Category: 141

The father of Russian Constructivism

Who was Rodchenko?

Aleksandr Mikhailovich Rodchenko was a genuinely multifaceted artist: a painter, sculptor, photographer, and designer. He was born in Saint Petersburg in 1891, which means he experienced the Russian revolution in firsthand. He formed as an artist at the Kazan School of Art and the Troganov Moscow State Academy of Arts and Industry.

The Russian Avant-gardes

The Russian revolution was a very particular moment for art and design since this was the moment when the Russian avant-gardes emerged. Rodchenko was fascinated by these avant-gardes, and he was especially interested in Suprematism and Futurism, artistic movements which greatly influenced him. His main idols were Malevich and Tatlin.

• 

• 

The first “Advertising agency”

In 1923, together with the poet Vladímir Mayakovski, they founded Mayakovski-Ródchenko Advertising-Constructor, which today would be considered an advertising agency. More than 150 pieces were created in this agency. Mayakovski, was in charge of writing the slogans, while Rodchenko of creating the visuals.

Rusian Constructivism

Nowadays, Rodchenko is recognized as probably the greatest exponent of Russian Constructivism. In the field of design, this movement is based on the implementation of photomontage, geometric figures, symmetry, and the representative colours of the revolution: black and red. This is an art form at the service of the revolution, which mixes propaganda, art, design, engineering, and advertising, to create designs with short and very direct slogans that will influence the Russian society of the time.

Art and design are everywhere

What interests me most about this designer is to realize that art and design are everywhere, at all times in history. I like to see that the political, social and economic take place in these spaces, but the artistic part also plays an important role, even in critical moments such as wars and revolutions. I find it amazing to see art as a reflection of the society of the time; it shows us people’s ideologies, thoughts, and goals. For example, design during this time was intended to communicate messages about the revolution. However, it is not as simple as just writing the message. A good design is the one that best communicates these messages, and with this, it is possible to influence and even manipulate the reader

References:

https://es.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandr_R%C3%B3dchenko

https://www.elviejotopo.com/topoexpress/rodchenko-el-arte-y-la-revolucion/

https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constructivismo_(arte)

• 

For this project, what made more sense for me was creating a timeline, and organizing the different categories chronologically. I also thought the best way to show the characteristics of the typefaces, was to make the example as big as possible. Therefore, I did various sketches with this concept. For me, the biggest challenge in this assignment was to find an interesting way to include all the text that was needed for the descriptions and characteristics. Because there were already going to be a lot of text elements, as well as big letters, I did not want to saturate the poster with unnecessary extra elements, I did not want it to look overwhelming. The desire of having a simple-looking poster, this reminded me a bit of the Bauhaus posters, and by looking at this kind of posters, I decided on the color palette.
It took me around five hours to complete this project, including the time for the research, and all the sketching process. To be honest I would give myself a 5/10, since I do not live the way the text is organized, and I do not think it is a very innovative or creative concept. It does not even really looks like it has five hours of work. I would have liked to spend way more time creating something better, but due to personal circumstances, I had to rush.

I do like the way the big letters look, and I think the way I included the name of each category works well. I also think the colours are fine. The top heading could have been better, but I know for sure what annoys me the most about this piece, is how messy the text looks. If I had thought about this part more carefully, I believe I could have achieved a better-looking poster.

An approach to architecture so particular and fantastic, that it almost seems unreal.

• 

Who was Gaudí?

Antonio Gaudí I Cornet was a Catalan architect, internationally known as one of the greatest exponents of modernism. He was born on June 25 of 1852, in a family of coppersmiths. This allowed him to acquire a special ability to work with space and volume.

From an early age, he showed an interest in architecture. Because of this, he went to Barcelona, the most modern city in Spain at the time, to study architecture. And it is there, in Barcelona, where most of his great works are found today. Among them, his main masterpiece, the Sagrada Familia, and my personal favourites, Park Güel, and Casa Batló. However, he also has pieces in other Spanish cities, such as the Caprice in Comillas, or the Episcopal Palace in Astorga.

• 

• 

Chains and arches: an astonishing method

His first projects were a set of lampposts for the Plaza Real in Barcelona, the Girossi kiosks, and the Mataró cooperative. This last one turned out to be his first major work since this was the first time that Gaudí experimented with parabolic arches, which ended up becoming one of the outstanding characteristics of his architecture.

For achieving these arches, he devoted ten years of his life to developing a “hanging chain” model. He designed a complex set of hanging chains that he installed on the ceiling and used weights and suspension ropes. The arched forms that resulted from the experiment were what he was looking for as an architectural form, by turning them upside down. This would be fundamental to work on his design for the Sagrada Familia.

