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11/5/2015 EyeMagazine|Feature|Thedesignerasauthor
http://www.eyemagazine.com/feature/article/thedesignerasauthor 1/6
Spring1996 Thedesignerasauthor
MichaelRockvariousdesignersEssay
Graphicauthorshipistakenforgrantedbymanydesigntheoristsanditisgaininggroundwithinpractice,too.Buttheideahasreceivedlittlesustainedexamination.Whatdoesitmeanandwhatisreallypossible?
Authorshiphasbecomeapopulartermingraphicdesigncircles,especiallyinthoseattheedgesoftheprofession:thedesignacademiesandthemurkyterritorybetweendesignandart.Thewordhasanimportantringtoit,withseductiveconnotationsoforiginationandagency.Butthequestionofhowdesignersbecomeauthorsisadifficultone.andexactlywhoqualifiesandwhatauthoreddesignmightlooklikedependsonhowyoudefinethetermanddetermineadmissionintothepantheon.
Authorshipmaysuggestnewapproachestotheissueofthedesignprocessinaprofessiontraditionallyassociatedmorewiththecommunicationratherthantheoriginationofmessages.Buttheoriesofauthorshipalsoserveaslegitimisingstrategies,andauthorialaspirationsmayendupreinforcingcertainconservativenotionsofdesignproductionandsubjectivityideasthatruncountertorecentcriticalattemptstooverthrowtheperceptionofdesignasbasedonindividualbrilliance.Theimplicationsofsucharedefinitiondeservecarefulscrutiny.Whatdoesitreallymeantocallforagraphicdesignertobeanauthor?
Themeaningofthewordauthorhasshiftedsignificantlythroughhistoryandhasbeenthesubjectofintensescrutinyoverthelast40years.Theearliestdefinitionsarenotassociatedwithwritingperse,butratherdenotethepersonwhooriginatesorgivesexistencetoanything.Otherusageshaveauthoritarianevenpatriarchalconnotations:thefatherofalllife,anyinventor,constructororfounder,onewhobegetsandadirector,commander,orruler.Morerecently,WimsattandBeardsleysseminalessayTheIntentionFallacy(1946)wasoneofthefirsttodriveawedgebetweentheauthorandthetextwithitsclaimthatareadercouldneverreallyknowtheauthorthroughhisorherwriting.(1)ThesocalleddeathoftheAuthor,proposedmostsuccinctlybyRolandBarthesina1968essayofthatname,iscloselylinkedtothebirthofcriticaltheory,especiallytheorybasedinreaderresponseandinterpretationratherthanintentionality.(2)MichelFoucaultusedtherhetoricalquestionWhatisanAuthor?in1969asthetitleofaninfluentialessaywhich,inresponsetoBarthes,outlinesthebasiccharacteristicsandfunctionsoftheauthorandtheproblemsassociatedwithconventionalideasofauthorshipandorigination.(3)
Foucaultdemonstratedthatoverthecenturiestherelationshipbetweentheauthorandthetexthaschanged.Theearliestsacredtextsareauthorless,theiroriginslostinhistory.Infact,theancient,anonymousoriginofsuchtextsservesasakindofauthentication.Ontheotherhand,scientifictexts,atleastuntilaftertheRenaissance,demandedanauthorsnameasvalidation.Bytheeighteenthcentury,however,Foucaultasserts,thesituationhadreversed:literaturewasauthoredandsciencehadbecometheproductofanonymousobjectivity.Onceauthorsbegantobepunishedfortheirwritingthatis,whenatextcouldbetransgressivethelinkbetweentheauthorandthetextwasfirmlyestablished.Textbecameakindofprivateproperty,ownedbytheauthor,andacriticaltheorydevelopedwhichreinforcedthatrelationship,searchingforkeystothetextinthelifeandintentionofitswriter.Withtheriseofscientificmethod,ontheotherhand,scientifictextsandmathematicalproofswerenolongerseenasauthoredtextsbutasdiscoveredtruths.Thescientistrevealedanextantphenomenon,afactanyonefacedwiththesameconditionswouldhaveuncovered.Thereforethescientistandmathematiciancouldbethefirsttodiscoveraparadigm,andlendtheirnametoit,butcouldneverclaimauthorshipoverit.
