Movements in Graphic Design

Discuss the term modernism in relation to at least one key movement in graphic design in the period before 1960. Your essay should consider the relation between progressive trends in the fine arts and the wider context of graphic design

      Modernism in graphic design began to Break through in the late nineteenth century to the early twentieth century “The term modernism refers to the radical shift in aesthetic and cultural sensibilities evident in the art and literature of the post-World War One period” (Modernist and the modern novel 2013) This quote expresses the term modernism and how it became apparent during the War period. It is also a term for the early 20^th century avant-garde trends which was seen in the visual arts. This included many different movements such as: Futurism in Holland, Constructivism: Russian and international, Cubism: France and international, Dadaism and purism.  This essay will discuss the term modernism in relation to a specific key movement in graphic design before the 1960’s. It will focus more closely on the movement Cubism and relate to other key movements and acknowledge the progressive trends in the fine arts and in the wider context of graphic design.  I will go on to describe how painting and cubism influenced graphic design and how the movement completely changed and progressed the arts. I will discuss the different trends lead by graphic design such as: the design of posters, journals, pamphlets, and all manner of printed products and relate this to avant-garde trends and what Megg calls “pictorial modernism.” 

      Throughout the years modern painting began to influence the graphic industry as many painters started to work in the graphic industry. This started in the early twentieth century which led movements to erupt in the visual arts. A key trend in modern art began which was known as Cubism. “Cubism was a truly revolutionary style of modern art developed by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braques. Cubism evolved at the beginning of the 20th century” (Cassandre 2013) This allows us to understand Cubism and how Cubism was formed and developed. Cubism is a satirical term used to express and describe the work of many painters. This began in France in the 1910’s and carried on through to the 1920’s where the art was mainly produced in Paris. Cubism was also known for being the first style of abstract art. This clearly shows significant change in art and how it was influenced towards graphic design and how it began a brand new trend which progressed dramatically. Many other artists were inspired by this movement such as: Jean Metzinger and Albert Gleizes.  Albert Gleizes also developed his own personal style which had elements of Cubism and Purism. Cubism was known to be a very complex style which included the subject of everyday life.  It was very disorientated and accumulated many different perspectives “The Cubist painters rejected the inherited concept that art should copy nature, or that they should adopt the traditional techniques of perspective, modelling, and foreshortening” (Heilbrunn Timeline of Art 2013) This quote signifies what cubist painters aimed to achieve and how instead they wanted to focus of the two-dimensionality of the canvas.  Cubism became very modern and allowed painting to influence graphic design which helped the graphics to expand.

      As well as that Cubism was an anti-realist tendency in painting that influenced key trends in the wider field of the visual arts. This began and progressed in Europe and many other places in the early years of the 20th century.  Another key factor in Cubism is seen through Braques work around 1913 where he makes pictures that have a very shallow picture space.  He abandons perspective as the object represented becomes fragmented sequence of overlapping forms which connotes imbrication. It is as if the objects are recalled at different times rather than being seen at one moment.  Braques image becomes very geometrical and abstracted. The cubist seems to rewrite the rules of representation. Cubism related to the many trends to which happened in the early stages of graphic design. These trends were most printed products such as: Journals, Pamphlets and the great design of posters.  “By 1930, Modernism had entered popular culture.”(Cassandre 2013) This quote expresses the key trend of popular culture and modernism through graphic design and the movement Cubism.  An example of this is a man named Adolphe Jean-Marie Mouron also known as Cassandre who went from painting to posters. The work which expresses this statement is his transport posters. His posters portrayed luxury transport which connoted the life style of his day.  Étoile du Nord and Nord Express were two pieces of Cassandre’ stylised work of speeding trains. He used stencils and airbrushes to create these ideas. His work represented the Cubism and Futurism styles of art work. Futurism was very similar to cubism in terms of variation as it was the Italian Variation of Cubism works. Cassandre’ style also had many connections with Art Deco and pictorial modernism. “Art Deco was a fusion of various early twentieth century styles: a combination of Art Nouveau’s stylized curves with the geometric abstraction of Cubism, Futurism and Constructivism”(Cassandre 2013) This shows how graphic design had become a part of many different movements . Constructivism is a style of modern art that dated back from the early 1920’s. It formed revolution due to every practice in the USSR (The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) which also relates to Art Deco. Art Deco is a very commercialised decretive of this kind of extreme modernism It is also mass-market modernism with many political ideas.  Cassandre was also known to be the designer of the different art deco typefaces such as: Bifur in 1929, Acier Noir in 1935 and Piegnot in 1937. This allows us to see the progressive trends lead by graphic designers and how more and more ideas were growing rapidly such as his serial poster idea which was also seen as cubist work.

      There was also a gradual change from cubist distortion of form to abstract painting through the early 20th century. Abstract art became a part of printed products. Many artists followed this work such as: Mondrian who contributed to the De Stiji group and art movement and the work of El Lissitsky in Russia who was known to be a constructivist. One of Mondrians famous pieces which expressed modernist art and cubism was his painting of the sea in 1912 which consisted of interlocking planes and geometric shapes.   Also the picture plane is acknowledged and its flatness is more evident than it would be in realistic or traditional type’s pf pictorial representation. Through his work we see a great progression to graphic design and abstract modern art through his “composition with yellow, blue and Red” which he produced n 1937-1944. Many painters such as Mondrian and El Lissitisky turned to graphic media. This was due to the fact that they believed it was more democratic and how it would reach a wider audience compared to the audience of Gallery Art.  Also abstraction was mainly associated with the most jealous of extreme modernism such as artists like: DR. Const, De Stijl and many more.  This also relates to French purism which is seen as commercially modern which is watered down for popular consumption.  Leading on from that, there were also artists who followed the movements of dada which the statement can be defined as: “an art movement of the early 20^th century. This movement is described as a movement of artists against art.”(Artlyst 2013) This quote connotes the definition of what Dadaism was. Dada and the constructivist’s artists railed against “Gallery Art.” The reason for this is because they believed that it was thought to be elitist. However these particular types of artists did in fact embrace the artistic innovations in cubism as well as the other key movements

