Post-modern Graphic Design

Post-modern Graphic design

Post-modern reacted against the sterility of modernism. Embracing art, architecture, fashion, graphic design, furniture, postmodernism re-established interest in ornamentation, symbolism and visual wit. In other words, this was a funny period of design. The constructivist poster also uses the geometrical shapes. The punk movement often used found material to create their band promotions. The loose, arbitrary collage approach would later inspire postmodern artists.

An influential designer was Wolfgang Weingart. He was a teacher at Switzerland’s Basel school of Design. Weingart rejected the dogmatic typography of Tschichold and Emil Ruder. Weingart took the grid and typeface Akzidenz-Grotesk from its restrictive Swiss design and applied it to his designs. He created more visually complex and more appealing designs. He created rectilinear stepped blocks. Weingart embraced collage and experimented with sandwiching layers of film, juxtaposing textures with images, overprinting of colours, wide letterspacing and type in bars. Although he made a lot of experiments, he never moved away from using his favourite type face – Helvetica.

In the 1984 Apple Macintosh launched the 1^st personal computer. Apple contributed to make key features that then became tools for graphic design like the mouse, Adobe softwares and post script lasser printer. A graphic designer that was one of the first that made use of these tools was April Greiman.

April Greiman

Greiman was a student of Wolfgang Weingart. She made use of Swiss Modern mixed with Californian colouring and the new technology and of multi layering effects. Greiman would often use the condensed version of Helvetica, usually in italic and letter spaced. She designed for Esprit, Xerox, Wet, Benetton, Optica and the 1984 Olympic Committee.

Other British designers who experimented in the New Wave were Neville Brody, Peter Saville and Malcolm Garrett.

Neville Brody

Brody was an Art editor of magazine “The face” and worked for the British labels Stiff records and fetish records. Brody incorporated hand-drawn typefaces and custom graphic symbols into his page layouts.

Peter Saville

Peter Saville is the most influential rock graphic designer within the British music industry. Saville was inspired by the current retro chic of the 80’s; he recycled past images to make contrasts of today. He does not only work for rock music but worked with Pentagram, ABC Television, Christian Dior, Swatch, Mercedes Benz and Smart.

Malcolm Garrett

Malcolm Garrett studied typography at Reading University from 1974-75 and graphic design at Manchester Polytechnic from 1975-78. In 1977, he produced his first professional work and made an immediate impact with his designs for Manchester Punk rock group Buzzcocks. In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. Garrett was rapidly identified, along with colleagues Peter Saville and Neville Brody, as one of the most influential designers working for youth culture clients such as the music business and style magazines. Later album covers included Simple Minds and then collaborated with Jamie Reid.

Some differences of the Swatch posters of the 80’s and 2000’s:

 

The poster of toady is simpler and the focal point of the poster is the watch.

References:

•         Eye Magazine | Feature | Reputations: Malcolm Garrett. 2014. Eye Magazine | Feature | Reputations: Malcolm Garrett. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.eyemagazine.com/feature/article/reputations-malcolm-garrett. [Accessed 31 December 2014].

•         Graphic Design History | Postmodern. 2014. Graphic Design History | Postmodern. [ONLINE] Available at: http://gds.parkland.edu/gds/!lectures/history/1975/postmodern.html. [Accessed 31 December 2014].