Poststructuralistreadingstendtocriticisetheprestigeattributedtothefigureoftheauthor.Thefocusshiftsfromtheauthorsintentiontotheinternalworkingsofthewriting:notwhatitmeansbuthowitmeans.BarthesendshisessaysupposingthebirthofthereadermustbeatthecostofthedeathoftheAuthor.(4)Foucaultimaginesatimewhenwe
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mightask,Whatdifferencedoesitmakewhoisspeaking?(5)Thenotionthatatextisalineofwordsthatreleasesasinglemeaning,thecentralmessageofandauthor/god,isoverthrown.
Postmodernismturnedonafragmentedandschizophrenicdecenteringanddispersionofthesubject,notedFredericJameson.(6)Thenotionofadecentredtextatextwhichisskewedfromthedirectlineofcommunicationbetweensenderandreceiver,severedfromtheauthorityofitsorigin,andexistsasafreefloatingelementinafieldofpossiblesignificationshasfiguredheavilyinrecentconstructionsofadesignbasedinreadingandreaders.ButKatherineMcCoysprescientimageofdesignersmovingbeyondproblemsolvingandbyauthoringadditionalcontentandaselfconsciouscritiqueofthemessageadoptingrolesassociatedwithartandliteraturehasasoftenasnotbeenmisconstrued.(7)Ratherthanworkingtoincorporatetheoryintotheirmethodsofproduction,manysocalleddeconstructivistdesignersliterallyillustratedBarthesimageofareaderbasedtextatissueofquotationsdrawnfrominnumerablecentresofculturebyscatteringfragmentsofquotationsacrossthesurfaceoftheirauthoredpostersandbookcovers.(8)ThedarkimplicationsofBarthestheory,noteEllenLuptonandJ.AbbottMiller,werefashionedintoaromantictheoryofselfexpression.(9)
Perhapsafteryearsasfacelessfacilitators,designerswerereadytospeakout.SomemayhavebeeneagertodiscardtheinternalaffairsofformalismtoborrowametaphorusedbyPauldeManandbranchoutintotheforeignaffairsofexternalpoliticsandcontent.(10)Bythe1970sDesignhadbeguntodiscardthescientificapproachthathadheldswayfordecades,exemplifiedbytherationalistideologythatpreachedstrictadherencetoaneternalgrid.
MullerBrockmannsevocationoftheaestheticqualityofmathematicalthinkingistheclearestandmostcitedexampleofthisapproach.(11)MullerBrockmannandaslewoffellowresearcherssuchasKepes,DondisandArnheimworkedtouncoverapreexistingorderandforminthewayascientistrevealstruth.ButwhatismostpeculiarandrevealinginMullerBrockmannswritingishisrelianceontropesofsubmission:thedesignerssubmitstothewillofthesystem,forgoespersonality,withholdsinterpretation.
Onthesurface,atleast,itwouldseemthatdesignersweremovingawayfromauthorless,scientifictextsinwhichinviolablevisualprinciplesarrivedatthroughextensivevisualresearchwererevealedtowardsapositioninwhichthedesignercouldclaimsomelevelofownershipoverthemessage(andthisatatimewhenliterarytheorywasmovingawayfromthatveryposition).Butsomeoftheinstitutionalfeaturesofdesignpracticeareatoddswithzealousattemptsatselfexpression.Theideaofadecentredmessagedoesnotnecessarilysitwellinaprofessionalrelationshipinwhichtheclientispayingthedesignertoconveyspecificinformationoremotions.Inaddition,mostdesignisdoneinacollaborativesetting,eitherwithinaclientrelationshiporinthecontextofastudiothatutilisesthetalentsofnumerouscreativepeople,withtheresultthattheoriginofanyparticularideaisuncertain.Theeverpresentpressureoftechnologyandelectroniccommunicationonlymuddiesthewaterfurther.
