Physicality!

     Today I read an article on Core77 about the Apple iPhone 4. It wasn't your standard "omg the iphone is so greeeaaaat, look at all these apps" fodder, but rather, it was about the physical properties of the thing. IT was interesting not only because it was an unusual look at the iPhone, but because the article addressed issues in the design world about the need for designs to not only look good but to feel good.
     The writer of the article said that he was surprised by the iPhone the first time he took it out of the box, despite the fact that he had seen it online and in ads, on television and in YouTube before. For him, that is an important thing that Apple has managed to grasp. The iPhone, yes, does many wonderful things and has two cameras, etc, etc, but it's also slim and attractive. It's a rectangle that appears to lack anything interesting at first glance, but once you get closer and pick it up, you see the various design nuances that make it so well crafted and appealing.
     There's also a look at the creation process of the iPhone:

     Interesting!!!

Design returns to its roots

     What drew me to this post in the New York Times was not the title but the tagline: "...remarkable design projects that fulfill the old-fashioned objective of improving our quality of life". 
It isn't something that seems to be thought about often, and is seldom acknowledged in the plain, honest way that this article does it. 
     The subject matter itself is interesting, as the article covers everything from oval plates to well designed books. It serves as a reminder to the consumer and the close-knit design community alike that design exists, sometimes well hidden, in every facet of our lives. It's nice to see that some designers are still pursuing things that don't seek to particularly excite or create controversy, merely to simplify in the same way that wheels on a suitcase changed the luggage industry. More design should be less about "how can I dazzle my consumer" and more about "what does my consumer need?" Apple is a prime example of a good balance of the two, as they have been demonstrating since they unveiled the Ipod years ago. Yes, it was streamlined and meant to attract attention, but it also served the purpose of being a large-storage mp3 player that allows one to actually see the music they've stored, something the consumer definitely needed. 

Anna Akbari!

     Today we had a presentation from Anna Akbari, a sociologist and designer of the personal image. She began her presentation with an interesting question about authenticity, namely whether there even is such a thing, and if so, whether or not authenticity is relevant in today's world.
     Akbari argues that because we all wear masks all the time (when dealing with different people, say at home or at work), all of the masks are authentic because they come from ourselves, the authentic original. "Appearance is authentic", meaning that if you appear a certain way, to the world around you, that is who you are, authentically. Our 'backstage' and 'front-stage' lives are dictated by how the world sees us, even if it's just during a glance in the mirror in the morning to see how we look. The emphasis of Akbari's presentation was not on how we see ourselves but on how the world sees us, which is far more important when 'pimping' oneself.
     It is easy to draw the conclusion that Akbari is suggesting that part of the foundation of presenting yourself the way you want the world to see you is by misleading your audience. This is not true, as completely misleading your audience is not only kind of childish, it's difficult to maintain, BUT it is true that part of our lives is spent misleading others, at least some of the time.The idea is to lead your audience the way you want them to go, skirting completely misleading them and instead putting your best self forward. The pace to start is by picking something that you feel defines you, then building a concrete personality around that. "Feel free to play around with your possible self".
     Akbari then went on to talk about "transcending your biological self", as well as how one is to do that. Like changing your name to make it catchier, transcending your biological self is all about not letting who you are on paper define who you are out in the world. Some tips for doing that are:

• If you plan to have multiple persona, manage them properly. Always know which persona works where, and where is isn't okay to project a certain image. As in, don't act the way you act in a bar with your friends.. at a job interview.
• Track your own image! While you're physically somewhere else, your image is out in the world working for you at all times. With the internet being as easily accessible as it is, chances are, someone is always looking at the image you've created elsewhere. Be aware of that.
• Think about the different directions your identities can branch off in. This connects back to the idea of having "T-shaped' skills in the workplace. If you can paint, draw, and act, don't limit yourself to one thing. Look for opportunities to combine what you do. Anna uses her flair for fashion and her knowledge of sociology, for example, to run a wardrobe consultant service called Closet Catharsis.
• Lastly, consider creating an avatar on Second Life or something similar, as it will give you a chance to test out being exactly who you want to be, even if it's a different race or sex. It's a unique opportunity to test drive a different personality. 

     Akbari began to wrap up her presentation with the steps necessary for pimping yourself. This includes creating a timeline of your intellectual lineage (where did you go to school?) as well as your professional pedigree (where have you worked/what are you qualified to do?), learning to think, write, and speak extremely well, and combining all of that with strategic self presentation. This is what gets people hired in the working world. She also stresses the importance of networking, and mentions that a personality can be entirely augmented by developing an entrepreneurial spirit. This doesn't mean you have to make your own business fresh out of college, but it does mean that you should know to use what you already have to make a place for yourself in the world.

So:
Identity is fluid,
Creativity trumps biography,
Authenticity is irrelevant,
Design is embodied (design who you are),
and Live a networked life. 


I plan to "go forth and pimp" myself.

Experimental Portraiture!!

     Experimental Portraiture is a section of art that seeks to capture the spirit of a subject beyond simple facial capture. Experimental portraiture has been around for a while, coming about in the non-visual portrait creations of writers like Gertrude Stein. Science and psychology also played a role in the development of experimental portraiture, as researchers like Sigmund Freud began to study personalities and what defines a person. Artists, often taking their inspiration from what changes in the societies they reside in, caught this "personality bug" and began to do studies of their own, pushing themselves and their work to copy those studies and really get at the heart of their subjects.       
     Experimental portraiture can be made in a variety of ways, such as with paint, as is demonstrated in the work of Stephanie Schmitt. Schmitt paints portraits of people, focusing on facial expressions and the emotions behind them. She overlays various views of a subject, resulting in an almost ghostly image, full of movement and action. She most specifically seeks to capture not only one emotion, but several, as well as the shifts between them. The result is the aforementioned overlaying of faces. She paints realistically in 3 dimensions, because she thinks realism is integral to what she's trying to capture. 

Untitled, Stephanie Schmitt, 2005

     Other artists use photo manipulation to create their work, such as in the art of James Honzik, an exerimental artist from the west coast. He makes photographic collages, often overlaying images of models on images of corrosion, such as rusty school buses and the like. Honzik likens his subjects to things found in nature, such as the moss of a tree, seeking to define the person in the portrait by these things. Through his work, he is attempting to discover what makes a person captivating, or powerful, or just plain interesting. 

Crown of Rust, Dress of Stone, James Honzik, 2007.