study task 4

Paraphrasing Exercise

In 'The Designer as Author', Michael Rock looks into texts relating to what it really means to call a graphic designer an author. He states that the meaning of 'author' has shifted throughout the last 40 years and that earlier definitions aren't associated with just writing but rather 'the person who originates / gives existence to anything'. He goes on by saying that while looking into Roland Barthes 'The death of the Author' he states that it is closely linked to the birth of critical theory, especially based in reader response rather than intentionality. Michael concludes that Barthes Post-structuralist text seems to criticize the status attributed to the author by ending his essay by supposing that the birth of the reader must be at the cost at the death of the author.

(Roland Barthes, ‘The Death of the Author’, in Image-Music-Text, New York, Hill and Wang (translated by Stephen Heath), 1977)

study task 3

Extract:

Rock, M. (1996) 'The Designer as Author', Eye, no. 20 vol. 5 1996. Link

The authors tone of voice:

In the article that Michael Rock has written, it seems that he is attacking the subject of the designer as an author. Throughout the text, he continuously directs questions towards us, the readers, to make us think about the points he has stated about the subject. Questions such as, 'What does it mean to call for a graphic designer to be an author?' and ' What is an author?' are two examples of this. This can also be seen with him using such phrases as 'death to the author', 'the birth of a reader must be at the cost of the death of the author' to further his investigation into the subject matter.

Quotes

• (4) What difference does it make who is speaking
• The notion that a text is a line of words that releases a single meaning, the central message or the author / god is overthrown.
• Communication between sender and receiver, severed from the authority of its origin, and exists as a free-floating element in a field of possible significations.

http://marker.to/832Kiq

Critical Comparison Essay

Critical comparison between Uncle Sam Range and East Africa Transport Old Style and East African Transport New Style

The Uncle Sam Range (1876) Advertising Image by Schumacher & Ettlinger, New York

Empire Marketing Board (1920) – ‘East Africa Transport Old Style’ and ‘East African Transport New Style’ by Adrian Allison

The Uncle Sam Range advert tries to persuade its audience into believing it is the best cooker in the world.  It is extremely patriotic with the stars and stripes colour scheme literally everywhere in the room. The iconic Uncle Sam epitomizes America and is strategically placed in the centre of the room displaying dominance, trying to manipulate the world to become the ‘perfect American’ by purchasing their product.  Slavery is depicted as an acceptable part of the culture at that time through the black servant cooking food for the white guests and the symbolic ‘American Bald Eagle’!

Other hidden details in the advert which ties in social values at that time are the clock hand pointing to the date 1776, the year independence was declared and guns on the wall.  This all American advert uses its propaganda war symbol, Uncle Sam, as the main selling point of the advert, depicting power and strength.  The use of old American western font portrays an historic era of the gold rush giving connotations of wealth and prosperity linked to the American Dream.  It’s quite ironic the advert tries to show other countries how powerful a country they are yet uses a cartoon format and patriotic dominance that makes it almost laughable. 

In the Colonial propaganda posters, it seems that these where aimed for the general public of the British Empire to show how much ‘good’ they were bringing to Africa as well as Westernizing their country. You could also say that they were aimed towards the rich sector of Africa in order to show them what they could invest in and spread the message of the empire. There also seems to be an image of gender stereotyping in these posters with the ‘before’ poster showing mainly women and children carrying supplies and looking tired while the after poster shows a more structured, civilised scene with men doing all the work, similar to the prejudice views of British society at the time.

The second poster shows how colonisation had changed Africa for the better, with modern technology such as trucks, boats and a bridge.  In both examples an art deco style is used with a bold and eye catching font.  The colour white is used throughout as the superior colour: white borders, white snow, white road, white shorts on all black workers, more in the second ad.  Both convey the message that the Empire will improve life and culture in the colonies, as well as showing the white man is in control by the heroic pose on the only white man on the second poster.  

After researching and studying all the posters, I think it’s clear that these illustrations have similarities showing a falsified history for the better for those who created them. The main theme throughout is dominance and is aimed at white middle to upper-class people, showing a supposedly successful white man in the centre of both ads portraying power.  The imagery is very powerful; however it really shows inequality and racism.

Made you look

Film screening and Q&A with the director

Recently, I attended a screening of a graphic design documentary at one of the country's oldest cinemas in Leeds, Hyde Park Picture House. The documentary was entitled 'Made You Look' and it focused on the UK's DIY graphics art scene and interviewed some well known artists and creative businesses. Throughout the film, everyone interviewed expressed their views and thoughts on how the impact of the digital age has affected both Illustration and Graphic Design by making creatives dependent on using computers now more than ever in the 21st century. It's made me think if I have become too reliant on using computers to create work. Looking back, I have never actually created a Screen-print or used a letter press and that's made me realise I haven't explored what graphic design has to offer and the diverse ways of creating art just by using back to basic techniques.

I think a part of this is due to how I've acquired my knowledge of graphic design throughout the course of my education prior to studying at LCA. In view of this I want to gain an understanding about the more hands on approaches of creating work and experiment with them while at Leeds College of Art. This excited me more after the Q&A with the director of the film and a few independent artists, who spoke highly of the various techniques whilst still acknowledging the power of working on a computer.  Anthony Peters said something that stuck with me after the event.  He said "Work that's been made with a computer will always look nice but work created with screen prints and techniques like it have more character to them, there may be some little mistakes or smudges on it and it might even have finger prints of the artist who made it all over the back, but that's what makes the work special.  Its a one of a kind.   You don't get that with computer printed work."