Isthereanauteurinthehouse?ItisperhapsnotsurprisingthatBarthesTheDeathoftheAuthorwaswritteninParisin1968,theyearstudentsjoinedworkersonthebarricadesinageneralstrikeandthewesternworldflirtedwithrealsocialrevolution.Thecallfortheoverthrowofauthorityintheformoftheauthorinfavourofthereaderi.e.themasseshadarealresonancein1968.Buttolosepoweryoumusthavealreadywornamantle,whichisperhapswhydesignershadaproblemintryingtooverthrowapowerwhichtheyneverpossessed.
Thefigureoftheauthorimpliedatotalitariancontrolovercreativeactivityandseemedanessentialingredientofhighart.Iftherelativelevelofgeniusonthepartoftheauthor,painter,sculptororcomposerwastheultimatemeasureofartisticachievement,activitiesthatlackedaclearcentralauthorityfigureweredevalued.Thedevelopmentoffilmtheoryduringtheperiodservesasaninterestingexample.In1954filmcriticandbuddingfilmdirectorFranoisTruffauthadfirstpromulgatedthepolitiquedesauteurs,apolemicalstrategydevelopedtoreconfigureacriticaltheoryofthecinema.(12)Theproblemwashowtocreateatheorythatimaginedafilm,necessarilytheresultofbroadcollaboration,astheworkofasingleartist,thusaworkofart.Thesolutionwastodetermineasetofcriteriathatallowedacritictodefinecertaindirectorsasauteurs.Inordertoestablishthefilmasaworkofart,auteurtheoryheldthatthedirectorhithertomerelyonethirdofthecreativetroikaofdirector,writerandcinematographerhadultimatecontrolovertheentireproject.
AuteurtheoryespeciallyasespousedbytheAmericancriticAndrewSarisspeculatedthatdirectorsmustmeetthreecriteriainordertopassintothesacredhallofauteurs.(13)Sarrisproposedthatthedirectormustdemonstratetechnicalexpertise,haveastylisticsignaturethatisvisibleoverthecourseofseveralfilmsand,throughhisorherchoiceofprojectsandcinematictreatment,showaconsistencyofvisionandinteriormeaning.SincethefilmdirectorhadlittlecontrolofthematerialheorsheworkedwithespeciallywithintheHollywoodstudiosystem,wheredirectorswereassignedtoprojectsthesignaturewayarangeofscripts
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wastreatedwasespeciallyimportant.
Theinterestingthingaboutauteurtheoryisthatfilmtheorists,likedesigners,hadtoconstructthenotionoftheauthorasameansofraisingwhatwasconsideredlowentertainmenttotheplateauoffineart.Theparallelsbetweenfilmdirectionanddesignpracticearestriking.Likethefilmdirector,theartdirectorordesignerisoftendistancedfromhisorhermaterialandworkscollaborativelyonit,directingtheactivityofanumberofothercreativepeople.Inaddition,overthecourseofacareerboththefilmdirectorandthedesignerworkonanumberofdifferentprojectswithvaryinglevelsofcreativepotential.Asaresult,anyinnermeaningmustcomefromaesthetictreatmentasmuchasfromcontent.
Ifweapplythecriteriausedtoidentifyauteurstographicdesigners,weyieldabodyofworkthatmaybeelevatedtoauteurstatus.Technicalproficiencycouldbeclaimedbyanynumberofpractitioners,butcouplethiswithasignaturestyleandthefieldnarrows.ThedesignerswhofulfilthesecriteriawillbefamiliartoanyEyereadermanyofthemhavebeenfeaturedinthemagazine.(And,ofcourse,selectiverepublishingofcertainworkandexclusionofotherconstructastylisticallyconsistentoeuvre.)ThelistwouldprobablyincludeFabianBaron,TiborKalman,DavidCarson,NevilleBrody,EdwardFella,AnthonBeeke,PierreBernard,GertDunbar,TadanooriYokoo,VaughnOliver,RickValincenti,AprilGreiman,JanvanToorn,WolfgangWeingartandmanyothers.Butgreattechniqueandstylealonedonotanauteurmake.Ifweaddtherequirementofinteriormeaning,howdoesthislistfare?AretheredesignerswhobyspecialtreatmentandchoiceofprojectsapproachtheissueofdeepermeaninginthewayBergman,HitchcockorWellesdoes?
