measures to avoid placing stereotypes on other cultures. The chances of this happening decrease when diversity is welcomed; design-
52 PRAXIS
ers then get the chance to understand the history behind certain elements of another ethnicity’s culture. The more designers of different backgrounds know about each other the better they can create intelligent and sensitive expressions and avoid appropriation. America can’t afford to lose the amazing contributions that can be made by misrepresented segments of its population, and reaching out to these populations is the first step toward ending racist designs and cultural appropriation.*
“As Americans, we absorb brands, logos, and visual representations into our identities— so they need to be accurate and respectful.”
WINTER / ISSUE 1 53
WHY
TATTOO IS UNIVERSAL 54 PRAXIS
A National Geographic photographer explains why many cultures view the body as a blank canvas. Article by Olga Khazan Photography by Chris Rainier ASPEN, Colo.—Tattooing, when you think about it, is like smiling: Nearly every culture does it, but not always for the same reason. In a given society, the motivation for covering oneself in paint, ink, or even scars speaks to what the civilization as a whole holds dear. Chris Rainier, a photographer for National Geographic and other publications, has traveled the world in search of cultures he describes as having “one foot in the Garden of Eden.” (He was also Ansel Adams’s last assistant). Speaking at the Aspen Ideas Festival, which is organized jointly by The Atlantic and the Aspen Institute, he explained how “many cultures around the world believe that the body is a canvas waiting for a story to be told.” From New Zealand’s Maori people to Angeleno gangsters, most cultures incorporate some form of tattooing. But “where the skin is too dark to tattoo, there is scari-
WINTER / ISSUE 1 55
56 PRAXIS
fication,” Rainier said. When he would visit African societies that practice scarification, and he would ask locals who they thought was the most beautiful woman or the most handsome man, they would inevitably point to the most scarred. Often, body modifications go beyond vanity, reflecting a necessary part of the transition to adulthood. He photographed one group of Papua New Guineans who believe all of mankind originated from crocodiles, and therefore have their young initiates scar their skin to resemble the scales of a reptile. To varying degrees, the same is true even of cultures that practice less extreme versions of tattooing. As Smithsonian wrote regarding Rainier’s work, “In New Guinea, a swirl of tattoos on a Tofi woman’s face indicates her family lineage. The dark scrawls on a Cambodian monk’s chest reflect his religious beliefs. A Los Angeles gang member’s sprawling tattoos describe his street affiliation, and may even reveal if he’s committed murder.” “They say, ‘This is who I am, and what I have done,’” Rainier told the magazine. Which just goes to show, the ways in which we mark our skin may vary widely, but deep down we’re all the same.*
WINTER / ISSUE 1 57
“Often, body modifications go beyond vanity, reflecting a necessary part of the transition to adulthood.� 58 PRAXIS
WINTER / ISSUE 1 59
Trump VS
Hillary CAMPAIGN DESIGN
60 PRAXIS
L
et’s face it, the 2016 presidential election was pandemonium—an all-out fist fight between the left and the right. In the left corner, weighing in at 33,000 deleted emails, the undisputed wall street heavyweight, Hillary Rodham Clinton. On the right, weighing in at 6 bankruptcies and 34 thousand tweets, the reality tvt show host and political newbie, Donald J. Trump. Instead of boxing trunks, the candidates sported expensive suits; and instead of hooks and jabs, they threw negative commercials and obvious subtweets. America watched as the two fighters sparred in the ring, ducking questions and dodging the real issues. After battling it out for the full 12 rounds, one fighter finally tapped out. Just like that, the historic 2016 election was over. Both politicians left the ring unscathed, but the fate of the U.S. was riddled with uncertainty. Behind these politicians were their spirited crew, their clamorous supporters, and of course, their sleep-deprived team of graphic designers. It’s time to take an inside look at the design language behind the two campaigns—which one packed a punch and which one was on the ropes?
WINTER / ISSUE 1 61
I’m just not entirely sure a big red arrow pointing right is the best logo for a Democratic candidate, is all. —The New Yorker Designer: Michael Bierut Date: April 2016 Slogan: “Stronger Together”
“ Designer: unknown Date: July 2016 Slogan: “Make America Great Again!”
