Project Write-up
Ji won Kim
I think the idea of design is to create something new and to fascinate people. Therefore, I chose a post-modernism era for my redesigning project when the unique, subjective and creative design flourished. Especially, Memphis philosophy attracts my mind. Memphis was a groundbreaking and influential design collective in the early 1980s. They started with the idea of changing the face of modern/international-design. For modernists, intention and functionality are essential for their design thinking. As a result, simple, neutral shade and unadorned design were applied to the modern design. On the contrary. Memphis combined bold geometric forms, bright colors, and hyperkinetic patterns and rejected the rules of ‘good taste’. They focused on worldwide aspirations and personalities and create successful cultural movement with sort of liberation symbol with which many people wished to identify. Their success demonstrates that even though the design only satisfies few people, it can still be a good design if the design maximizes the quality and features of the artwork.
I chose to redesign a cup holder. People always use cup for their daily life. Glass of cup is simple and universally used. Besides to the cup, people think that cup holder is just a supporter for the cup so that they do not care much about its design. I redesigned the cup holder so that not only cup holder itself but also simple form of the cup can get unique and dynamic life from the ordinary design. I chose furniture ‘Tawaraya (Boxing Ring)’ that are done by Memphis. I tried to use similar color pallets and materials to my project. In addition, I want to keep the characteristic of Memphis design having odd and geometric shapes, a mix of materials and use of vibrant color. By adding technology to the object, the object can be even more colorful, bright and often shocking. The three rubber rings create much more diverse color texture and give a chance to have the wide range of potential products.
It is difficult to satisfy people of various nature; however, Memphis challenged modernist dogmas about functionalism and rationalism by creating a creative and fun design that attract people’s mind. They don’t choose to solve the problem but they seduced people. In that sense, the design of Memphis seems to contain humanity and warmth. Thus, I want to follow their philosophy and create the design, changing into enigma and giving a unique life to it.