Howdoyoucompareafilmposterwiththefilmitself?Theveryscaleofacinematicprojectallowsforasweepofvisionnotpossibleingraphicdesign.Thereforegraphicauteurs,almostbydefinition,wouldhavetohaveproducedlargeestablishedbodiesofworkinwhichdiscerniblepatternsemerge.Who,then,arethegraphicauteurs?PerhapsBernardandVanToorn,possiblyOliver,BeekeandFella.Thereisasenseofgettingabiggeridea,adeeperqualitytotheirwork,aidedinthecaseofBernardandvanToornbytheirpoliticalaffiliationsandinOliverbylongassociationthatproducesaconsistentgenreofmusic,allowingforarangeofexperimentation.Inthesecasesthegraphicauteurbothseeksprojectsheiscommissionedtoworkonfromaspecific,recognisablecriticalperspective.VanToornwilllookatabriefforacorporateannualreportfromasocioeconomicposition,Bernardevokesapositionofclassstruggle,capitalistbrutalityandsocialdysfunctionandOliverexaminesdarkissuesofdecay,raptureandthehumanbody.JeanRenoirobservedthatanartisticdirectorspendshiswholecareerremakingvariationsonthesamefilm.
GreatstylistssuchasCarsonandBarondonotseemtoqualifyforadmissiontotheauteurpantheon,atleastaccordingtoSarrisscriteria,asitisdifficulttodiscernamessageintheirworkthattranscendsthestylisticeleganceofthetypographyinthecaseofBaronandthestudiedineleganceofthatofCarson.(Youhavetoaskyourself,Whatistheirworkabout?)ValicentiandBrodytrytoinjectinnermeaningintotheirworkasinValicentisselfpublishedAidsadvertisingandBrodysattachmenttothepostlinguisticalphabetsystemsbuttheiroutputremainsimpervioustoanysuchintrusion.Ajudgementsuchasthis,however,bringsustotheAchillesheelofauteurtheory.Intryingtodescribeinteriormeaning,Sarrisresortstotheintangibledifferencebetweenonepersonalityandanother.(14)ThatretreattointangibilitytheIcantsaywhatitisbutIknowitwhenIseeitaspectisoneofthereasonswhythetheoryhaslongsincefallenintodisfavourinfilmcriticismcircles.Italsoneverdealtadequatelywiththecollaborativenatureofcinemaandthemessyproblemsofmoviemaking.Butwhilethetheoryispass,itseffectisstillwithus:thedirectortothisdaysitssquarelyatthecentreofourperceptionoffilmstructure.Inthesamewayitcouldbethatwehavebeenapplyingamodifiedgraphicauteurtheoryforyearswithoutbeingawareofit.Afterall,whatisdesigntheoryifnotaseriesofcriticalelevationsanddemotionsasourattitudesaboutstyle,meaningandsignificanceevolve?
OthermodelsofauthorshipAuteurtheorymaybetoolimitedamodelforourcurrentimageofdesignauthorship,butthereareotherwaystoframetheissuebasedondifferentkindsofpractice:theartistsbook,concretepoetry,politicalactivism,publishing,illustrationandsoon.Couldatheoryofpoeticsbeafunctionalmodel?Useisamajorstickingpointintryingtoviewdesignedworkaspoetic:traditionallythepoemasartworkisaselfcontainedartefact,whiledesignreferstosomeexteriorfunctionorovertintention.