• 

An impressive and magical architecture

Gaudí’s works are usually classified as modernist because of his desire to renew without breaking with tradition. Even though his modernist and Art nouveau influences are clear, his works have a very individualized and unique style.

My admiration for his work is mainly because I am a lover of everything that looks magical, fantastic, and I think that a work by Gaudí has that fairy tale essence. His works do not go unnoticed, they are something very different from what we are used to seeing daily. That is something I like when a visual work takes you out of everyday life, and for an instant, it transports you to another world.

• 

References

https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoni_Gaud%C3%AD

https://www.biografiasyvidas.com/biografia/g/gaudi.htm

https://www.arteespana.com/antoniogaudi.htm

http://www.portalgaudi.cat/es/los-edificios/nau-gaudi-de-mataro/

https://www.liligo.es/magazine-viajes/obras-gaudi-fuera-cataluna-160141.html

My artifact is a reproduction of the Vogue magazine cover of June 7th, 1930, illustrated by the American Harriet Meserole. The museum label is supposed to be the back part of a magazine, and it also includes an illustration by Meserole, this one was on the cover of the magazine of May 15, 1927. The elements in the photo intend to locate the magazines in a context of beauty, fashion, and feminity. At the same time, I wanted it to have a look of elegance, and simplicity.

I chose the topic of the Vogue magazine because it amazes me to think about the tremendous reputation and impact it has gained through the decades. I also like the fashion world, so it was an opportunity to get more knowledge of a topic that interests me. In the past, I had looked at some of the old Vogue magazine covers, and my favourites were those which had been illustrated by Harriet Meserole. I adore her style, the way she conveys sophistication, and the balanced colour palette. This was between the twenties and thirties, so it fits perfectly with the date restrictions provided on the brief. Because of this, I immediately decided I wanted to recreate some of her designs. I searched for her illustrations and chose two I liked and thought that worked well together.

It took me around six hours to complete this project and I would give myself a 8/10 because I think it looks good overall, I like the cohesion and simplicity it has. But on the other hand, it is not something too impressive from my point of view, and I do not like how the letters of the “VOGUE MAGAZINE” title look. I also wanted to include way more information about it, but I realized it would be too much text, and it would not look so good and would be hard to read.

References images:

• 

• 

• 

Research references:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vogue_(magazine)#1892%E2%80%931905:_Early_years

https://www.vogue.com/article/vogue-covers-models-facts-history

https://www.quora.com/How-influential-is-Vogue-in-the-fashion-industry

Images that transport you to a new universe, the “pictures of the floating world”.

• 

Ukiyo-e? What is that?

Ukiyo-e was an artistic manifestation that emerged during the Edo period (former name of the current Tokyo) and remained between the XVII and the XIX centuries. It consisted of a technique of wood engraving, also known as “woodcut”. In the mid-seventeenth century, the illustrator, printer and xylographer Moronobu Hishikawa helped popularize this style. Although he cannot be called the founder of Ukiyo-e, what is known is that he played a crucial role in the history of this style.

Ukiyo-e prints tended to depict black and white scenes of city life, but these became so popular, that then, themes started to diversify. Because of this, the prints started to include topics about social criticism and introduced polychrome. Some of the styles of Ukiyo-e that stand out the most are the Yakusha-e, portraits of kabuki actors (the Japanese theater), the Bijin-ga (prints of beautiful women), and the Shun-ga (erotic representations that were persecuted by the government censorship).

• 

• 

• 

My thoughts about it

Personally, what first attracted me was the pastel colour palette; when I look at these pieces, the colours calm me down. In my opinion, they have perfect harmony, and although sometimes the themes are not very “peaceful”, they still give me a feeling of serenity and tranquility. As I mentioned in the title, is like these prints take you to a new world, a place with a dreamy atmosphere. I find Ukiyo-e images beautiful, I like to look at them and see every detail done to perfection.

Apart from the fact that I like the aesthetic look of these prints, another thing that interests me about them is the elaboration process. Creating one of these designs was not a simple task: first, they had to paste a piece of paper on a wooden plate, using a small knife they embossed the contours, then they continued by hollowing out the surface around the contours of the drawing with a gouge and a hammer, and then the main plate (called omohan), which represents the whole drawing, was ready.
Afterward, the pigments with the colors were spread on the plate and the paper was placed on the plate according to the notches that have already been made on the wood. Finally, the paper was rubbed with a buffer so that the colors penetrate the paper. The woodcut had to be stamped color by color, plate by plate. The engraver had to use as many plates as pigments. Finally, the image is done! It always amazes me when I read about the way people in the past elaborated such stunning pieces completely by hand, I admire all the time, patience, and hard work this must have taken. The precision that they achieved after this arduous process, surprises and amazes me.

