When looking at the effects of technology and design on the modernisation of Melbourne during the interwar period of 1919-1939, you are able to capture a lot about how Australian design advanced largely through such a small time frame. “Modern is the aspect in which you take in the present time, to look forward into the future, and not look back” (2014, ilearn). It is where designers are able to explore new ideas rather than continuing on with the ones from the past. However modernism may have many meanings, but it largely expresses the design movement within the 20th century, in how aspects of design has been influenced by many cultures and these ideas have then been brought into consideration when the designer embarks on their own design journey.
Moving onto the postmodernism era, it was considered as “less is a bore” where households would clutter up their homes with ornaments and a lot of handmade bulky furniture whereas when modernism came into play it was considered where “less is more”, which was a rejection of overly used decorations and ornaments within the household, taking in favour the simplicity and standardised forms that were suited to machine production. By having “less” in the house it allowed the user to appreciate their surroundings more and move around more freely, rather than having the risk of bumping into something.
During the 1930’s was the so-called “depression-era”, it was where objects were brought together to create a whole new design, such as
Though the start of the modernisation may trace back to the beginning of Industrial Revolution. “Modernism in the design world did not exist in a fully developed form, until well after First World War.” (Wilk, 2006) Causing the great loss of lives and other countless damage to the world, it reshaped many people’s way of thinking the world. With the inspiration of early avant-garde movement, the modernism began to emerge advocating an utopian future and shared certain core principles by various styles of modernists: rejecting the past and applied ornament; forms follow function, a preference for
The topic that I have chosen to research for the duration of this assignment is Urban living and Working conditions. Foreigners migrated to Australia because of the term ‘ the working mans paradise’. But that was only because of the eight-hour day, which was commonly inconceivable as well as other benefits that were un-available in foreign countries such as Europe.
Modernist design not only was located in the heart of Melbourne, it was located on the out skirts of the centre also, the Essendon Technical School which was designed by Percy Everett is one of these. Percy Everett is appointed as Chief Architect for Victorian Public Works Department. He has designed
The 1930’s were filled an enormous sense of vulnerability and angst because of the horrifying events of the Great Depression and its impact that it had on the society and economy of the United States of America. People of all classes, races, genders, and heritages were struck by the tragedies of the Great Depression. However, with new advancements in the technology of photography came a new hope and outlook for the future of Americans. The introduction of colored photography along with organized photographic groups and their impact took the World by storm as the realization of normal citizens being impacted by the Great Depression set in.
“American corporate designers were learned in Modernist theory, but nevertheless found bulbous aerodynamic bodyshells an appropriately slick garb for wares of a vigorous, efficient society with an aggressive faith in its future. Flashy exaggeration at the hands of the stylists, ever compelled to ‘improve’ on last year’s model, gave streamlining a bad name.” (Hodges, Coad, Stone, Sparke, Aldersey-Williams, The New Design Source Book, 1992, p.158) Discuss in relationship to the ‘innovation’ in household designs of the 1950’s, how do these designs compare to similar examples of today? Do designers today feel “compelled to improve on last years model?
Moreover, I explained how each image is an example for the core principles of modernism as mentioned in the overview. In brief, modernist design is innovative. Space, form and structure is based on the functional requirements. Designs became simple and without overwhelming traditional aesthetic concepts. Therefore, technology together with simpler design made the product easy to be mass produced. After the first World War, designers in central Europe intended to change the world for better through art by rejecting ornamentation as it resembled of the past generations whom withstood the unpleasant effects of war and poverty (Smith, 2005). Dormer (1993) writes that:
Modernism transformed life in Australia across five tumultuous decades from 1917 to 1967 , it spans all aspect of Australian culture including art, design, architecture, advertising, film, photography and fashion. The process of modernisation has had a profound affect, changing our perspectives and the course of our everyday living.