Thispoetic/practicaloppositionisresolvedintwoexamplesofdesignproduction:theartistsbookandactivistdesign.Theartistsbookoffersaformofdesignauthorshipfromwhichfunctionhasbeenfullyexorcised.Theartistsbook,ingeneral,isconcrete,selfreferentialandallowsforarangeofvisualexperimentswithouttheburdenoffulfillingmundanecommercialtasks.Thereisalongtraditionofartistsbooksthroughthehistoricalavantgarde,theSituationists,Fluxusandexperimentalpublishinginthe1960sand1970s.Itsexponentsincludeaneclecticmixofdesignersandauthors(DieterRot,TomPhillips,WarrenLehrer,TomOckerse,JohannaDrucker)aswellasvisualartists(RobertMorris,BarbaraKruger,MaryKelly,JennyHolzer,HansHaacke).DieterRothas
11/5/2015 EyeMagazine|Feature|Thedesignerasauthor
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producedamonumentalandconsistentbodyofbookswhichexploreinaselfreflexiveway,thenatureofbooks.Lehrerhasfocusedonproductionprocesses,suchasprintingandbinding,andaspectsofdialogueandnarrative.Hehasrecentlyproducedanewgroupofgraphicportraits,distributedintheformoftradepaperback,perhapsthemostrecentattemptatwidedistribution.
Artistsbooksusingwords,images,structureandmaterialtotellastoryorinvokeanemotionmaybethepurestformofgraphicauthorship.Buttheoddthingaboutthegenreisthatmanyofthemostskilleddesignershaveavoideditandmuchoftheworkproducedundertherubrikisofsubstandardgraphicquality(notintermsofproductionvalues,whichareoftennecessarilylow,butintypographyandcomposition).Thesingularityoftheartistsbook,thelowtechnicalqualityandtheabsenceofapracticalapplicationmayalienatetheprofessionalgraphicdesigner.
Ifthedifferencebetweenpoetryandpracticalmessagesisthatthelatteraresuccessfulonlywhenwecorrectlyinfertheintention.,thenactivistdesignwouldbelabelledasabsolutelypractical.ButactivistworkincludingtheworkofGranFury,Bureau,WomansActionCoalition,GeneralIdea,ActUp,ClassActionandGuerillaGirlsisalsoselfmotivatedandselfauthoredwithaclearpoliticalagenda.Proactiveworkhasavoiceandamessage,butinitsovertintentionalitylackstheselfreferentialityoftheartistsbookYetseveralproblemscloudtheissueofauthoredactivism,notleastthequestionofcollaboration.Whosevoiceisspeaking?Notanindividual,butsomekindofunifiedcommunity.Isthisworkopenforinterpretationorisitspointthebrutaltransmissionofaspecificmessage?Theriseofactivistauthorshiphascomplicatedthewholeideaofauthorshipasakindoffreeselfexpression.
PerhapsthegraphicauthorisonethatwritesandpublishesmaterialaboutdesignJosephMullerBrockmannorRudyVanderLans,PaulRandorErikSpiekermann,WilliamMorrisorNevilleBrody,RobinKinrossorEllenLupton.Theentrepreneurialarmofauthorshipaffordsthepossibilityofapersonalvoiceandwidedistribution.Mostsplittheactivitiesintothreediscreetactions:editing,writinganddesigning.Evenastheirownclients,thedesignremainsthevehicleofthewrittenthought.(Kinross,forinstance,worksasahistorianthenchangeshatsandbecomesatypographer.)RudyVanderLansisperhapsthepurestoftheentrepreneurialauthors,sinceinEmigreallthreeactivitiesblendintoacontinuouswhole.InEmigrethecontentisdeeplyembeddedintheformthatis,theformalexplorationisasmuchthecontentofthemagazineasthewriting.VanderLansexpresseshismessagethroughtheselectionofthematerial(asaneditor),thecontentofthewriting(asawriter)andtheformofthepagesandtypography(asaformgiver).
