Sunday, November 23, 2008

art vs design

            Throughout the earlier part of my college life it would not be irregular to find myself immersed in a conversation where I would be asked, “Where do you go to school?” I would always reply initially with, “Oh, I go to art school”. But looking back on the past few semesters, I find myself replying, “I go to design school”. What made me make that distinction, I don’t really know! I think design sounds cooler, and more modern. But is that really the only reason?

Design is a form of Art, but not all Art can be called Design. A Van Gogh would be called a work of art, but would it be called a product of design? Designed objects are created to serve a specific function or purpose. In response, one might say that Impressionist artists “designed” their paintings to express their emotions and show their personality. But I feel like it needs to be taken more literally, at a more basic level. The life of a designed object is planned from the start.  All aspects of the possible functions and purposes for the object, may it be an actual product or an intangible service design, are taken into account in the design of the object. That is what makes it design. A work of art does not necessarily need to have such a purpose in mind. Sure it will have a purpose, but not one that is so specifically planned out to serve a specific function.




            Having said this, there exists today objects and works that delve into both the realms of Art and Design simultaneously. One such object is “Urban Vinyl”, or Designer Toys. These objects are what their names imply: toys. Toys that were designed to be toys, to serve the purpose of being a collectible object, that may have certain functions pertaining to movable parts, accessories, etc. But the Designers that design these toys take a different approach that that of the designer of the hottest new action figure at Toys’R’Us. The designers work to make these toys as individual and unique as an impressionist painting. They are in themselves, works of Art, but at the same time service the purpose of a designed object: in this case, a toy. 

            I classify myself as a designer, not an artist. I may strive to be artistic in my designs, but ultimately I am a designer. Designers take Art to the next level, where it is no longer just an expression of thought or representation. Not to say that Designers are greater beings than Artists, but in terms of process, Designers take an additional step in the process.   

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