F.T. Marinetti, Manifesto of Futurism; Aleksandr Rodchenko, Who We Are: Manifesto of the Constructivist Group; and El Lissitzky, Our Book are found in our main text Graphic Design Theory: Readings From the Field by Helen Armstrong on pages 19-31.

Questions/Prompts

  • What political events were happening during the time and place that these manifestos were written? How did those events influence the authors’ beliefs?
  • Consider if and how these manifestos addressed the concepts of authorship/ownership, universal systems of communication, and social/political engagement.
  • Which elements of these texts remain relevant for the present, and which elements are problematic? 
  • How has the communication process changed since the early 20th Century, specifically with regard to technology?

Response

During this time, the Industrial Revolution and World War I. The use of technology was on the rise and many designers were embracing this rapid change towards the machine. The futurists saw this as a means to embrace violence and war. They rejected the past and traditionalism, seeing machines and technology as the necessary step forward for human progress. They loved the speed, danger and thrill that this new technology brought, which would be on full display during the war.

For the Constructivists, what influenced them was the Russian Revolution. Similar to the futurists, they believed in this idea of machines and technology being the necessary step of progression for humanity, but they did not necessarily identify with these same ideas of embracing violence for the danger and thrill. They also saw technology as a threat to art, as well as being a tool. They believed in using geometry for structure in design, similar to how people wanted to restructure society through the revolution. Artists and designers, referred by them as constructors, would be the leaders in building and rebuilding society.