Study Task 4

Text Summary

In Design of Dissent the author Tony Kushner talks about how imagery and graphic design is used in times of political upheaval and instability as a weapon, how it can be manipulated to be used and how it works to create great change. Its main example is how in 1769 the miniaturist Gros create the drawing of the archduke in france of the time who had stopped all corn farming to make himself richer and the peasants poorer, this selfish act cause a lot of issues with the society at the time. Gros then uses illustaration to express his opinions and creates a piece that help with the falling of the duke. Kushner analyses his work to see how it achieved this, he picks up the main parts of create a struct that all political imagery should work with.

For good political graphic design to work in a time of need it has to be intelligent, it has to use a sort of wit that make the masses laugh as well as understand it. It has to be relatable while talking about a issues that links together people,  a common issue or injustice that will create emotions in the audience and make they think in a new way. It also has to be instantly understandable, the audience might only be able to give a quick glance or walk pass the imagery but has to get the meaning and be effected by it in these few seconds, bold enough to make a sudden understandable impact. Like with the Gros illustration, it took a issues that the whole country was aware of then using wit made the duke a laughing stock. Everyone who saw it from every age found it amusing, even children who didn't understand the statement could see the comical basis of a fat man bleeding corn. Graphic design can be dangerous, it can give off a power of slander or insult in a way that can change the opinion of the people, this is the most dangerous thing, it can do, it cant physically change anything but it can change its audience then they can change the rest.

'Art can't change anything expect people, but art changes people and people can make everything change' Tony Kursher  

By make laughing stocks of important people this removes their power, afterwards no one takes them seriously so they cannot use the fear they relied on. This is show very clearly in the little illustration, it made the duke look silly and powerless, pulled apart the fear he worked on and drove him down so the people where scared anymore but laughed at him, it did this in a way that only art can, in a way that it doesn't need to be communicated or explained but it just works.

Reading and Understanding a Text

Chosen question :

'Discuss the role that graphic design can play during periods of political and/or social upheaval'

Text : The Design of Dissent (Tony Kushner)

The overall tone of this text is very positive, its a discussion into how graphic design is used during times that people need a voice as the voice, its the silent idea that the whole group believes that has been created to scream their opinons.

Key Points:

Graphic dissent need to be three things to work, shocking, clever and understood by all.

Graphics doesn't change he world, it jus has impacts on people then they cause the change, its causes a reaction in people, it makes them act and stand up.

Its uses to voice the opinions of the repressed, used as a way to show the opinions of many that are seen as a secret until someone makes them a statement.

It doesn't have to be perfectly planned out  or amazing quality, it about the meaning behind the work and the statement it makes rather then the asectics.

When the time demands it theres usually and artist or an expressionist there, times force people to act and create ideas that stand up for them.

Key Quotes:

'Image as a poster, brand new yet long expected, possessing the power of the uncanny'

'Art can't change anything expect people, but art changes people and people can make everything change'

'The time arrives for a silent truth to become a public truth'

'Great deigns successfully sells monstrous lies'

'Each is an argument that stamps itself indelibly in on the soul of the passer-by; accepted or rejected, the argument, the claim'

History of Image Lecture

A 20,000 year non-linear theory of the image

This lecture was a small snapshot journey into image and its history, it was philosophical and theoretical understand to who images has changed over the year and how its been use to influence the audience. It talked about the power of visual communication and different approaches too it through out the ages. For Cavemen to Stalin the way we see images are they effects have been studied to see how it relates to our current work.

It touched on how cavemen drawing aren't just the simple markings to show they days advents but a human spiritual drawing, these mystically drawings may have been a way to contact the gods, humans and animals while showing their power. Art has been a way of expressing feelings, emotions and basic human nature, it the more natural thing to do and we've been doing it as far back as we can see.

This lecture helped me decide that i will picking the study question for my essay relating to politics and graphic designs influences. It brought up the effects on graphic design and the effects of graphic design on the world at different during time phrases. The way Russia and Stalin banned art because it thought the expressive painting wasn't understandable for the everyday man, so to reinforces his view he banned all arts of this type so it wasn't just the high societies that could just appreciate art. He wanted art to be simple and easily readable, this meant more traditional painting so that everyone could see the meaning and understand the images. The country reversed its views on art, from being a leading country in modern art in the 1920 then suddenly banning all new art style and just keeping to simple socialist realism. In americas eyes Russia then became a repressed culturally, all the work was mostly propaganda based. After being informed on all this in the lecture this morning i would like to research it in more detail for my essay.

Propaganda shows how artist can almost change the perception of history by showing fake positive images rather than the truth. Especially in a time before media and tv, posters were created to show and communicate the message they wanted without anyone knowing the truth, they could manipulate the general opinions through art work and posters, this is seen a lot in Chinese posters and imagery. They show red flags to reflect the blood of the dead, the martyrs that died for their cause  while being a bold strong colour to reinforce power . The red flag is used to tell people to stand up for their dead and used to inspire them to stand behind the fighting and hold up their flag.

Socialist Realism, Roses for Stalin

It talked about how Napoleon stated that the illustration artist Gilroy did more damage to his cause than all the armies together, this shows how the little illustrations insulting the campaign made Napoleon so upset and angry that people laugh at him. No one wanted to fight for a man seen as stupid, little and silly, this what the artists made he out to be, he belittle the general until his defeat.