62 PRAXIS
With a better interpretation of the “TP” monogram, the concept of taking the American flag to construct a logo where the initials take the place of the stars (while not new) is fitting in this case and, if you were (or happen to be) someone to vote for Trump, this is a fairly rallying logo. —Brand New
Bold (like Christie) yet forgettable (unlike Christie). —Mike Tyson, Senior Designer, New York
While a pretty terrible logo, it’s interesting that Jill Stein uses different colors than red, white and blue. —Matthias Mencke, Group Creative Director, LA
WINTER / ISSUE 1 63
Different, and thoughtfully distancing from his somewhat toxic last name, but it feels amateurish and simplistic—not simple. —Mike Tyson, Senior Designer, New York Sander’s logo is well balanced, has good colors and almost appears happy on top of its little wave. I’m not a huge fan of the star over the ‘i’, but the way they’ve integrated the logo into his website and used it across a range of merchandise shows it’s versatility. Nice one. — Benjamin Starr, Visual News
64 PRAXIS
Marco Rubio’s is bland and uninspired. The only thing it has going for it is that you can read it. —Mike Preston, Associate Creative Director, New York
WINTER / ISSUE 1 65
ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANSEN
66 PRAXIS
WINTER / ISSUE 1 67
WHAT WOMEN ARE WORTH By Cheryl Heller Illustrations by Asha Logan
68 PRAXIS
BUSTING NEGATIVE STEREOTYPES FOR MORE MONEY AND POWER Cheryl Heller on why women “have a tremendous advantage…from not being the ruling class.” I was asked to speak at the conference in Chicago about the fact that women make less money than men. It’s an endless emotional subject colored by centuries of opinions. Following, nevertheless, is one more point of view. I believe that money and power will not come through legislation, although that may give women the confidence to act. It will come through an understanding of how our behavior has been conditioned by stereotypes and how our expectation levels are set and the responsibility we share in setting those expectations. The time has come for this issue of men versus women to end. Too much has been said and written and too much money has been made by those to stand to profit from analyzing the gender gap. The most honest and useful belief we can hold is that the battle we have to fight is an individual battle having nothing to do with gender.
WINTER / ISSUE 1 69
It’s undeniably true that women make less money than men, and money is the sign of equality. Women earn less money than men at every level of education. The gap is as large for college graduates as for workers who have not finished high school. Both men and women employers pay their female subordinates roughly $12,000 less than their male subordinates with similar positions. It’s a fascinating statistic. Women pay women less than they pay men. One-third of all new businesses today are started by women, and surprisingly, among the self-employed, the gap in hourly earnings is slightly larger. That means that even when women have their own companies, they pay themselves less than men pay themselves.
the issues of supply and demand and they pay, to men and women, as little as they can while remaining competitive in the marketplace, and they respond to whoever applies the most pressure. A second definition of discrimination is job segregation, the assumption that women are suited to some jobs more than others or the menial tasks rather than managerial. It’s called sex-role differentiation and there are a million reasons as to why it exists. The assumption that we’re not the same has existed forever. Within the original myths of almost every culture, there seems to be a preference for dichotomous thinking, which, as Simone Dabougraur wrote in 1945, “Casts men as the norm and women as the other possessing traits opposing to men.”
Women pay women less than they pay men.
The facts about the wage gap are relatively uncontroversial, but there’s a lot of disagreement as to why. The first inclination is to blame employers, but if employers had the power to control wages, why wouldn’t they drive down the wages of men? They have to face
70 PRAXIS
Not surprisingly, the fact that men have been in power has had an effect on the study of sexual differences. First of all, women had not been considered important enough to study, and the study that
has been done has been directed towards discovering proof of women’s biological inferiority. Men have simply been protecting their turf. We have been considered less intelligent because of our smaller brain size and are unable to perform several tasks simultaneously because of less brain lateralization. It’s been discovered that people do “emotion work” on themselves to create feelings that appropriate to their role in society; also, that through anticipatory socialization, men condition themselves to have masculine feelings and women to have feminine feelings. Nora Ephron wrote about this self-fulfilling prophecy: “I adapted willy-nilly. If I was assumed to be incompetent at reversing cars or opening bottles, oddly incompetent I found myself becoming. If a case was thought too heavy for me, inexplicably I found it so myself. I discovered that even now men prefer women to be less informed, less able, less talkative, and certainly less self-centered than they are themselves, so I generally oblige them. I didn’t particularly want to be good at reversing cars and didn’t in the least mind being patronized by illiterate garage men.
