In my opinion, our society made a HUGE mistake in 'progressing' beyond the design of the times of the '20s and '30s.
Oh I'm so glad we made progress in civil rights, and I'm happy with digital technology, but really, the design zeitgeist did not need a lot of improvement . . . in my opinion.
I'd agree that there seems to have been a sort of peak in that period, and I'd say that the lauded stuff of the subsequent forty-or-so years was actually mostly rather dreary. But there have also been things, especially more recently, that have been extraordinary beautiful and that don't really conform to the styles of the '20s nor of the '30s.
Daniel, I'm not saying that modern design is bereft of merit, but, in my opinion, is bereft of spirit—the zeitgeist that motivates across all the fields of culture and technology.
I am with you entirely on the zeitgeist. The unifying theme or philosophy behind design has altered in ways that, I think, have been injurious to the culture as a whole. We seem to have lost our ability to be excited, or to look forward with anticipation. Design in the 30s was about a good today and an even better tomorrow, and that has largely been absent.
I hear ya loud and clear, Thom. Maybe it'll come back around again real soon.
ReplyDeleteI'm with ya a hundred percent, brother! There's just an abundance of elegant design from that period that's never been surpassed.
ReplyDeleteI'd agree that there seems to have been a sort of peak in that period, and I'd say that the lauded stuff of the subsequent forty-or-so years was actually mostly rather dreary. But there have also been things, especially more recently, that have been extraordinary beautiful and that don't really conform to the styles of the '20s nor of the '30s.
ReplyDeleteI love the curvilinear design lines from the 1920s and 1930s.
ReplyDeleteDaniel, I'm not saying that modern design is bereft of merit, but, in my opinion, is bereft of spirit—the zeitgeist that motivates across all the fields of culture and technology.
ReplyDeleteI am with you entirely on the zeitgeist. The unifying theme or philosophy behind design has altered in ways that, I think, have been injurious to the culture as a whole. We seem to have lost our ability to be excited, or to look forward with anticipation. Design in the 30s was about a good today and an even better tomorrow, and that has largely been absent.
ReplyDeleteNicely phrased, Bob.
ReplyDelete