The lecture informed me on when and how different art styles effected the world, it will allow me to see how propaganda was used in different political issues which relates to my question and i will use the information i collected before.

Context of Practice Visual Literacy Lecture

Visual Literacy - The language of Design

Visual literacy is about how we use design and images to communicate, its our job to do this, we solve problems surrounding it using the images and type. We look at the different factors, the words, language, message and meaning to see how they work together. We need to use these to the best of our ability to effectively communicate our ideas concepts to a wide range of audiences. We need to be able to look at image or type and understand the message the artist wants to show behind it, it allows us to get meaning and purpose for them.

VISUAL COMMUNICATION
This is about sending and receiving messages using type and images, its a shared understanding of universal images to get the meaning. This is affected by the audience context, media and method of distribution.

VISUAL LITERACY
Constructing a meaning from visual images and type, it the thinking behind visual communication. This is linking the images to a range of different influences, including cultures present, past and future. Producing images that effectively communicate a message to an audience.

'Visual literacy: is the ability to interpret, negotiate and make meaning from information presented in the form of an image'

Pictures can be read then an understanding can be applied to gain knowledge, its like a global international language. It means that pictures can be used all the time and so that everyone can understand them. Its very useful for signs, instructions ect. For example Toilets

All that is necessary for any language to exit is an agreement amongst a group of people, its just takes everyone to agree the image or a form of the image stands for. Here these images look nothing like people actually going to the toilet but they are a edited for of the national symbols for toilet, these symbols are taught from a young age so that everyone knows they are male and female toilets. We are brought up surrounded but they and associate them with it. These are the basic images we start off associating with the symbols, they are seen all over the world as signs for which toilet is male and female and disabled, this is visual literacy.

We associate them with toilets because this is what we are told and also because when we see them we usually see the word underneath it, over time we start to recognise this without the name and also in different forms. This shows a high level of visual literacy that is gain as we grow up.

Image Analysis Exercise

Context of Practice Task 1
Image Analysis Exercise

Image 1

The Uncle Sam Range (1879)
Adversting Image by Schmacher & Ettlinger New York

Image 2

Empire Marketing Board - East African Transport Old Style and East African Transport No Style
by Adrain Allinson from the Colonial Progress Brings Home Prosperity Series

Both these images are used to portray a message and as propaganda by their governments to help promote an idea they had, although for the same purpose both images are very different and are used in different ways. The first is an older image so therefore is printed in a more traditional way, this meant they had to compromise on colours, styles ect. The colour used in the second a lot more vivid and clear, this is a its a more recent image created in a new style. Being more recent meant it could use more bolder, interesting ways than the first because of the advances in technology over the time . Neither were created digital but still the process was very different, this lead to second image being clear and standing out more.  The first had to be cheap to produce and this is seen clearly from the quality of the image, it was probably used in magazines and other papers as it's image that you notice but understand over time, you have to study it to see all the points its trying to get across in the details.Whereas the second image is a very simple concept created but lots of little detail too but these add up to create a obvious image that is clear from a quick view.  The colours and shades are not as bright as in the first as in the second image which is as the second is a more recent document which will have newer more advance ways producing a poster. As printing technology has improved artist have been able to try and experiment with more unique different styles, like here the first is a very basic image in the old linagraphic style which was probably the most popular if not the only ways of producing work like this whereas the new image is a painted/drawn image that has then been reproduced on a larger scale as this was accessible to the artist. Although both images are from very different places with different aims, they both include issues of sexism and racism, they show this is the details of the piece that then collectively give off this issues. One way the first image shows racism is that there is a black slave serving the group at the table, this reflects the time as well as politics as this is when slaver was still very big in America, but only the rich had slaves so the artists is trying to show the group as rich, they want to portray they are the important so this use of racism would have implied. The slave is also working compared to the white people which are laughing, smiling and having a good time, this is to give off a positive image as they want it to be a happy fun poster rather than a depressing/negative image.The other piece uses racism as a more forward impact, the first part shows unhappy, unsafe african tribe traveling via walking in the wild, this is children in danger and other aspects that combine to give a negative impression, this is then contrasted with the more positive image of the white man in a boat directing the africans, first off all its clear there are no women or child in this image showing they are safe and not having to work. Second the images hows they muscly and happy to work rather than sad, the artist has changed the layout of the picture so that the white man is not only mental above but actually physically above the others this is to express his power over them and his importance. Sexism is used in the first poster as at the women is serving the food, she seems happy but is not allowed to sit with the men as is kept away and working, this shows the values of the times and display how women where seen to work only at this time in history. Also the world is seen as a man by wearing trouser and a suit, this reflects the view 'Its a mans world' at this point in history the world was very bias towards men and talking about the world using a masculine pronoun was normal rather than these days it would be kept gender neutral.  

All different elements from the first poster where added as propaganda to reinforce an image that its trying to show, it shows the 'america dream' Uncle Sam, in a all american suit sitting down with the world to trade. The smiling world shows hows the world is happy with everything and with america, this was to make people think that everything good as there was no media to tell them otherwise.