SS Reflection Assignment

a) Brandalism

Brandalism is an anti-advertising movement and has spread across ten UK cities and most recently to Paris for the UN climate talks. The Brandalism project sees artists from around the world collaborate to challenge the authority and legitimacy of commercial images within public space and within our culture. So while they mostly focus on rebelling against the visual assault of media giants who have a stranglehold over messages and meaning in our public spaces, through which they force-feed us with images and messages to keep us insecure, unhappy, and shopping, they aren’t just focused on the environmental causes. Yet you could still could consider them sustainable because they promote human rights, political rights, environmental rights, and overall awareness of mostly any topic. They are more of a service because they give a platform for artists to voice a statement to be made in contrast to a distracting advertisement “statement.”

 

b) NYT article “The Fab Mind”  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/04/arts/design/the-fab-mind-a-tokyo-show-highlights-design-activism.html?emc=eta1&_r=0 (Links to an external site.)

The Fab Mind is described as, “This international network of contemporary designers and makers who experiment with recently developed digital tools and ancient craft techniques to customize new objects and repair damaged ones…” Also said in the article, “The Fixperts are among several dozen design groups from different countries whose efforts to devise ingenious solutions to social, economic and environmental problems are explored in the show…” Different designs mentioned include: 3D printing, visualization of the impact of rising sea levels, heightened radiation and dwindling resources on Earth 100 years from now, envisage surveillance drones, a book and flashmob about a women’s 60 years of knitting over 500 sweaters, a series of lamps with colorful shades woven by artisans in Colombia and Chile from shredded plastic bottles and other waste materials, and a metal and bamboo device, the Mine Kafon, which is blown across the ground by the wind, like a tumbleweed, to set off mines.

I’m not entirely sure how I envision my future of design quite yet in the fashion world. However, I am fascinated by this conceptualization of using digital tools and ancient craft techniques. I feel that after much research, new design approaches could be made in regards to sewing. Some have already began! Like laser printing, 3D printing, seamless fabric, etc. In addition, I also support the idea of solutions to social, economic, and environmental problems. I believe these solutions should be considered not on a design level, but any business level.

 

c) Toyo Ito (a show in MoMA right now)

I find it interesting when Toyo hypothetically wonders if what happened at Sanriku, happened at Tokyo instead. I find it important to not compare things, but instead put events in your shoes (and for him it was Tokyo). It makes a stronger realization and personal connection by doing so. For Toyo, he realized that the solution to create better stabilization after events like these, were at its foundation. Literally. He acknowledges the power and unpredictability that nature creates against man made buildings and concepts. He challenges the thought of not designing outside of the realms of human knowledge, but designing to (basically fight mother nature) withstand those challenges. I believe that is crucial. Nature is always there, but is ripping down concepts and foundations. Yet, no one seems to design for it, just around it. Besides designing with environmental causes to preserve the natural world, designers may also think how to adapt to the global impact. Global warming=new clothing, new transportation, new technology, new architecture on new shorelines, etc. They need to work with nature, not use it as profit scheme.

 

d) Heilbroner – What has posterity done for me?

What has posterity done for me…? I don’t normally give it too much thought because it seems that we live in a generation that is more focused on the future than the past. When I do ponder this question, I mostly think about the pressures of parenting and hoping that my success and ideology gets passed down so that my kids can do well and succeed past me. And I also think (in a different version) how the Industrial Revolution basically screwed us up with the factory system, using natural resources, increase of waste, and challenged people’s health. But what if in a couple centuries, people will think we are just as bad as the Industrial Revolution? We are out of control with our design pace because of high demands, and competition, that we may too forget our outcome. So basically, posterity has set me in a living environment where concepts and habits are so tightly entwined around the people of the past’s decisions, that it’s harder to break free. It’s harder to fix the current status because of the past, so it’s easier to just think, hope and design for the future.