Marshall Berman’s take on modernity is presented in his book All That Is Solid Melts into Air whereby he focuses on its issues and the cultural attitudes and philosophies towards the modern condition. In doing so he shares his experiences of modernity post WWII in New York in the height of an economic boom and then more specifically of his childhood neighbourhood, the Bronx. In addition to expanded austerity, industrial and architectural development, the end of WWII proved to be a key period in world history and by extension the history of art. A talented group of artists emerged in result that had been influenced by an influx of established European artist who had fled to New York to escape fascist regimes in their homelands. More importantly these artists produced art that was at the heart of maelstrom Berman describes in regards to his experience of modernity. I aim to highlight the correlation between Berman’s experience of modernity and the emergence of a new American modernism. Modernity throughout this period was broken into two different compartments, hermetically sealed off from one another: "modernisation" in economics and politics, "modernism" in art, culture and sensibility. It’s through the lens of this dualism in which we recognise that both Berman and these artists try to make sense of the world around them by making their individual expressions that would re-conceptualise what it is to be modern in the twentieth century.
To fully appreciate the differences and similarities between Postmodernism and Modernism, it is required to understand exactly what they are. Modernism is the term we give to the accumulated creations and activities of designers in the early 20th century, who had the theory that traditional forms of literature, religion, social organization, and most of all, art and architecture, had become outdated in the new social, political, and economic environment of a fully industrialised world. One of the main characteristics of Modernism is self-consciousness, which typically caused exstensive experimentations of form and function. The creative process of generating work was also explored, forming new techniques in design. Modernism rejected all ideology of realism and prefers to reference and parody works of the past. Postmodernism, on the other hand, is a radical rejection of Modernist design. Taking place in the late 20th century, it is a movement in art, criticism, and architecture that disputes the majority of modernist tendencies. The Postmodernist analysis of society and culture lead to the expansion of critical theory and advanced the works of architecture, literature, and design. This entire re-evaluation of the western value system of popular culture, love, marriage, economy, that took place from the 1950s and 60s, leading to the peak of the Social Revolution in 1968, is commonly referred as Postmodernity which influenced postmodern thought, as opposed to the term
‘Modernism’ is derived from ‘modo’, a Latin word which means “just now”( Philosophy Basics. n.d.). Modernism, in its broad explanation includes the different movements related to art in the Europe, initiating from the end of the 19th century till the beginning of 20th century (Design History Mashup, Philip S. , 2008). These latest European movements developed to reject the conventional arts of the previous times. The public, who showed initial controversy to the new ideas, gradually acknowledged them. A major portion of these European movements and the public and political protests were
It is the new decade after the end of world war two and modernism is a well-established
There is often some confusion when people start talking about the post-modernism and modernism in architecture in terms of their philosophical terminology differences. Modern architecture is known for its minimalism (Linder, 2004); buildings were functional and economical rather than comfortable and beautifully decorated. The post-modernism architecture, however, is called a “neo-eclectic, significantly assuming the role of a regeneration of period styles for designing houses, and a never-ending variety of forms and characteristics, asymmetrical designs for commercial buildings” (Fullerton Heritage, 2008). An example of these two polar opposites, “Less is more” made by Mies van der Rohe in 1928 (Blake, 1976) and "Less is a bore" made by
The incredible work of these Modernist architects had a strong and distinct influence on up and coming young Australian Architects during the 1950’s – 1970’s.
“Design is for living”. The adage fashioned a widespread shift in design during the 1940s and 1950s. It revolutionized the form by creating an electrifying visual language that signaled a new age and a fresh start- two of the powerhouses were Charles and Ray Eames. The Eameses were a husband and wife team whose unique synergy led to a whole new expression in furniture and architecture. The couple advocated the principles of Modernism through the adaptation of innova¬tion from wartime technology .Their design style can be branded as “California Modernism,” a term that is often used interchangeably with “Mid-Century Modernism.” This distinct style embodied an approach to design that opposed the “social conscience” of the Bauhaus in order to embrace looser, warmer design which was both more expressive of local character and in touch with the realities of commerce and salesmanship. With the west-coast coming-of-age, economy shift from making goods to producing information and the global expansion of American culture; their lives and work embodied some of America’s defining movements. They contributed to architecture, film, industrial and graphic design. They were known as pioneers of affordable mass production and residential constructions. The evolution from furniture designers to cultural ambassadors validated their bents and overlaps with country’s interest and projected how design can enhance the lives and practical needs of ordinary people and not just the elite.
In architecture and interior design, Post modernism can be defined as the re-emergence of surface ornamentation that relied heavily on historical decorative forms and made use of curvilinear lines and angles throughout the design. Post modernism was concerned with the ornamentation, symbolism, technology and the combination of present and past architectural style to create a brand new style in its entirety (Jarzombek, 1999: 489).