April Greiman madeinspace.la – Last week, I made it out to the April Greiman lecture I had previously mentioned. Well, what can one say? To be honest, I’m still not quite sure what to think. I was actually pretty excited to hear her speak. In my eyes, ears, and throat, she had always been associated with the boat rockers. Those who like to shake the banana tree. Bring those bananas down in a flurry. Those who like to stir the pot. The Greiman brand that I am familiar with is that of one who makes old people mad. Having been educated in Basel, Greiman, like her mentor and teacher, Wolfgang Weingart had begun a new and formidable process of making old guys mad. And this intrigues me. For as long as I can remember, it is these folks that I always found a hefty helping of joy from. Those that swim in the seas of unintentional rebellion. Designers who made old guys mad. Atleast in my early years of design. David Carson. Vaughan Oliver. Emigré. The Designer’s Republic. Tomato. Attik. How I loved to be caught up in a world where some old rules were broken and it really didn’t matter because those old rules never really were known in the first place. Never applied. And this is what I associate Greiman with. The pioneer. One of the rocks of the new wave in graphic design. A departure from the norm. A figure who without literally saying it, embodied the notion of “eff” you. So that said, I was excited. Plain and simple. But what did I see there? Well, this is probably the million dollar question. I guess, the better way to put it, is what I did not see. What I did not see there was this healthy helping of “eff” you. Where was it? It seemed to be a variety of work that just did the job. Got it done. No excess. No laboring. There was a need, and it was filled. Not that this is a bad thing. But I was perhaps, a bit hungry for more. But this lead me down another few paths of thought. A: do old guys get mad anymore? B: where do all the old designers go?

David Carson davidcarsondesign.com – So does anybody get riled up anymore? Anybody fanning the charcoal briquettes with oxygen? Anybody dousing the burrito with sriracha sauce? I really wonder this. And what happens to these former greats? For in the above list, it seems, all of these formerly rebellious folks, have, as I’ve witnessed from Greiman, chosen the quiet life. And I do not fault them for this. For all I know, I would have and probably will do the very same. But what happens to that combustible spirit? The flaming hot cheetos. That sprit of change. Spirit of innovation. Spirit of trying things not done before. Trying the strange. Spirit of making old guys mad. It seems to me, that either my tastes have changed, or my thinking is becoming very quickly that of an old guy. For in these past few years, I feel I am greatly missing the old guys getting mad. Is nobody naively bending the rules anymore? Trying something for the hell of it. And not caring about the norm? The standards? The establishment? I guess what I feel I am missing is the design hero of old. Somebody whose joy in what they were doing, their approach, facilitated a pure neglect for that which was around them. A design that excited the people experiencing just as much as it did the creator in creating. A design that not only ruffled feathers but plucked them as well. Where are you? Where have you gone? But is this perhaps a reflection of the current state of the times? With Greiman, and with other design heroes of old, often times the rebellion took place at the hands of technology. Greiman with her Mac was rocking design with, at the time, a somewhat dysfunctional design application. The same could be said for any of these others who made the old guys mad. But is there a direct connection between technology and making old dudes mad? I’m curious to see if this might be true. For as recently as I can remember, the closest we have had to creating grumpy old men/women, was somewhat embodied by this internet revolution. The web designer. The ill-informed web designer who did not care about the rules of typography because it would not effing work in a browser anyways. The web designer who just rocked because it was a pleasure to rock. To publish design work and avoid the traditional means of publication. The traditional paths. As James pointed out earlier, there was something raw and energetic coming out of the web and typographic presence of the Test Pilot Collective. I too found a great joy and energy coming from the early incarnations of work coming from Mike and Mike from YouWorkForThem. It was a great time and a time to just enjoy something different. Something new. Something that stirred the pot. I can’t say what the old guys were thinking at that time. But I’d bet a copy of David Carson’s Fotografiks that there was some hamburger helper portions of disdain. But what happens these days? I was chatting with a friend, Mr. Jory, earlier today about how much things have changed. Perhaps it is a larger paradigm shift in the field of graphic design overall. He recalls back in his schooling days huge amounts of disdain for all the greats. Emil Ruder. Max Bill. Anything related with constructivism. The international style. Grids. All of this “sucked”. And perhaps there was reason for this. It was everywhere and in some instances, I can imagine, with a heavy helping of some force feeding too. But these days, it seems that with this new generation, there is an alarming/surprising joy found in that of old. The simplicity. The grid systems. A David Carson book is now pretty proficient at gathering dust. In fact, a student seeing one in this day and age, I can safely infer, would probably dub it absolute junk. What has happened? How could such a transformation take place. And this is what I wonder. I guess it is obvious. What once was new has become old. But what of any modern day heroes. I can’t help but think of my recent time in school as a grad student and wondering what the kids are digging these days. The kids it seems, have developed a taste for wine. They’ve skipped the Jolt. The Pepsi. The Cheetos. And many will argue this is a good thing. I too will pleasantly argue for the benefits of an all wine diet. But at the same time, where is all that recklessness? The rock ’n roll? The design that moved people, in both good and bad ways. The feeling of something dynamic. Something changing. Something channeling. Something challenging. A design that, yes, made old guys mad.

Vaughan Oliver –

Tomato tomato.co.uk – I don’t think I am asking for or pursuing the next big thing. I think design moves in waves. But I am a bit amused to see this current wave. As mentioned before, not that this is a bad thing in anyways. As I said. Wine is good. But I wonder now, where the next great push will be. And in some ways, perhaps this is why I sought to hear Greiman speak. To see a little inkling of that push. A little twinkle in the eye. Or is it here, more of a wink of the eye. And as I said, in some ways, it was not there, sadly enough. But presentation aside, seeing her work in person was actually rather igniting. I can see a rawness there. An energy. In some of those larger prints, there was something really amazing happening. And this perhaps, was the saving grace of the whole evening. The ability to see some of her prints in person. The feeling was there and was readily quite alive. And you could see the gears turning. The gears that created such pieces. And it was super refreshing. A nice glass of OJ on a brisk morning. I think this brings up a whole other can of worms which I’d like to bring up at another time. The idea of communication taking place from the designer’s work and the communication taking place from the designer themselves. In my short time here on design earth, I’ve witnessed an alarmingly interesting chasm between the two. But alas, this is another subject for another time. Another day. I never got to finish the second half of my post too. The part about old designers. But this is another can of worms that I will either eat, or tackle, at another time again. In the meantime, if any of you out there, have seen old guys getting mad. Do tell me. For I’m getting old myself.

Attik attik.com –

Designers Republic thepeoplesbureau.com –

Emigré emigre.com -