Graphic Design : A Medium for the Masses

• The origins of Graphic Design
• Graphic design in relation to Fine Art
• Graphic Design in relation to Advertising
• Graphic Design as a tool of Capitalism
• Graphic Design as a Political Tool
• Graphic Design and Post-Modernism
• Graphic Design and Social Conscience

Early Art and Graphic Design

Bison and Horses, c. 15,000-10,000 BC

Cave painting, Lascaux, France

Giotto ai Bondone

Betrayal, c. 1305, Fresco, Arena Chapel, Padua, Italy

Heritage of communication

People could not understand the written word as not everyone was educated, visual communication became the main way to interact with other people. 

John Everett Millais

Bubbles, 1886

Pears Soap advert

Does adding typography to piece of art make it Graphic Design?

The term Graphic Design

William Addison Dwiggins (successful designer) 1922

Herbert Spencer : Mechanised art

Max Bill and Josef Muller-Brockman : Visual Communication

Richard Hollis

'Graphic Design is the business of making or choosing marks and arranging them on surface to convey an idea"

Paul Rand

Josef Muller-Brockman

'Whatever the information transmitted, it must, ethically and culturally reflect its responsibility to society'

Henri de Toulouse   (Fine Artist and Graphic Designer)

Lautrec Aristide Bruant, 1893

La Goule, 1890's

Alphonse Mucha, 

Poster for cigarette papers, 1898

Charles Rennie Mackintosh

Scottish Musical Review 1896

Koloman Moser 

13th Secession Exhibition, 1902

Peter Behren

AEG, 1910

Saville Lumley

'Daddy what did YOU do in the Great War', 1915

Alfred Leete

Britons (Kitchener) Wants you! 1914

James Montgomery

Uncle Sam poster

Julis Gipkens

Trophies of the Air War, 1917

Wassily Kandinsky

Compostion VIII (1886-1944)

El Lissitzky

Beat the whites with the red wedge, 1919

F.H Stingermore (UK)

London Underground Map, 1931-2

Harry Beck

London Underground Map, 1933

Simon Patterson

The Great Bear, 1992
uses stars and places them on underground lines. e.g. the football line has famous footballers on

Oskarscheemmer (Germany)
Bauhaus logo, 1922

Herbert Bayer
Kandinsky 60th birthday exhibition, 1926

Piet Zwart (Dutch)
Het  boek van PTT, 1938 Dutch telephone service book

Herbert Matter (Swiss)
Swiss tourist board 1932-34

Cassandre (French) 
L'intrans igeant
Etoile du Nord (Northern Star) 1927

Tom Purvis (UK)
LNER, 1937

Josep Renau (Spainish)
Industry of war, 1936
Stalingrad : The New Star of Freedom, 1942
used screen print in a way it had never been used before

Pere Catala i Pic (Spanish)
Lets squash Fascism, 1936

V.Deni and N.Dolgorukov (Russia)

G.Klucis
In the storm of the 3rd year of a five year plan, 1930

Abram Games
Catalogue for exhibition of science, Festival of Britain, 1951

Paul Rand 
Advert for Jacqueline Cochran, 1946

Saul Bass
Title graphics for anatomy of a murder, 1956
Man with the golden arm, 1955

Paul Rand
Logo for American broadcasting company (abc) 1962
Poster for IBM, 1970

F.H.K 
Stop Nuclear Suicide Poster, 1960

Seymour Chwast/Push Pin Studio
End bad breath, 1968

Art workers coalition
Q. and babies A. and babies, 1970

Hipgnosis 10CC
Deceptive Bends Sleeve Design, 1977

Jamie Reid
Sex pistols 'never mind the bollocks', 1977

Peter Saville
FAC 001, The Factory Club Night
The use hearing protection logo became a trademark for the Factory club

Neville Brody - Post-modernism
The Face magazine covers, 1986

Chembawamba
Pictures of starving children sell records, 1986

Designers republic
Pop will eat itself, Ich Bin Ein Auslander (I'm an outsider) 1994

Mark Farrow (Farrow Design)
Spiritualised, ladies and gentlemen we are floating in space, 1997

Olivero Toscani
Benetton Adverts, 1990-1992

Judy Blance
Keep Britain tidy, T-shirt design 1992

Summary

• Graphic Design is a relatively young discipline 
• Link between Graphic Design and different disciplines eg. fine art, advertising are becoming more increasingly blurred.
• Although born out of consumerist/capitalist interest, Graphic Design is arguably becoming increasingly concerned with social issues