Dieter Rams 10 principles of good design can be seen in many modern day inventions, from kettles to phones. He states that good design should:

Be innovative
Make a product useful
Is aesthetic
Make a product understandable
Be unobtrusive
Be honest
Be long lasting
Be thorough down to the last detail
Be environmentally friendly
Involves as little design as possible

Cell phones when created are always pushed as being unique and are finding new ways to be innovative. When they first were released they were incredibly basic and had limited functions. However they were still innovative in the way that they were a new and unique product which drew people’s attention. When phones moved from physical buttons to touchscreen it could be considered good design as it makes the product simpler to use by removing multiple mechanical parts and making the products more aesthetically pleasing. They become more aesthetically pleasing over time with sleeker appearances and smoother edges.
These are a few of the ways that cell phone companies take Dieter Rams 10 principles and create new innovative products.

The website below (1) shows how phones evolved over time with new innovations in technology and the impact that had on the public. Dieter Rams 10 principles aren’t just applied to physical objects though. Looking at a toaster you know what you’re doing, and this should be the same for a webpage. Your webpage shouldn’t be confusing to figure out how to access it and use it properly, its should be honest and thorough. So as you can see web pages are another thing that the 10 principles could easily be applied to. The website below (2) showcases Dieter Rams 10 principles and how they take it into account when designing web pages.

1. https://www.hongkiat.com/blog/evolution-of-mobile-phones/
2. https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/dieter-rams-10-timeless-commandments-for-good-design

The second part of the question would be whether these 10 principles are relevant in games design today. And i can honestly say its not going to be as simple as a yes or no answer, more of a “they can be useful” answer. Now straight away i would say that they are not relevant in modern gaming due to the complexity of games nowadays. Games such as dark souls, whilst aesthetically pleasing and innovative, is not easily understandable and involves a huge amount of design. And you can consider many games to be obtrusive today as they perform their function of entertainment yet also provide frustration and can break easily.
However, not all games share these same issues.  Games can actually use all 10 principles or at least most of them and these principles help to design these games. For example the game Magic the Gathering. A card game which utilizes the ten principles put forth by Dieter Rams. Below is a link which explains how they have been implemented into the game. In the article he talks through the different principles and how that applies to him as a card designer and how these impact the choices he makes and the way people perceive the cards.

https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/making-magic/ten-principles-good-design-part-1-2010-05-03

Reference:

Image 1:  http://unit30distinctiond1.blogspot.co.uk/

During this semester the Research and Communication Skills course has broadened my view on graphic arts immensely. Improving on my contextual knowledge of how and why art movements and various other styles came through has been extremely empowering. I feel that knowledge and understanding is where all good design comes from so for me it’s paramount for my own practice and my career as a whole.

I have found the use of graphic design has played such a huge part in our society, good and bad. The bad use of design from the confusion at Palm Beach county polls where Al Gore supporters mistakingly voted for Pat Buchanan due to the poorly executed layout by Theresa LePore. As well as accelerating the civil rights movement by information being spread to the people on the masses. Emory Douglas, a graphic artist for the Black Panthers, was able to spread the words of their manifesto and spread propaganda aimed at the police, shifting the movement in huge ways. Motifs like the black power salute are still being used to this day and have been adapted for various uses.

The swiss designers from the modernism movement really made me think about what good graphic design is. Dieter Rams ten principles for good design made a lot of sense to me therefore I have began to implement the ideas into my own practice.

1. Good design is innovative
2. Good design makes a product useful
3. Good design is aesthetic
4. Good design makes a product understandable
5. Good design is unobtrusive
6. Good design is honest
7. Good design is long-lasting
8. Good design is thorough down to the last detail
9. Good design is environmentally friendly
10. Good design is as little design as possible

I found it quite amazing that I have not been the only one inspired by Dieter Rams work, as has the designers at apple. Consequently very closely replicating some of Rams work in the early editions of apple products. Researching this in week 4, I found both a compliment and an insult of his work, going against his own principle of good design is honest. Learning and seeing the shift between Modernism to Postmodernism has been very interesting. Although Postmodernism cannot be directly defined, I can now strongly say I understand the basis in which it was built.

The weekly tasks I have completed have allowed myself to think about what kind of design I want to be and how I want to impact people. In recent tasks I have been drawn to simple designs with complex messages. The WWF global warming poster I analysed is extremely effective and does the job it’s supposed to, connect to the audience and raise awareness of the impacts of climate change. Through this journey I have been able to conclude for myself what pathway I want to follow for the rest of my degree, Graphic Design. However I welcome the use of other practice as I want to continue my love for Photography and learn more about Motion Graphics.

Rams, D. (2013). Ten principles for good design | Design Principles FTW. [online] Designprinciplesftw.com. Available at: http://www.designprinciplesftw.com/collections/ten-principles-for-good-design [Accessed 7 Dec. 2017].

The Guardian (2012). Mexico City Olympics. [image] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/mar/30/black-power-salute-1968-olympics [Accessed 7 Dec. 2017].

Throughout this module I have learned new ways to research, using a variety of resources which I wouldn’t of usually used beforehand but will continue to use in the future. The weekly tasks have challenged my writing skills, as I have found it difficult to write essays and to analyse images and texts. By doing these tasks i have seen my writing skills improve and I feel more confident with doing these in future. The lectures have been really interesting and i have found them enjoyable while i have learned important factors with fashion which I haven’t learnt in practical sessions or study sessions.

The first few tasks were on using online resources, primary and second sources. The first task opened my eyes on using the library resources and using articles. In the past I  have never used books for researching merely used online resources such as Pinterest. This task has seen me broaden my mind and use books. I did find this task challenging as I had to relate all three resources together, as I’ve never done this in the past it wasn’t the easiest. However this has been helpful as I now think of a variety of research resource and how I can link them together.

