Tasks Due Today

  • Essay #1 (Final)
  • Research Project & Presentation Outline (draft)
  • Week 6 Agenda Checklist

This Week’s Topics

Check-In & Share

Suggest a track

Discussion: Diversifying Design History (15 min)

As we start to wrap up the “groundwork” of design theory where revolutionary ideas evolved into mainstream modernism and corporate commercial design, let’s pause to take moment to consider that in the history of design, not every story gets told. Why?

This week you will be reading and annotating an essay written by Silas Munro, looking at the lack of diversity in the American design field and, relatedly, design history. Things are changing, but what are some ways young designers can influence the design field.

African-American Designers (often) Absent from Classroom Lectures:

Resources

Activities

Below find the information covered in this session. Complete all of the following activities, videos, and assignments.

1. Essay #1 Final Draft Due – Peer Review (20 min)

Today, you should have posted the final draft of your Essay #1. Find a partner and review your partner’s paper using the Checklist/Rubric. Take 15-20 minutes to review the paper and then 5-10 minutes to discuss the feedback with your partner. Add inline notes using the comments in the doc and/or on an additional page. If you didn’t complete your paper, figure out a way to participate.

2. Research Project Outline Due Next Week (20 Min)

Create a post with your Research Project Outline either as a link to a google doc or pasted into the body of the post. Include an introduction at the top of your post. Come prepared to share it with the group. Use the Category: Research Project Outline in your post.

Peer Discussion:

Break into groups of 3-4 and share your ideas for your Research Project. Help each other formulate a focused research question. Refer to the video we watched last week.

3. Mainstream Modernism + American Corporate Identity (20 min)

We saw the evolution of influences from the Constructivists, De Stijl, New Typography, and the Bauhaus that led to the mainstream adoption of the modernist International Typographic Style/Swiss Style in the mid-20th Century. This week we look at the American version of Modernism as corporate advertising in the 1950s-1960s began to take shape.

Modernism in the United States showed a commitment to “less is more” and a strong reliance on images and geometric forms. The approach was impartial and direct. Corporate identity design emerged during this time and favored a simplification in visual approach. Simple, sharp, and clean, designers developed cohesive brand identities. Commonplace today, designers like Paul Rand, started to use acronyms for logos and corporate brand identity. The identity manuals used today for fully branded company identities came into being.

Below are a series of videos that take you through the history of advertising, corporate identity design, and mainstream designers that influenced the field.

The New York School

Watch the Graphic Design History section on The New York School on LinkedIn Learning (this is the best option to view the work clearly!).

Or, if you must, watch the YouTube video. NOTE: watch from 1:18:14 to 1:18:55

American Corporate Identity

Watch the Graphic Design History section on American Corporate Identity on LinkedIn Learning (this is the best option to view the work clearly!).

Or, if you must, watch the YouTube video. NOTE: watch from 1:25:45 to 1:30:32

Paul Rand

Paul Rand was one of the most influential American graphic designers of the 20th century, known for the clear aesthetics that he adopted from European Modernism. Rand was prompted to write “Good Design Is Good Will” 1987 in response to what he considered poor design decisions from major corporations.

  • The relationship between designer and client should be a reciprocal one, at the highest level of management.
  • Neither the field of design nor that of marketing requires any accreditation, which can lead to the proliferation of poor design that does not work well.
  • Design is “a calling” rooted in the “creative impulse of an individual” and “self-realization.” Thus designers must dedicate themselves to uncovering good ideas based on instinct, aesthetics, and taste.
  • Contributions of good design build the reputation and integrity of a company, which in turn has a “cultural responsibility” to “help shape its environment” and to develop goodwill toward consumers.

Read this Paul Rand interview by Steven Heller, 1989.

For more on Paul Rand

Paul Rand – The Futur Academy

5. Assignment: Reading Response #5

Typography as a Radical Act in an Industry Ever-dominated by White Men by Silas Munro, Eye on Design, 2019

Read and annotate this essay. Add the tags: Diversify Design and Reading Response 5 to your annotations.

Consider these questions:

  • What stood out to you the most in this reading?
  • How do we change the commercial design field to include a diversity of voices and visions?
  • What will the commercial design field and the study of design history look like in 20 years?

Resources

Freewrite – The Art of Noticing & Work in Class

Prompt: In your language of choice, write continuously in your notebook for 10 minutes about your Research Topic. Don’t edit, or correct, don’t stop, just write. If you get stuck, just write the same word(s) over and over until you think of something else to write down.

Next Week’s Prompt!

Do you have difficulty staying focused when someone is speaking or presenting information? You’re not alone. Jumpy minds are a pervasive problem in a world overloaded with information.

This week, apply the S.L.A.N.T Method when talking to a friend/family member, when listening to a presenter, or in a work meeting. Observe what happens.

How?

  1. Sit up straight (communicates interest)
  2. Lean forward (signals active listening)
  3. Ask questions (fosters deeper engagement)
  4. Nod your head (displays understanding and connection)
  5. Track the speaker (helps with processing and understanding)

Why?

It’s a good way to develop a “sustained attention muscle.” Becoming an attentive listener is a superpower!

Week 7 Agenda Checklist

Below are all of the tasks, big and small, for this week. The due date is Wednesday, 11:59 pm before our next Thursday class. Timely completion of these tasks will contribute to your success in this course.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Tasks from the Week 7 Agenda
Name

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