Design as Art: Bruno Munari (Penguin Modern Classics)

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Munari is a giant of 20th-century Italian design, a figure of incredible depth who helped define the role of the designer as we know it today. Design as Art, originally published in 1966, is probably not his most important book, but it represents an interesting journey through his thoughts. It is useful for young people aspiring to a design career as well as for experienced designers who want to improve the communication of their projects. I am ashamed to write these few lines about Munari. Not only because reading his story makes me realise how unattainable the quality and scope of his imprint is. But also because Munari did so much and so well that it is impossible to reduce him to a biography.

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Bruno Munari (1907-1998), born in Milan, was the enfant terrible of Italian art and design for most of the twentieth century, contributing to many fields of both visual (paint, sculpture, film, industrial design, graphics) and non-visual arts (literature, poetry). He was twice awarded the Compasso d'Oro design prize for excellence in his field.An illustrated journey into the artistic possibilities of modern design, by the enfant terrible of Italian art and design for most of the twentieth century Born in Milan in 1907, where he worked as a graphic designer from a young age, he opened his first studio in 1929 with Riccardo Castagnedi, another important figure in Italian design. He adheres to Futurism, from which he breaks away to develop a path characterised by curiosity and a desire to overcome conceptual and technical limits.

Design as Art by Bruno Munari | Waterstones

He knows the means of effective design, and he applies this to get his job done well. He is the problem-solver, who does not resort to stylistic preconceptions, or absurd and false notions of dignity derived from pure art. In a sense — Ogni tanto, cercando un po’ di spazio o spolverando, mi cade l’occhio su qualcosa che non posso fare a meno di riprendere in mano. Bruno Munari in his Milan Office, 1988, photo ISISUF – Istituto Internazionale di Studi sul Futurismo. As a UX designer, I always need to dig deeper, beyond the facade that one might call a potential “design” and look at the bigger picture holistically: the target audience, the use case scenarios, the context, and the device the design is intended for: TV to mobile, desktops to tablets, to ATMs, etc. And when it comes to product design, let’s not forget validation and usability testing. If design were just art, how could you test it? His paintings contain lighting and perspective distortions that can only be seen through manmade lenses.For example, we call upon graphic designers to make posters for events — and not the artist. This is because the artist is comfortable only with the easel, but the designer is much more competent for this case of visual communication. With all the knowledge of printing, and paper types and technicalities, the designer almost seems like a genius. He works keeping in mind the printing techniques right from the start, he designs work that fits the psychological functions, and this makes him so much more valuable. After all, the form follows the function. Copying nature’ is one thing and understanding nature is another. Copying nature can be simply a form of manual dexterity that does not help us to understand, for it shows us things just as we are accustomed to seeing them. But studying the structures of nature, observing the evolution of forms, can give everyone a better understanding of the world we live in. When designers assert that art has to be subjective, they’re typically referring to the way people judge the outcome of an artist’s efforts. This manner of thinking about art places a supreme emphasis on results. In other words, art equals objects, performances, and experiences. Art is a painting. Art is a dance. Art is a light show. Understood more fully, art is not a result. Art is a process, and the process of art is overflowing with objectivity. The essays in the book are part of social commentary, part musing and part criticism about the world of design, filled with “abused objects” and the tone of them sets the book apart from most other research tomes that otherwise dominate the world of design thinking. It is filled with observations and thoughtful reflections of the material world, which is one of the most powerful tools a designer can have.

Bruno Munari on Design as a Bridge Between Art and Life

Paola Antonelli, design curator at New York's Museum of Modern Art, wants to spread her appreciation of design -- in all shapes and forms -- around the world. Partial to Bitcoin? You can beam some bit-love my way: 197usDS6AsL9wDKxtGM6xaWjmR5ejgqem7 CANCEL MONTHLY SUPPORT Designers love to make sweeping assumptions in regard to aesthetics, so allow me to construct a safeguard. It is not at all clear that these words—‘What is art?’—express anything like a single question, to which competing answers are given, or whether philosophers proposing answers are even engaged in the same debate… The sheer variety of proposed definitions should give us pause. – Kendall Walton So we enter the house and tread at once on the plastic, but warm in the knowledge that under it is white material and under that the red carpet and under that the marble. And we know, of course, that the marble is very highly polished”.Bruno Munari was among the most inspirational designers of all time, described by Picasso as 'the new Leonardo'. Munari insisted that design be beautiful, functional and accessible, and this enlightening and highly entertaining book sets out his ideas about visual, graphic and industrial design and the role it plays in the objects we use everyday. Lamps, road signs, typography, posters, children's books, advertising, cars and chairs - these are just some of the subjects to which he turns his illuminating gaze. Affordances provide strong clues to the operations of things. Plates are for pushing. Knobs are for turning. Slots are for inserting things into. Handles are for lifting. Balls are for throwing or bouncing. When affordances are taken advantage of, the user knows what to do just by looking: no picture, label, or instruction needed.