      Carrying on from that, there was also a social aim to reach a wider public and a wider audience where designers needed to maintain pictorial reference. New trends began again such as the printing of small journals, posters, tickets and many more. Much of this went on in Germany at the Bauhaus. “The complete building is the ultimate aim of all the visual arts” (Meggs pg. 288 1992) the Bauhaus was a school that combined crafts as well as the fine arts which was founded by a man named Walter Gropius.  A lot of these also went on in the political graphic of John Heart fields work.  John was an artist who used art as a political weapon.  He was best known for his work on exposing German Nazism in the 1930’s. An example of this work is: Adolf, the Superman 1992) which was one of many famous montages he had created. Not only was it a social aim to reach a wider public but also a social aim of the Russian constructivists. This included artists such as Lissitisky and Alexander Rochenko who both made very early paintings which was seen to be connected with the futurism and cubism movements. An example of a piece of work related to this is: Dobrolet 1923 by Rochenko which expressed his graphic design work. These artists set trends in graphic design as their work had progressed over the years. As well as that there was also a significant influence on the futurist tinged work by the painter Kasimir Malevich who was also known for his abstract style of art which fell into the suprematism movement of which he was the originator of. Comparing this to the work of Lissitisky abstraction it is very similar in the Russian context.

      Furthermore, most off the artists discussed above who were seen as painters in modern art, soon turned into graphic designers? They were very progressive in terms of trends and talent and were experimental in their approach to designing. A lot of artists believed that their “modernist” approach was connected with revolutionary change in society. Another key artist which shows modern art and graphic design is the work of Fernand Leger whose work collides with purism as well as cubism. He made paintings that were close to the modernist graphics in France in the 1920’s. He had a strong love for mechanical object, machines and technical structure. This was round 1918 to 1923 which was called his “mechanical period” A prime example of this is in his painting in 1920 called Mechanical elements.  This picture has elements of cubist ideas.  It has dots, circles, rectangles and black horizontal and vertical lines. The shapes are brightly coloured and the picture was trying to express how technologies were transforming the modern world. This expressed post-Cubist pictorial modernism which was another key trend in graphics said by Megg. This idea relates to the “British painters James Pryde (1866–1941) and William Nicholson (1872–1949)” (Meggs Chapter 14 2011) their work was powerful, colourful with shapes and silhouettes. This was influenced by modern art and the war. During World War one graphics and posters was a form of communication medium where words and images were integrated which shown progression in the graphic trends and propaganda.

      There was also a great development in graphic design and early cubism. We can see that through the likes of Picasso’s early cubist work to the more or less abstract, decorative imagery in the 1920’s of work by Mondrian. The development was seen through landscape art to pure abstractions. As well as that the Journal design created by De Stijl represents the development and shift towards geometrical purity. Aesthetic puritanism is a characteristic of the most avant-garde trends and developments in graphics in the early twentieth century which was influenced by modernist tendencies in art.  Hard line modernists such as De Stijl, Bauhaus, Russian constructivists, Jan Tschichold the typographer banished realism and decoration.   Tshichod explored a new approach to graphic design “The person who applied these new design approaches to everyday design problems and explained them to a wide audience of printers, typesetters and designers was Jan Tschichold” (Meggs pg.297) His work was seen as avant-garde and he created new typography in a modern manner. Many artists turned to graphics as a medium that is integrated with everyday life.  They were seen as idealists but found themselves drawn into commercial design.  These particular artists began even more trends.

      In conclusion Modern painting influenced the graphic industry in many ways.  Their was a progression in trends in graphic design and many key movements were a part of this. This essay discussed modernism in terms of the key movement Cubism in the period before 1960. It also discussed other key movements such as: Futurism, Dadaism, Purism, and Constructivism. It expressed the different trends lead by graphic design such as: the design of posters, journals, pamphlets, and all manner of printed products and related to avant-garde trends and what Megg calls “pictorial modernism.”  It also discussed how cubism influenced graphic design and how the movement completely changed the arts. I looked at key examples of artists work and artists themselves. Such as: Picasso, Braques, Cassandre, Mondrian, De Stijl, Lissitsky and many more.  It explained cubism and the progression in graphic design and analysed what key factors of cubist work. Over all there has been a significant change in graphic design due to modern art and many painters became graphic designers and were very influenced by cubism and other movements in relation to this one.  The visual arts came along way in the early 20^th century and graphic expanded dramatically due to pictorial modernism, key movements and key artists.

Bibliography

Books:

Philip B, Meggs (1992) A History of Graphic Design Second Edition New York

Phillip B, Meggs & Alston W. Purvis (2011) A History of Graphic Design Fifth Edition Wiley America

Online:

 Cassandre - Classic Art Deco Posters. 2013. Cassandre - Classic Art Deco Posters. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/graphic_designers/cassandre.htm. [Accessed 10 December 2013]

Cubism | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2013. Cubism | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/cube/hd_cube.htm. [Accessed 10 December 2013]

Dada; A movement of artists against art. - ArtLyst. 2013. Dada; A movement of artists against art. - ArtLyst. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.artlyst.com/member-articles/dada-a-movement-of-artists-against-art. [Accessed 11 December 2013]

Modernism and the Modern Novel . 2013. Modernism and the Modern Novel . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www2.iath.virginia.edu/elab/hfl0255.html. [Accessed 10 December 2013]