But all stereotypes disintegrate when we look at individuals. The fact of the matter is that more men than women do certain things and behave in certain ways and vice versa, but in reality, the world just doesn’t split neatly down that line. What differences there are between men and women turn out to be much smaller than the differences between rich and poor or between managers of small and large companies or old and new companies. They may even be smaller than the differences between old and young people, or those with professional parents and those with working class parents. We’re believed to be more controlled by our hormones than are men. Edgar Burman, who was medical advisor to the late Hubert Humphrey, warned against women’s participation in public affairs because of their “raging hormones” and U.N. Ambassador Jean Kirkpatrick reported that some White House critics resisted her appointment because of her female “temperament.” We’re believed to be generally fixed as homemakers and breeders of children through the evolution of hunter-gatherer societies. We’re also believed to be more “social” and more suggest-
WINTER / ISSUE 1 71
ible, to have lower self-esteem, to excel over men at repetitive tasks, to be less analytical, less motivated towards achievement, and more auditorially oriented rather than visually. None of these things is true. What is true; however, is that we’re conditioned to behave in certain ways regarded as appropriate to our gender by our parents, our teachers, and by society. The overwhelming evidence that’s come to light in the last decade indicates that gender differentiation is best explained as a social construction rooted in hierarchy, not in biology. It’s been proven that jobs affect behavior tremendously. Recent research found a direct link between the pace complexity, or routinization of a job and the person’s commitment, intellectual flexibility, moral perspective, and competence. In other words a person’s interest and competence turns out to be linked to exposure to new situations and opportunities to learn in advance. We actually condition ourselves as we are being conditioned to fit this hierarchy. It’s been discovered that people do “emotion work” on themselves
72 PRAXIS
to create feelings that appropriate to their role in society; also, that through anticipatory socialization, men condition themselves to have masculine feelings and women to have feminine feelings. Nora Ephron wrote about this self-fulfilling prophecy: “I adapted willy-nilly. If I was assumed to be incompetent at reversing cars or opening bottles, oddly incompetent I found myself becoming. If a case was thought too heavy for me, inexplicably I found it so myself. I discovered that even now men prefer women to be less informed, less able, less talkative, and certainly less self-centered than they are themselves, so I generally oblige them. I didn’t particularly want to be good at reversing cars and didn’t in the least mind being patronized by illiterate garage men. But all stereotypes disintegrate when we look at individuals. The fact of the matter is that more men than women do certain things and behave in certain ways and vice versa, but in reality, the world just doesn’t split neatly down that line. What differences there are between men and women turn out to be much smaller than the differences between rich and poor or between
WINTER / ISSUE 1 73
managers of small and large companies or old and new companies. They may even be smaller than the differences between old and young people, or those with professional parents and those with working class parents. The concepts of male and female cause the sorting and skewing of perceptions by focusing on differences rather than similarities. Often these distinctions are based on very slim evidence. It was Coleridge’s idea that a truly great mind is androgynous, one that rises above the traps of gender. We create our own opportunities. We must accept responsibility for doing that, and we must accept that we are just as responsible for not creating opportunities. For everyone it’s an individual battle. No organization and no legislation will change enough people. What will help is for each of us to work individually to prove the stereotypes wrong to ourselves and to everyone else. People who are successful have many qualities in common. They have a passion to be great that carries them through rough times and keeps them focused. They’re clear about what they want. They don’t focus on limitations. They take risks and
74 PRAXIS
they have courage. These are qualities shared by both genders. We have a tremendous advantage. We have learned a lot from not being the ruling class. I read once that children always know their parents better than parents know their children. That’s because those with power are studied carefully by those they control. We still have the element of surprise. If you’re not expected to be strong or brilliant, it can work to your advantage. t seems to me that the conflict is to be treated roughly, so you must choose. At a conclusion of A Room of One’s Own, Virginia Woolf wrote, “If we face the fact, for it is a fact, that there is not an arm to cling to, but that we go alone and that zour relation is to the world of reality and not only to the world of men and women, then the opportunity will come.”*
Photo Source: Young One Competition—Spring 2016
cover art contributors JR
Inktank Studio
‌gender differentiation is best explained as a social construction rooted in hierarchy, not in biology.
WINTER / ISSUE 1 75
76 PRAXIS
WINTER / ISSUE 1 77
cover art contributors JR Marius Jopen Fred Martins Shigeo Fukuda Chris Rainier
Kelly Chiu typeface used Museo Sans Merriweather Gotham March 2017