ROCKFORD ART MUSEUM | RAM TALKS ART | IS GRAPHIC DESIGN ART?

RAM Talks Art: Is graphic design 'art'?

By Melissa Seipel, Graphic Art Director, Rockford Art Museum

It can be bad, good or great; you cannot escape it.

Somewhere, a group of caffeine-buzzed Generation X-ers are sitting around a conference table trying to orchestrate a mass manipulation of you, the consumer. There is a psychology to it. They are asking questions like, "What color says 'hip'?" "Should we show the product or just a brand identity?" "What health claims can we make?"

Design is the bridge of communication that whispers to you, yells at you, screaming at the top of its lungs. An observation of the most pedestrian routine is proof it's working. We buy vitamin waters, caffeinated water, even water from Fiji. We are convinced by slick ads, contemporary labels and adamant claims that this, this, is what we need now.

There is certainly an art to it, but is graphic design "art"?

There is no question that the field of graphic design generally attracts artistic individuals. For me, studying contemporary video art, printmaking and painting in college was, without a doubt, a great time. The late nights in the studios with the artsy folks listening to their "indie" music on their tinny-sounding boom-boxes while inhaling spray mount and paint thinner. The esoteric conversations discussing how great that pile of crap in the student gallery really is, is a metaphor for modern society.

As fun as this was, when I had to leave the womb of the unventilated art building and enter the world where I actually had to start paying back that student loan, I realized no employer really cared about true meaning in the work of Robert Gober.

So, in pursuit of a regular paycheck, and health insurance, I decided to return to the halls of education for a more practical degree in graphic design. Having come from a fine arts background, I barely knew how to turn on the computer when I started this endeavor, but the elements for good design were burned into my retinas.

By the end of my program, I had learned - among many things - there are good and bad graphic designers.

The skills taught in a graphic design curriculum are technical. They teach you software, how to prepare files, and how to send them to printers. You learn about typography, paper weights and finishes, inks and presses.

Out of that time, there is not much time for discussion of good page layout, visual aesthetics, balance and harmony. These basics of good design would seemingly be the most important - and perhaps before things became so sophisticated, they were.

Some graphic designers just have an innate sense for good design; some have been formally trained; and some just have no sense at all of what good design should be.

So, having a little perspective on the fields of fine arts and graphic design, I have found there are many similarities between art and graphic design.

I often utilize the same principles to lay out a page as I would to plan a painting. It should be pleasing to the eye, and yet contain the necessary graphic elements.

Printmaking also falls under the umbrella of fine arts, and has numerous things in common with graphic design - the least of which is the opportunity for the same markings to be printed several times, the same way. This branch of fine arts undoubtedly gave birth to modern printing and production.

Time and time again, I have found that if given the choice, clients will inevitably pick your worst design - at least the one you are least proud of.

Is that to say that, as designers, we are experts on what looks best and many people just have really bad taste? Or is it that other people are better equipped to pick the design that best suits their purpose to communicate their message than we are? I think this may be where the path diverges between art and graphic design, and the differences are clear.

The major difference is the audience. Art is about the only thing produced and sold for no apparent purpose other than to look at and appreciate. Graphic design has the distinct responsibility of communicating a message designed to persuade the consumer, without looking too awful.

The purpose of graphic design is really to invoke an action from the consumer, and less about the piece as a work of art - otherwise, we would think twice about throwing away that candy wrapper.

Is the product of an artist, art; or is the maker of art (or artful design) an artist?

There are many designers who have gone on to have successful careers in the art world, which has even blurred the boundaries a bit more. In the reverse, there are many artists whose artwork has become a mass-produced product. Just walk through a Target store. Art? I think not. Artsy, yes.

If you're ready to see if your talent in the fine arts can translate to a technical skill, i.e., a steady paycheck - or if you just want to learn more about art and other disciplines - Rock Valley College offers several classes that may interest you. For a Spring 2009 course catalog, log on to rockvalleycollege.edu.

Contact Rockford Art Museum Graphic Arts & Publications Director Melissa Seipel at mseipel@rockfordartmuseum.org.

from the Jan. 21, 2009 issue

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