The next task was about using Harvard referencing. I have used Harvard referencing before but not like this, although this is a long process it’s important and now I know to reference all of my work in this manor. The next task I found more challenging than the ones before, as I had to analyse an image which I find difficult, this is due to me never having to analyse anything in depth before.

The following task on reflective writing really challenge me. I enjoyed reading ‘Fashion as Communication’ text as my knowledge on fashion was expanded, I liked reading how fashion has many definitions and other peoples views on fashion were very interesting. Since the previous texts I have used library resources more and found it easy to find supporting texts. Again I liked reading the other texts as I got a better and more thorough understanding of the first text and fashion in general. I know now how further reading is useful as it can support other research. However writing up a summary was harder than expected as I didn’t know what to put without going into too much detail. I also had many ideas which got mixed up and made it harder to put my thoughts down clearly. The task I really enjoyed and found engaging was ethical issues. In the lecture I liked seeing how shocking each advert was and how many different opinions there were as well as the controversies surrounding them. This was a really interesting task as it challenged me to think in more depth and stretch my ideas about information i had never looked into.

Since doing all these task I have used more research resources in my studio work, I now use books more than i use websites which allows me to look more into the work than before. The tasks and lectures have been very useful as I’ve learnt new thinking skills as well research skills. They have tested me and made me push myself, each new task I improved from the previous one as I filtered my thoughts more and looked at them in more depth. This whole module has been very beneficial as everything I’ve learnt can be used throughout my degree and for the future.

From these research tasks I have learnt that there is more to art than the design. There are different categories, such as modern and post-modern art that determine the style of design. It is important to research the meaning of the design if any as it could be different to what you presume.

Completing these blogs has given me the skills to write in the Harvard style and consider different opinions for art work. I will use this style of writing within my future annotations and when completing research tasks. Looking into reviews and articles on art pieces has given me the opportunity to find new information and give me a whole new opinion entirely. Using quotes within my work also helps me to elaborate and express my opinion.

My favourite lecture was looking into post modernism as the art included within the talk caught my eye and was interesting to hear how they are related to other post modern pieces. We viewed my favourite subjects photography and graphic design which I am strongly into. To complete the blog from this lecture I looked into Nick Knight and Shepard Fairey who I have previously looked into in past projects. Both of their work are bold, eye-catching and create conversation. They both understand the power of red within art work and use it a lot to create an impact on their viewer. I have also learnt from looking at all the different pieces of artwork through the lectures that contrasting, limited colours such red and black creates an amazing impact on the design. For my illustration project we looked at using the photocopier to print out designs in black then using spots of design to overlap red. Doing this created an great effect that i will be using in future outcomes.

For the task looking into underground artwork I researched into the Oz magazine. I found it very interesting to learn how their brand was banned for being explicit with their designs but have recently been recovered and shared online. This shows how society have changed their opinion on explicit art work. This generation are much more accepting and willing to share so Oz have seized the opportunity to post and display their magazines online. From doing this they have been able to reach a wider audience but this will also degrade the physical magazine value as it can be viewed by everyone online.

From looking at photographers within the tasks I have been inspired for my next photography rotation. I have seen a variety of images also mixed with graphic work that could be used to influence my own photography work. I have even considered choosing Photography as a pathway as I can see how amazing photographs can change a view or even a persons life.

From completing these tasks and researching so many different artists will expand my influences and consider being more adventurous within my practical work.

The text I looked at was ‘Fashion as communication, Barnard. M’. The text mentions how we base peoples social class by what they wear, “we make decisions about the social status and role of the people we meet based on what they are wearing” (Barnard, Malcolm, 2002). Furthermore this chapter goes into fashion and anti fashion, the idea of fashion being fixated in high social roles, keeping it traditional to that social class which differs to the other classes. As this fashion is traditional its fixed which makes it anti fashion, its used as a representation of that class.

The text explores how fashion can be seen as trivia, being irrelevant to some people. This explores other peoples views and opinions on fashion. They see it not to be of high importance, however others would argue fashion is majorly important. People wear it daily and its a major factor in the economy, many are hypocritical and even wear it after commonly deeming it irrelevant.

Following on from the first text i found two others which support the first text. The second text I read was ‘The Restless Image A sociology Of Fashion, R. Konig’. I started off by reading the chapter ‘For and Against Fashion’, R. Konig used contrasting views of fashion, how some see it being a bad thing, whilst others see it creating individuality and diversity. The first text says how some people see fashion being trivial, the second text supports this by giving peoples views on fashion not being important. Furthermore, the second text gives arguments of these views, by stating how fashion is a powerful stimulus to the economy.

A point from both texts is asking what would happen if you took fashion away, stating that there would be no identification for people. To continue, its asking what would happen to the economy as fashion affects the majority of people meaning the economy could be affected heavily. The third text I found that also supported the first text is ‘The Culture Of Fashion, Breward. C’. This text supports the first by agreeing to how higher groups of society have strong identities for survival. Jennifer Craik mentions how these social groups offer role models that have a desirable image and behaviour.

After reading all three texts, and seeing how the ideas all support each other, I agree with many of the ideas explored. Firstly I agree with how people make judgments on how others dress, we look at peoples clothing before even engaging in conversation. I also agree with how fashion is a huge part of economy as everyone wears it and we cant escape. I disagree with peoples views on fashion being irrelevant, this is because it affects the many and without our individuality with identities nobody would be different. With the help of the other two texts, my thoughts have become clearer as I got more in depth knowledge.

References:

Barnard, M (2002). Fashion as communication. 2nd ed.

Konig, R (1973). The Restless image : a sociology of fashion. London: Allen & Unwin.

Breward, C (1995). The culture of fashion. Manchester: Manchester University Press.