Becoming Fischli & Weiss

Becoming 'Fischli & Weiss'Jason MingayGraphic Design: New MediaYear 2

Peter Fischli and David WeissBelow is some information about Peter Fischli & David Weiss.

Peter Fischli (8 June 1952 in Zurich) and David Weiss (21 June in Zurich), often shortened to Fischli/Weiss, are an artist duo that have been collaborating since 1979. They are among the most renowned contemporary artists of Switzerland. Their best known work is the film Der Lauf der Dinge (The Way Things Go).” This was described by The Guardian as being “post apocalyptic” as it is all about chain reactions and the way in which objects fly, crash, and explode across the studio it was shot in.

For their work, they make use of a large bandwidth of artistic forms of expression: film and photography, art books, sculptures made out of different materials, and multimedia installations. They adapt objects and situations from everyday life and place them into an artistic context—often using humour and irony.

In more than 25 years of activity, Fischli & Weiss have exhibited in some of the most important institutions and museums worldwide including Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam; Museum Ludwig, Cologne; MACBA, Barcelona; Museé d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris; San Francisco Museum of Contemporary Art, San Francisco; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Serpentine Gallery, London; Kunsthaus Zurich, Zurich; and Tate Modern, London. The Swiss duo has also participated in the Swiss Pavilion at the Sevilla EXPO 1992. In 2008 the Nicola Trussardi Foundation presented Altri fiori e altre domande, the first retrospective in Italy of Swiss artists installed in the 17th century rooms of Palazzo Litta in Milan.

This is the first UK retrospective to explore the collaborative art practice of Swiss artists Peter Fischli (b1952) and David Weiss (b1946).

Since the late 1970s the artists have consistently captivated and amused audiences with their extraordinary transformations of the commonplace. Fischli and Weiss work across a wide range of media and this exhibition presents their sculpture, installation, moving image and photography. Underlying all of their work is a childlike spirit of discovery which encourages the viewer to look afresh at their surroundings. In Fischli and Weiss’s world everyday objects take on an unexpectedly lifelike quality; they balance on each other, play off each other and collide into one another with a witty intelligence infused by the artists.

Displayed works include a history of the world told through the medium of hand-modelled clay figures and a multiple slide projection installation which asks hundreds of big and small philosophical questions such as ‘Will happiness find me?’ Visitors also have the chance to see two outstanding films. The Right Way 1983, features the artists, dressed in rat and bear costumes, scaling Alpine slopes and crossing rivers as they seek the right way. In The Way Things Go 1987, a mesmerising array of household objects, including teapots, tyres, buckets and balloons, crash into one another in an absurd chain reaction powered by home-made explosions and collisions.

This intriguing exhibition also presents the photographic series Quiet Afternoon 1984–5, which documents precariously balanced household utensils on the verge of collapse, and painstakingly hand-crafted polyurethane sculptures which simulate the myriad of everyday objects to be found in Fischli and Weiss’s studio.

Becoming 'Fischli & Weiss' Jason MingayGraphic Design: New Media

Year 2

The Way Things GoThe Way Things Go simply records the self-destructing performance of Fischli’s and Weiss’ most ambitious construction: 100 feet of physical interactions, chemical reactions, and precisely crafted chaos worthy of Rube Goldberg or Alfred Hitchcock.

The film is nearly 29 minutes, 45 seconds long, but I could not manage to find the whole version anywhere on the internet.


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Group PresentationFor our group presentation, we decided to create a ‘The Way Things Go’ style Rude Goldberg machine using household objects. Once this was build we would post information about the duo in different places around the Rude Goldberg machine. We would then set up a live video feed going from the room in which the machine is in and the classroom where the presentation is taking place.

Firstly, we collected all the household objects that we thought could come in handy in our machine. We then made a list of all the additional objects we thought would be needed and went and purchased them from the local Poundland.

