Blog Post 3
One of the Swiss designers mentioned in the text book was Max Bill, who was a student of the Dessau Bauhaus. He was primarily an architect, but his education at the bauhaus made him a well-rounded designer, thus he took up poster-making when there were limited opportunities for architecture. This ballet poster is one piece of his work that in the text book I thought looked very unappealing to the eye. Because the text book's images are exclusively black and white, all that came through was the cacophony of the wood-stamp inspired typefaces. It looked very amateurish and like something someone would by mistake. Now that I'm seeing it in color however, I think the design holds up. I see the dadaist influence in the choice of seemingly random font and texture borders, as well as the lack of center alignment and overall lack of logical unity. It also mentions in the text how Max Bill refrained from using capital letters, like many of the designers to come out of the Bauhaus. Seeing the full color of the rainbow gradient on the different words is very interesting, and it is the one element which seems to hold this poster together. I think it is very interesting to note the change in quality that can be made by adding compelling colors into a design.
Bill, M. (1931) Relanche and Ariadne [Ballet Poster].
What's rather ironic is that Max Bill was a staunch critic of Jan Tschichold's use of asymmetrical typography, despite using what appears to be asymmetrical typography in his own work. This poster by Tschichold is a good display of his constructivist style, as well as his support for the use of photographs in graphic design. One part I really enjoy is the use of the train photograph going through a tunnel made of lines and shapes. He does an excellent job of incorporating the photos into the design in a way that is not distracting. The photos fit seamlessly into the simple red lines which diverge into a vanishing point, along with the clean capitalized typography.
Tchichold, J. (1927) Die Frau Ohne Namen [Movie Poster]. Retrieved from https://www.moma.org/collection/works/5754 on January 28th, 2020.
Here is a design which is completely unrelated to the last two from a historical stand-point, given that its an album cover designed in 1970, but I feel as though some similar design principles come through which are common in all of these. For example the dispersed color on top of a white background, which is also complemented by black text. Just like in the Tschichold poster, this album cover uses black and white images of each member of the band in a way that makes sense and doesn't distract the eye. These are just a couple of the similarities, but for whatever reason looking at the previous designs reminded me of this one.
Zacron. (1970) Led Zeppelin III [Album cover]. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Led_Zeppelin_III on January 28th, 2020.
Bill, M. (1931) Relanche and Ariadne [Ballet Poster].
What's rather ironic is that Max Bill was a staunch critic of Jan Tschichold's use of asymmetrical typography, despite using what appears to be asymmetrical typography in his own work. This poster by Tschichold is a good display of his constructivist style, as well as his support for the use of photographs in graphic design. One part I really enjoy is the use of the train photograph going through a tunnel made of lines and shapes. He does an excellent job of incorporating the photos into the design in a way that is not distracting. The photos fit seamlessly into the simple red lines which diverge into a vanishing point, along with the clean capitalized typography.
Tchichold, J. (1927) Die Frau Ohne Namen [Movie Poster]. Retrieved from https://www.moma.org/collection/works/5754 on January 28th, 2020.
Here is a design which is completely unrelated to the last two from a historical stand-point, given that its an album cover designed in 1970, but I feel as though some similar design principles come through which are common in all of these. For example the dispersed color on top of a white background, which is also complemented by black text. Just like in the Tschichold poster, this album cover uses black and white images of each member of the band in a way that makes sense and doesn't distract the eye. These are just a couple of the similarities, but for whatever reason looking at the previous designs reminded me of this one.
Zacron. (1970) Led Zeppelin III [Album cover]. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Led_Zeppelin_III on January 28th, 2020.
I see what you mean when you say that the album cover reminds me of the designs that you picked. I agree I think that it is the combo of the black and white with the bright colors intermixed. The cover almost has a simple look to it because of the way that the colored images almost become a part of the background because the type is such a grand part of the design.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy the dark gray typeface in the first poster. I like how the letters and numbers look tall and lean. Usually I am not a big fan of large serifs because they feel chunky but the typeface's weight makes them feel balanced. I agree that the rainbow gradient is interesting. It reminds me of Microsoft Word Art.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comments about the Max Bill ballet poster, however seeing it in col0r makes it a little more appealing to me. I also really like the album cover you posted and the way the text is incorporated in with the images.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy your use of a more modern example of this same style of Max Bill and the bauhaus movement. I love the album cover and have a close connection with the album, but I would have never considered these relevant to one another before seeing it here. Now that these pieces are compared, their relevance becomes more apparent.
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