References

Ukiyo-e. (2021, October 02). Wikipedia. from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukiyo-e

El Arte del Grabado Japonés Ukiyo-e. (2018, September 13). Uniandes. from https://facartes.uniandes.edu.co/evento/el-arte-del-grabado-japones-ukiyo-e/

El Grabado Japonés. (2020, December 07). Totenart. from https://totenart.com/noticias/ukiyo-e/

I wanted my zine to have a coherent design with the topic chosen. Since my topic was The New Typography Movement, some of the elements I used were geometrical shapes, asymmetrical layouts, dynamism, capital letters, and a reduced colour palette. All of those are characteristics of the design pieces of this movement.

I had never designed a zine; indeed, I think I hadn’t even seen one before. I like the fact that after this project, I now know how to create a zine, which is probably something that I’ll use in the future. This is because I personally found it fun to play with the general design and make individual pages that connect and because I think it is a useful tool for communicating information in an entertaining way.

It took me around nine hours to complete this project, but to be honest, I do not love the overall result of the project, and I would give myself a 6/10. One of my mistakes was the size I chose, I noticed too late the size was too small to fit all the information I had, so I had to take a big part of that away. Also, most of the paragraphs do not look organized. I think I also used too much time researching. Another mistake is the fact that I didn’t read the brief carefully enough, and at first, I did all the research and sketches for the wrong topic, so I had to restart. If I hadn’t wasted all that time, I could have spent it on making a better brief (I am not counting the time spent in that first attempt in the 9 hours). Something I do like is the layout design, and I like to see the way it is all connected.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Research references:

https://www.unostiposduros.com/los-principios-de-la-nueva-tipografia-por-jan-tschichold/

https://www.unostiposduros.com/grandes-maestros-de-la-tipografia-jan-tschichold/

https://ericcraps.wordpress.com/2019/01/15/new-typography/

https://graffica.info/la-nueva-tipografia-laszlo-moholy-nagy-1923/

https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/1013

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Tschichold#Typefaces

https://antoinesammut.blogspot.com/2014/01/new-typography-movement.html

https://ericcraps.wordpress.com/2019/01/15/new-typography/

Majestic, bright, and ornate: letters that look like they have come from heaven

During the Middle Ages, the Illuminated Manuscripts became popular among Western European high society. These were made entirely by hand, and included religious content, such as psalms and prayers. The pages of these manuscripts were adorned with illustrations and the so-called “Initials”.

Initials were letters that could be found at the beginning of a sentence, paragraph, or chapter. The letters at the beginning of a chapter were the most elaborate and meticulously detailed of all, while those at the beginning of a sentence were the simplest. However, what is common among all of them is that they are always capital letters.
Initials became of vital importance; it was inconceivable the elaboration of an illustrated manuscript without the inclusion of them. They became so relevant, that kings and great religious leaders of the time implemented them in official documents. This was because they considered that initials gave these documents greater transcendence and beauty.

For the society of the time, the brightness alluded to divinity. As initials used to accompany religious texts, they wanted to achieve a connection with the idea of ​​God. Because of these, we can notice there is a golden-shine effect on these letters. To obtain this effect, a thin gold foil was used. This was positioned on the letter, then sanded and polished, to finally stick it with a wet brush.

From the first time I saw one of these letters, I was completely amazed. I think about all the time and dedication it would take to make them, and it just seems incredible to me. I think the level of detail that they reached in each of the letters is admirable. In particular, I am interested in historical letters, a type of initials that instead of containing a random decorative design, seeks to represent some of the scenes that are being narrated in the text. In my opinion, this is a smart way to not only make the text aesthetic but also to illustrate it at the same time.

I’ve been so interested in initials, that months ago I wanted to try to make one. I took an existing letter “B” as a reference, and I designed one that shows the four steps necessary for the elaboration of the letters. The first is sketching, then drawing, adding the golden effect, and finally adding color.

• 

• 

Initials began to fall into disuse after the invention of the Gutenberg printing press in the mid-15th century, as this caused a detriment in the production of manuscripts. However, it was not immediate. The illuminated letters continued to be used, and when there was a printed text, blank spaces were left so that initials could later be drawn there. Gradually, they began to be less used until they disappeared. The most recent illuminated manuscript with initials dates from the 17th century.

References:

Mark, J. J. (2018, March 06). Illuminated Manuscripts. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/Illuminated_Manuscripts/

Historiated Initial. (2021, April 13). Wikipedia. from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historiated_initiaI

Initial. (2021, September 14). Wikipedia. from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Initial

For my moodboard, I decided to talk about religion and spirituality, and how these have a huge impact on everything. I chose this theme because I find it fascinating how the spirituality of different cultures profoundly determines their identity, their customs, their way of acting, and in general in their entire lifestyle.