We then began building the Rude Goldberg machine while taking many test videos to see if it worked properly. This page shows screen shots from our best test video (not the finished machine we used in the presentation) It starts with marbles sliding down string in a pot,

they then tip out into a container

The extra marble in the pot cause a different tube with marbles in to raise

The marbles fall into a funnel which directs them down another tube

The marbles fall into a toy truck with a candle on top. The truck then rolls forward slightly

The candle burns through string and causes a piece of cardboard to drop and knock a slinky

The slinky knocks over a dvd which pops a balloon with marbles inside which travel down a tube.

The marbles knock over a book which cause another candle to align with a piece of string

The string snaps & fires an arrow which pops a balloon which knocks over a series of dvds

The last dvd knocks a football of a stand which rolls into a rocking-horse...

The marbles travel down a tube and end up a pot dangling from a piece of string


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PosterI was asked to design a poster that maps my move from research to concept development.

The idea of this poster is that it starts off with the designers names ‘Fischli and Weiss’ at the top of the page, and my ideas filter through all the research I have collected and the aspect I have chosen to take away from it all comes out the other side.

The poster is red and white due to Fischli and Weiss being Swiss and the Swiss flag is red and white.

As the poster shows, the aspect of Fischli and Weiss’ work I choose to take away and develop is the idea of using household objects for a new purpose.

Brief:Having thoroughly researched someone else’s practise in groups, you are now asked to develop your personal design practise that is informed by your group research.

That means that you need to move from research to concept development and personal design practise. To help you with that, you are asked to produce an A3 poster that maps this move (from research to conceptual development for your personal design practise).

For your A3 posters, consider use of typography, layout and typographic hierarchy (always ask yourself why you are using what you are using). Think about what you are communicating and how (informatio graphics, collage, maps...).

You might use images and text (yours or others - reference clearly if that is the case), ephemera.

It is up to you how you produce the poster (photocopier, InDesign...) - as long as you have considered what and how your poster communicates.


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Theories of the Everyday

Everyday TheoriesEpistemological Folklore1. Whatever happens, is intended to happen.2. What a person does, they want to do, if compulsion is absent.3. If it moves, it’s alive.4. Post hoc, propter hoc.5. You pleased (hurt) me means that you favored (picked on) me.6. If I hate (like) it then it is bad (good); that is, everyone should recognize it as bad (good).7. All events have deep roots, e.g. a wrong act signifies incorrigible evil or deep-seated traits.8. Contingent behavior implies mind.9. Controlled behavior implies automaticity.10. John is X-ing, therefore John is aware that he is X-ing.11. John is X-ing, therefore John will be able to recognize he is X-ing, even though he may not now be aware of it.12. Because John can X well, he can tell us how he does it.

“The everyday object offers an intimate understanding of lived experience in early modern Europe. Historically and culturally specific, the ‘everyday’ is contingent on the activities, rituals and habits of individuals, what they did in their daily lives and how they experienced the world around them”. Hannah Williams, Courtauld Institute of Art.

Definition - Everyday1. Appropriate for ordinary days or routine occasions2. Commonplace; ordinary3. The ordinary or routine day or occasion


Year 2

Household Objects ResearchI began to research into different uses for household objects. Below are some examples of what I found.

Bent Objects: Everyday objects as art.Artist Terry Border makes fun of traditional art by using household items and paper clips

Australian photographer Magdalena Bors creates magical and scenic vistas using only household items and then captures them in photos.

The beauty is in the detail, and the artist bases the pieces in her own home. The results are pretty amazing, and a lesson to all that even the most mundane objects can be made into something beautiful.

Art from everyday objects: the work of Federico Uribe


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Idea Development & ResearchI began to search my house for objects in hope of inspiration for this project. I came across an ironing board and instantly saw the letter ‘I’ in the section where the iron sits.This gave me the idea of using household objects to create a typeface. This typeface would be created using household objects only and could also have a playful feel to it, both the household aspect and the playful aspect are taken from my research of Fischli and Weiss.

Amandine Alessandra is a freelance photographer and graphic designer based in London.Amandine creates typefaces using such things as books, chairs and other objects and even the body form.Below are a few examples of her work.

