Learning Graphic Design Through History

Module 6 - Early 20th Century Graphic Design - Chapters 13 to 15 This week I'm focusing my attention on Hannah Höch, who was born in 1889 and lived in Weimar, Germany during the height of World War I - which had a major influence on her dynamic and groundbreaking style of art.  https://www.crfashionbook.com/culture/a22158013/cr-muse-artist-hannah-hoch/ Höch was a member of the German Dada group, which was considered a  satirical group of artists (established in 1916) that was born from opposition to WWI and conventional art of the period ( https://www.dadart.com/dadaism/dada/022-dada-berlin.html ). Their art frequently made fun of the culture and German society stemming from the current political issues of the day ( https://www.moma.org/artists/2675 ). https://dangerousminds.net/comments/the_mama_the_dadas_the_pioneering_feminist_artwork_of_hannah_hoech Höch's typical art consisted of carefully constructed collages with her medium created from magazines,  fashion publica...

This week's mission is to reflect on an individual from Chapters 11 and/or 12 - Art Nouveau/Genesis of 20th Century Design. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/mar/18/death-of-aubrey-beardsley-1898 https://www.theartstory.org/artist/beardsley-aubrey/ As an artist myself, who frequently creates pieces with stark black ink lines, Aubrey Beardsley's art (of the Art Nouveau period) stood out to me. Beardsley was considered a bit of a rebel during his heyday and was criticized for his "outrageous" work (1893 - 1896).  https://www.etsy.com/listing/500336587/art-nouveau-aubrey-beardsley-art-nouveau?gpla=1&gao=1&&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping_us_d-art_and_collectibles-prints-other&utm_custom1=_k_CjwKCAjw_L6LBhBbEiwA4c46ut6vWmbEY4KXUHeX-iks6ZDgYoPsVJ8A-e9t63TNpH-5NdP6GLbI_hoCn40QAvD_BwE_k_&utm_content=go_12569400421_122439148311_507438362879_pla-329595960451_c__500336587_102638416&utm_custom2=12569400421&gc...

 Module 4 - Explore a subject of interest in the Arts and Crafts Movement or the Victorian Art Era (CHAPTERS 9 and 10) I am personally drawn to the Arts and Crafts Movement (1880 to 1920) where bold black and white woodcut designs inspired by the return of handicraft in graphic design was the mainstay of the day (Megg's 2016) and I found Chapter 10 on the era to be a particularly interesting read. The typography of the period became an art form and some of the early forms of true graphic design that we can even see today. But again, as in my last post on the Renaissance, other than Kate Greenway's childhood illustrations from the Victorian era (Megg's 2016), there appears to be a lack of reference to the women's mark on graphic design history, especially in regard to typography. When the likes of Frederic Goudy was being recognized for his Venetian and French Renaissance type fonts (Megg's 2016), there was one significant typeface designer and typographer of the Art...

MODULE 3 - Graphic Design During the  Renaissance  (b ased on Chapters 5 to 8). Plautilla Nelli - Illumination CODEX 566, SAN MARCO MUSEUM, RESTORED BY AWA 2017 http://advancingwomenartists.org/art-in-need/what-can-i-help-restore-now/plautilla-nellis-self-portrai Something that I noticed while reading through chapters 5 through 8 in Megg's (2016) was the lack of a female presence in graphic design history in the Renaissance period of this book. I wondered to myself if there really were no notable women in this field during this time. I know there were many female Renaissance artists that worked on large scale paintings throughout this period (for example:  Levina Teerlinc   (a possible illuminator!),  Lavinia Fontana , and  Artemisia Gentileschi ) , but even those women rarely made the history books or are frequently discussed as being significant characters of art. The only reason I know about these people is due to the fact I have searched them out to te...

MODULE 2 - REFLECTIONS ON CHAPTERS 1 - 4 Meggs' History of Graphic Design (2016) first four chapters details how text and the alphabet has evolved from cave painting pictures to the creation of the alphabet to medieval bound books. Within these chapters was brief discussion of petroglyphs, which I have always had a fascination with.  Petroglyphs are rock carvings or pictographs that early humans used to communicate stories, myths, messages to each other, educate future generations, may have been utilized for religious reasons, etc. They were, however, not considered to be art for the sake of art. So, why am I so intrigued by petroglyphs?      I live in Petersburg, Alaska and on our very own local beach is a series of ancient petroglyphs carved by the local Tlingit tribe into massive boulders that have sat on that very beach for thousands of years. The future generations of these tribal members still live in our community today and many of the traditions that have be...

T he purpose of this blog is to read, absorb, and reflect on the history of graphic design through the  Meggs' History of Graphic Design  book (Meggs and Purvis 2016). The purpose of Module 1 is to look at every picture in the book before actually reading the text and reflect.  Picture Credit:  https://draw-down.com/products/meggs-history-of-graphic-design-6th-edition My first honest impression when receiving this book in the mail was that it was massive and I was intimidated by the thought of reading the entire thing. But it also had a modern and dynamic cover which drew me in. I know, I know - don't judge a book by its cover. Well, upon opening this gargatuan beast, I discovered smooth, glossy pages of beautiful pictures ranging from:  prehistoric cave paintings,  early alphabet forms,  first and elaborate printing of texts,  detailed art pages within the pages of the book,  colorful posters of the early 1900's,  abstract and seemingly...