EllenLuptonandherpartnerJ.AbbottMillerhavealmostsinglehandedlyconstructedthenewcriticalapproachtographicdesign,coupledwithanexploratorypractice.AprojectsuchasTheBathroom,theKitchenandtheAestheticsofWaste,anexhibitionattheMITListVisualArtsCentre,seemstoapproachanewlevelofgraphicauthorship.Themessageisexpressedequallythroughgraphic/visualdevicesandtext.Thedesignoftheshowevokestheissuesthatareitscontentitisclearlyselfreflexive.(Theexhibitioncatalogue,bycontrast,doesnotembodythesamelevelofgraphicauthorship.HereLuptonseemtohaveslippedbackintothemorefamiliar,functionallyseparaterolesofauthoranddesigner.)Butmuchoftheirotherworkdemandstobereckonedwith,visuallyandverbally.
WhileLuptonandMillersworkisprimarilycriticalareadingofexteriorsocialandhistoricalphenomenadirectedataspecificaudiencetheillustratedbook,oftenoverlookedbythedesigncommunity,isalmostentirelyconcernedwiththegenerationofcreativenarrative.Booksforchildrenhavebeenoneofthemostsuccessfuloutlets,butauthor/illustratorssuchasSueCoe,ArtSpiegelmann,CharlesBurns,BenKatchor,DaveMcCaulley,ChrisvanAllesburg,EdwardGoreyandMauriceSendakhavealsousedthebookinwhollyinventivewaysandproducedseriouswork.BookssuchasSpeigelmannsMausandCoesXandPorkopolisexpandtheformintonewareas.
Othermodelsthatmayindicatealevelofgraphicauthorshipincludeprojectsofsuchascalethatthedesigneriscalledontomakesenseofaseaofmaterialandconstructnarrative.BruceMausworkwithRemKoolhaasonthegiganticS,M,L,XL,anarchitecturalandtypographicnovel(seeEyeno.15vol.4),andIrmaBoomsfiveyearcommissionfromapowerfulDutchcorporationtocreateacommemorativeworkofunspecifiedform,scaleandcontentaretwosuchprojects.Herethedesignerworkinglikeafilmdirectorontheunfoldingcinematicstructureoftheworkassumesaprimarypositionintheshapingofmaterial.
Thefinalcategoryisthatofdesignerswhousethemediumofprofessionalgraphicdesigntocreateselfreferentialstatementsandcomparisons.ExamplesincludeAprilGreimansspecialissueofDesignQuarterly,afullscaleimageofherpixellatedbodywithapersonaltextfullofdreamsandvisions,andanynumberofintricateandenigmaticworksbythelikesofTomBonauroandAllenHori(forinstance,HorisgraphicinterpretationofaBeatriceWardeessayinarecentMohawkpaperpromotion).Operatinginaspacebetweenserviceorientatedprojectsandfreeexpression,theseworkseschewtheparametersofaclientrelationshipwhileretainingtheformsdictatedbytheneedsofcommerce:thebook,poster,exhibitionandsoon.InthecaseofHorisvisualessay,theclient
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paysforagraphicworktoembellishacorporateprojectandthedesignerlendshisavantgardecredentialstothecorporation.
Forwardorbackwards?Ifthewaysadesignercanbeanauthorarecomplexandconfused,thewaydesignershaveusedthetermandthevalueascribedtoitareequallyso.Anynumberofrecentstatementsclaimauthorshipasthepanaceatothewoesofthebrowbeatendesigner.ArecentcallforentriesforadesignexhibitionentitledDesignerasAuthor:VoicesandVisionssoughttoidentifygraphicdesignerswhoareengagedinworkthattranscendsthetraditionalserviceorientedcommercialproduction,andwhopursueprojectsthatarepersonal,socialorinvestigativeinnature(15)Therejectionoftheroleofthefacilitatorandcalltotranscendtraditionalproductionimplythattheauthoreddesignholdssomehigher,purerpurpose.Theamplificationofthepersonalvoicelegitimisesdesignasequaltomoretraditionalprivilegedformsofauthorship.