Amandine Alessandra

This is a very simple typeface using nothing but bulldog clips. I like the simplicity of this font and it proves you can create an entire font from just one object.

This font has been created using photographs of pieces of architecture and other objects. It is quite difficult to see what each letter is created from and is also quite difficult to read a few of the letters. If a word was created using these letters, I feel it may be quite hard to read.

This font is created using household objects such as scissors, belts and shoes. It is a visually appealing font but the alphabet is mixed with both upper and lower case letters

This typeface is created using body parts and clothing. It is a nice looking font but you can’t always see what has been used to create the letters.


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I took photos of a few things in my house that resembled letters and created a few letters by placing objects in a certain way.

Next I used the pen tool in photoshop to trace around a couple of the letters to create a silhouette and to show how the finished alphabet could look like.

TestsFor my first crit, I gathered some photographs to show how my idea could work.

The typeface itself could be created by creating vectors of each letter and inserting them into a program called ‘Fontlab’. This program allows you to create your own typeface which can then be exported and downloaded as a useable font.

CritI showed my ideas at the crit and we all talked about what aspects of the ideas worked and what didn’t.We talked about how you couldn’t see what the original household object was from the letter silhouette and how creating a typeface where you are able to see to link would be a much better approach.

From here I decided to create a font from objects that appear as letters as they stand, not by creating them by moving the object in a certain way or combining objects.

I also agreed that the letters still need to resemble the object in which they were taken from.

I planned to gather an upper and lower alphabet using just the photographs before tracing around the letters to create the final alphabet I will then use in fontlab.

From there (if I have time) I could continue by creating numbers and punctuation.


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Letter Ideas

I sat down with a list from ‘a’ to ‘b’ in both upper and lower case and began to fill in ideas of what each letter could be. I searched for letter ideas in my house and looked for a few in my garden and surrounding areas.

There were some letters which I could find lots of ideas for, however there were a few letters which I knew would be hard to find.

A - CompassB - Sun glassesC - toilet roll holderD - HandlebarsE - belt buckleF -G - earingH - Window framesI - Ironing boardJ - K - open scissorsL - Bookend / allen keyM -N - Compass

O - Bike wheel / tyre / washing machineP - GateQ - Washing machine doorR - eyelash curlerS - thingyT - U - Coat hangerV - Bike frame / W - benchX - Clothes horse / ironing board legs / scissorsY - Tripod / bike forksZ -

a -b - balloon and stickc - toilet roll holderd -e - Rail outside housef -g - derailerh - Metal pole / sticki -j - wheel bracek -l -m - gorilla podn - Coat hanger / mantle piece

o - Bike wheel / tyre / washing machinep - Gateq - tape measure / keyr - Lamp / umbrella handle / candy cane / wheel brace / taps - thingyt - tomb stoneu - Coat hangerv - clipw - benchx - Clothes horse / ironing board legsy - tree branchz -

A - Z a - z

I began gathering up photographs of objects in my room that resembled letters, which I could use later for my type face.

I was beginning to discover that some letters were going to be hard to find.


Year 2

Upper Case CollectionHere is a collection of all the letter I have gathered that could make up my upper-case alphabet..

List of what each letter is:A: CompassB: SunglassesC: Toilet roll holderD: BMX handlebarsE: Belt buckleF: PlugG: EarringH: WIndow frameI: Ironing boardJ: Wheel braceK: ScissorsL: Allen keyM: Gorilla trip-pod

N: CompassO: Bike tyreP: Gate handleQ: Washing machine doorR: Eyelash curlersS: Piece of broken plasticT: StampU: Coat-hanger hookV: Metal clipW: BenchX: Clothes airerY: ThongZ: Metal bar (part of a car jack)

Since text that can be used as a font is usually only one colour, I converted the images to grayscale so I could get a better feel for how they could eventually look..

After having a complete set of uppercase, I moved on to collect the lowercase letters.

