FIRST THINGS FIRST MANIFESTO - Rob Lycett's Lecture

FIRST THINGS FIRST MANIFESTO

During this lecture, we had an open discussion about this Manifesto that Guy Debord wrote, explaining how he feels about Graphic Designers these days. The Manifesto is called "The Society of the Spectacle". He is basically saying that Graphic Designers are money-oriented, that they create designs for commercial and advertising purposes and somewhere along the lines they forgot what the real purpose of design is. He also points out how graphic designers are affecting the community in a negative way. The community is feeding the consumer machine by buying merchandise and products that companies advertise in a really fancy way with the help of Graphic Designers.

The following text is Guy's Manifesto. Rob asked us to read it and underline key words that would help us to explain and have a debate on weather we agree with his opinion.

After that we had to write on the side lines our understanding of the text, a quick summary of what he is saying. 

My understanding (summary): 

Advertising made Graphic Designers, art directors and visual communicators, the most desirable and effective talents for someone to have in order to be successful, money-wise.

What designers came to be these days, is someone who designs products, merchantice, commercial work, in order to make money out of it. They use their imagination to pay the bills. This is not what graphic designers are meant to be. 

The graphic designers who focus on advertising,marketing and brand development, are supporting a mental environment. They are an influence to the consumers, they have an impact on how they are going to think, feel, speak, respond and interact.

This problem demands our attention because its affecting our environment, our social life and our culture.

After that, we were given the same text but this time we had to erase what we thought we didn't agree on. Then,we had to add our own opinion and create our own manifesto. 

"We,the under designed, are graphic designers, art directors and visual communicators who have most lucrative,effective and desirable use of our talents. Designers apply their skills and imagination. Commercial work has always paid the bills. We propose a reversal of priorities in favor of more useful, lasting and democratic forms of communication. Give exploration and production a new kind of meaning. Consumerism is running uncontested; it must be challenged by other perspectives expressed, in part, through the visual languages and resources of design."

I believe that, just because graphic designers use their talent to produce merchantice and products, doesn't mean they lost their creativity. That's the only way they can use their talent to pay the bills, that's their job. It doesn't mean they cant use their talent to create something that is not gonna be sold or advertised. In their free time they can design whatever they want for their own pleasure and if what they are doing are affecting the community, then its not something they can control because at the end of the day they are getting paid to do it. 

Notes about the Manifesto:

• Commercial work should coexist with more creative, experimental practice.
• There is a need for the market to exist and innovate
• Worthy causes don't guarantee  satisfying creative process.
• Rant with negative tone.
• Heart?
• We need a profession - a place - what motivates us?
• We feel as if we are not important
• Insulted