Design Differences

Graphic Design: A Cultural Force to be Celebrated

From Voice , the AIGA Journal of Design, there is an article by Paola Antonelli, a curator of the MoMA (The Museum of Modern Art) Department of Architecture and Design about their need to create an exhibit of graphic design at the museum. As Antonelli notes "we need to redirect our focus on graphic design."

I've always stood firm on the ground that by nature, graphic design is not art in the sense that Fine Art is art. Graphic design to me is a tool from which the goal is communication of a commercial message or idea, but not necessarily and probably seldom a personal expression. This is not to denigrate what we as designers do, but more to draw a line that it is different and separate from Fine Art. That being said, it's clear that graphic design, as well as design in general, has an important role in our culture as being the visual representation of history and change.

In recent discussions on Speak-Up that came to this same conclusion. Art (design) has always been a considerable force in times of upheaval and discourse in society. Michael Beirut of Pentagram illustrates this point beautifully, "this was said best in the movie "The Third Man" (1979) by Orson Welles as Harry Lime:
'"In Italy for thirty years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love; they had 500 years of democracy and peace. And what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.""

So it's clear that design plays and important role in society at large and in our history. This is a great opportunity to help further establish the value of design, better educate the public about design's significant role in our culture. I applaud MoMA's move and hope it inspires other museums to do the same.