List of what each letter is:a: Toilet rollb: Lighterc: Toilet roll holderd: Lightere: Section from garden gatef: Bottle openerg: Rear mech from a bikeh: Metal pole at building sitei: Stick of rockj:Candy canek: Scissorsl: Knifem: Gorilla tripod

n: Coat-hanger hooko: Bike tyrep: Gate handleq: Tape measurer: Lamps: Piece of broken plastict: Tomb stoneu: Coat-hanger hookv: Metal clipw: Benchx: Clothes airery: Tree branchz: Metal bar (part of a car jack)

Some of the letter are the same objects I used for uppercase. This is because I cannot find more than one object resembling that letter and bother uppercase and lowercase letters have the same form.


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Cut-outs & VectorsThe next stage to turning my collection of letters into a usable font was to cut out the letters

From this image I could see that the ‘m’ I have does not work for both upper and lower case, therefore I will continue to try and find a replacement for one of them. By doing this, I also got to see the final appearance that my typeface will have.

For a font to be usable, it needs to be a vector. This allows the font to be changed in size without losing it’s form and without pixelating.

Therefore I took the time to vectorise each of my letters.

I used the pen tool to cut around each letter seperating it from it’s background. VectorsCut-outs


Year 2

Typography researchBefore I attempt to create my font in ‘Fontlab’ I first need to learn about the different heights, names and the general rules for creating a typeface.

These images will be my guide for adjusting the size, ascenders, descenders of my typeface.


Year 2

Fontlab StudioThe next step of creating my typeface is to take it into a piece of software called ‘Fontlab Studio’.

You are given a board filled with all the letters, numbers and symbols you can assign your own vector to. By double clicking on one of the letters opens up another window (Fig 1)

This window is where you place the vector you created for that particular letter. It gives you guidelines for the ascender height, cap height, x height and descender height. Using the images from the last post I should be able to adjust my letters to the guidelines (Fig 2)

Here is an example of my ‘A’ adjusted according to the guides. The lines on either side of the letter show the spacing on each side of the letter (Fig 3)

Fig 1

Fig 2 Fig 3


Year 2

Upper & Lower in ‘Fontlab’Here are both upper and lower case alphabets in Fontlab Studio.

The uppercase letters were easy to create in ‘Fontlab’ as they are all of equal height (going up to the cap height line). The lowercase will be more difficult as that is where the ascender and descender heights come into it.

Here is the type-able uppercase of my typeface. As you can see all the letters are as they were originally, apart from the ‘J’. Sized correctly the original ‘J’ turned out way too small against the other letter and I therefore replaced it with a duplicate of the lowercase ‘j’.

Here is the type-able lowercase typeface.The ‘b’ has changed from a lighter to a pizza slicer due to the fact that a lot of the people I asked said that the original ‘b’ was not as recognisable at a glance the other letters.

The lowercase letters needed to include ascenders and decenders. Due to my letters not being designed for perfect size proportions, I found that if I sized the letter so the ascender or decender reached the height it should, then the x-height would be out of proportion. Therefore I decided to size the letters so that all the x-heights were the same unless the ascender or decender was too long and therefore I sized it proportionately.


Year 2

Numbers & PunctuationNow that I had brought both upper and lower alphabets into Fontlab, my next step was to create numbers and punctuation for my typeface. Again I went in search of objects that resemble numbers and punctuation.

1: pen2: hole punch3: open stapler4: bike chain tool

5: upside down hole punch6: headphones7: bike crank arm and pedal

8: headphones9: upside down headphone0: socket tool

There are certain symbols which I do not believe I will be able to find an object that resembles it. Therefore I have only decided to do the punctuation that I feel is most used and will be most needed in a typeface.

Bracket: Coat-hangerFull stop: Tennis ballComma: Match boxApostrophe: Match boxSpeech marks: Two match boxesColon: Two tennis balls

Dash: CombExclamation mark: Bottle with lid places belowQuestion mark: Coat-hanger hookSemi colon: Tennis ball and match boxSlash: Pen


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Final TypefaceHere is my final usable typeface.

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz0123456789(),./:;"'-!?

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ


Year 2

Documents

Becoming Fischli & Weiss