Butifdesignersshouldaimforopenreadingsandfreetextualinterpretationsasalitanyofcontemporarytheoristshaveconvincedusthatdesireisthwartedbyoppositionaltheoriesofauthorship.Foucaultnotedthatthefigureoftheauthorisnotaparticularlyliberatingone:theauthorasorigin,authorityandultimateownerofthetextguardsagainstfreewillofthereader.Transferringtheauthorityofthetextbackovertotheauthorcontainsandcategorisesthework,narrowingthepossibilitiesforinterpretation.Thefigureoftheauthorreconfirmsthetraditionalideaofthegeniuscreatorthestatusofthecreatorframestheworkandimbuesitwithmythicalvalue.
Whilesomeclaimsforauthorshipmaybesimplyanindicationofarenewedsenseofresponsibility,attimestheyseemploystogainproperrights,attemptstoexercisesomekindofagencywheretherehastraditionallybeennone.Ultimatelytheauthorequalsauthority.Whilethelongingforgraphicauthorshipmaybethelongingforlegitimacyorpower,iscelebratingthedesignascentralcharacternecessarilyapositivemove?Isntthatwhathasfuelledthelast50yearsofdesignhistory?Ifwereallywanttogobeyondthedesignerasheromodel,wemayhavetoimagineatimewhenwecanask,whatdifferencedoesitmakewhodesignedit?
Ontheotherhandworkiscreatedbysomeone.(Allthosecallsforthedeathoftheauthoraremadebyfamousauthors.)Whilethedevelopmentanddefinitionofartisticstyles,andtheiridentificationandclassification,areattheheartofanoutmodedModernistcriticism,wemuststillworktoengagetheseproblemsinnewways.Itmaybethattherealchallengeistoembracethemultiplicityofmethodsartisticandcommercial,individualandcollaborativethatcomprisesdesignlanguage.Anexaminationofthedesignerasauthorcouldhelpustorethinkprocess,expanddesignmethodsandelaborateourhistoricalframetoincorporateallformsofgraphicdiscourse.Butwhiletheoriesofgraphicauthorshipmaychangethewayworkismade,theprimaryconcernofboththeviewerandthecriticisnotwhomadeit,butratherwhatitdoesandhowitdoesit.
(1)WKWimsattandMonroeC.Beardsley,TheIntentionalFallacyinCriticalTheorysincePlato,ed.HazardAdams,NewYork:HBJ,1971
(2)RolandBarthes,TheDeathoftheAuthor,inImageMusicText,NewYork,HillandWang(translatedbyStephenHeath),1977
(3)MichelFoucault,WhatisanAuthor?inTextualStrategies,ed.JosuHarari,Ithaca:CornellUniversityPress,1979
(4)Barthes,op.cit,p145.
(5)Foucault,op.cit,p160
(6)FredricJamesonquotedinMarkDery,ThePersistenceofIndustrialMemoryinArchitectureNewYorkno.10,p25
(7)KatherineMcCoy,TheNewDiscourseinDesignQuarterlyno.148,1990,p.16
(8)Barthes,op.cit.,p146
(9)EllenLuptonandJ.AbbottMiller,DeconstructionandGraphicDesign:HistorymeetsTheoryinVisibleLanguage228.4,ed.AndrewBlauvelt,Autumn1994,p352
(10)PauldeMan,SemiologyandRhetoricinTextualStrategies,op.cit,p121
(11)JosefMllerBrockmann,GridSystemsinGraphicDesign,Stuttgart,VerlagGerdJatje,1981,p10
(12)Cahiersducinma,no.31,January1954
(13)SeeAndrewSarris,ThePrimalScreen,NewYork,Simon&Schuster,1973
(14)AndrewSerris,NotesontheAuteurTheoryin1962inFilmCulturereader,ed.P.AdamsSitney,NewYork,PraegerPublishers,1970,p133
(15)Re:QuestforSubmissionstotheDesignerasAuthor:VoicesandVisionsexhibition,NorthernKentuckyUniversity,1996
FirstpublishedinEyeno.20vol.51996
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publishedquarterlyforprofessionaldesigners,studentsandanyoneinterestedincritical,informedwritingaboutgraphicdesignandvisualculture.ItisavailablefromallgooddesignbookshopsandonlineattheEyeshop,whereyoucanbuysubscriptionsandsingleissues.
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