I liked the fact that with this project I got deeper into three very different cultures: Jewish, Hindu, and Ancient Egypt. Despite knowing a little about all of them, it was thanks to this research that I learned data that I did not know, for example why Jews wear the kippah, or what cultural meaning the colors have for Hindus.

To be honest, this job took me a long time. First, it was not so easy to find all the connections between the events and the topics. On the other hand, when talking about so many topics, this implied a long investigation of each thing separately. And finally, having never used InVision, at first I didn’t understand how it worked

In total, it took me about 7 hours to finish the mood board. I would give myself a rating of 8/10, as I consider that Iachieved the objective of the assignment, however, I would have liked to include more eye-catching titles, and to have made the moodboard look better aesthetically.

This is my favorite fragment of the moodboard, because the theme of the book of the dead is the one that interests me the most, and the one that attracts me the most aesthetically.

Moodboard link: https://facilitation.invisionapp.com/boards/H68033204G79B8A

With the use of knots, this Inca invention shows us that images are not the only thing that communicates.

The Inca Empire was the largest and most powerful empire during pre-Columbian America. They partly inhabited the territories current territories of Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia, and Argentina, but they were mainly settled in Peru in the Cuzco region. Among its main characteristics are a strengthened army, the possession of gold, their sophisticated textile techniques, the cultivation of potatoes and corn, the raising of alpacas, and the creation of a particular communication system based on ropes and knots, which they called “quipu”.

Personally, this last fact caught my attention, since I had never seen anything like it. By not having a written language, but merely oral, the quipu was the method used by them to record information. This was a very practical system for the Incas because it was portable. Moreover, it was also versatile, since with it they kept official and trade records, as well as being used to tell stories. The quipu consisted of a horizontal rope or a wooden bar to which ropes of different colors were tied, and these ropes had knots on them. Every detail about these ropes and knots, such as their colors, position, quantity, size, and type, had a specific meaning. For example, green indicated conquest, red represented a warrior, blue identified water, yellow was for gold, black was for time, and so on.

With the arrival and conquest of the Spaniards, the use of the quipus was abolished and many were destroyed because it was considered that they were “a thing of the devil”. Today there are less than a thousand quipus that have been found and have survived through the centuries. These are in museums all around the world, and some belong to private collections.

It is usual that when studying the subject of communication systems of ancient civilizations we see many that, although they are interesting, are usually similar in the sense that they generally include the representation of an image or idea through drawings. For instance, the Egyptian hieroglyphs. However, the Inca proposal is a drastically different one. This made me thing think about how amazing it is that there are so many ways to solve a problem, but we are so used to the same thing that we let ourselves be guided by the flow without allowing ourselves to consider other alternatives. That was the reflection to which learning about the quipu led me, and I think that nurturing ourselves of different perspectives, cultures, and sources of information, nourishes us as designers and gives us tools to create more authentic pieces, to let ourselves “think outside the box”.

References:

Cartwright, M. (2014, May 08). Quipu [Quipu]. (E. S. Grill, Translator). World History Encyclopedia. from https://www.worldhistory.org/trans/es/1-12797/quipu/  Uriarte, M. (2020, November 02). Incas. Caracteristicas.co. from https://www.caracteristicas.co/incas/#ixzz78GMBnUdZ Quipu. (2021, August 30). Wikipedia. from https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quipu#Localización_actual_de_los_quipus_sobrevivientes

My hair is something that represents me a lot, it is what stands out the most of my appearance and is what most people remember, so I wanted to include it as a main subject in my yearbook spread. For this, I thought about drawing myself upside down, using my hair to write on it and to symbolize that I like to see things from a different perspective. I have always liked the contrast purple and green make, and since I decided purple was going to be the main color, I used green as a secondary color, and for not to make it monotonous, I added a few details in other colors. 

I wanted it to create a piece that reflected how I want to show myself, for that reason, I also included tiny items such as stars or a rainbow, to create an atmosphere of magic and fantasy. I wanted it to look fun, lively and convey happiness. I am very interested in calligraphy, typography, and lettering, that is why I chose to write it all by hand. I also think the style of the letters shows a lot of me since they look delicate but animated.

I am satisfied with the result, I would give myself a 8/10 in this assignment since I think I achieved to show my personality and obtain an aesthetic piece. Therefore, I would have liked to do a better job with some of the letters. The whole process of making this piece, from the first sketches to the final result, I spent almost seven hours.