The Digital Revolution
For hundreds of years design was limited to the physical equipment artist had. However, in the 20th century, computers began to advance and use of them and other devices to create visual works became possible. While computers hadn’t yet caught on and programs for creating were not exactly user friendly or even complete.
New digital tools were intimidating and many artists were
reluctant to change their ways. Yet designers across the world began to play around
and learn how to implement their own styles.
Artist first became exploring how to create different types
of fonts as word processing programs were all that were available. Soon
programs and devices allowed for scanning images electronically and editing
images digitally.
The Digital Revolution was simply about exploring and
learning about the new toys. As the creation of digitals styles were being
developed and curated, the technologies being used were also being developed in
real time.
This movement is still active and growing as technologies
continue to grow more capable and more affordable for other artists to partake
in.
In this blog post I will talk about some designers that help shape the era.
APRIL GREIMAN
Meggs' History of Graphic Design describes one artist instrumental to the Digital Revolution was April Greiman as they are widely accepted to be one of the first artist to embrace computer technology to create art.
Greiman studied traditional design at the Kansas City Art Institute. Afterward she traveled to Switzerland where she first used a Mac in 1984. She started off simply messing around with the technology but soon released the creative potential within.
Two years later she asked to design an illustration for an issue of Design Quarterly magazine for the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. Greiman created a single-sheet magazine spread with a 61 by 183 centimeter digital collage executed entirely on the Macintosh computer. In addition, she used the MacVision, a capture card like device that took frames of video and converted it into grayscale imagery.
In the image she uses various different kinds of imagery. Greiman used different images to and combine them to form her piece. From the pictures of the female form, images of the earth from space, various hands poses, to measurement scales and various symbols. She used every image to their fullest potential and made all the separate pieces feel connected in space.
In 2007, Greiman opened her LA based design studio Made in
Space where she offers designs crafted around technology, color, and space where she works with architects and big companies.
LISA STRAUSFELD
Lisa Strausfeld was a designer who excelled at creating visual representations of data. She was born in New Jersey in 1964. Wishing to become an architect, Strausfeld studied computer science and art at Brown university then received her masters in architecture at Harvard graduate school of design. Later she moved to Austin to work on models but the job did not support her. However an opportunity arrived for her to design memory chips, which she gladly took.
In 1996 Strausfeld launched Perspecta, an architecture computer program. Their program scanned documents and organized topic and keywords into 3D environments. After her program was bought, Strausfeld was hired by Uokka Sports where she gathered data from event and create immersive experiences. In 2002 she became a partner at Pentagram, a design company, and worked with many big clients such as MIT and the New York Times. There she created information displays that involved
Later Strausfeld was hired to work at Bloomberg to help visualize their data. At
Bloomberg she used her previous studies in architecture to create large media
displays in Bloomberg corporate headquarters as show in Meggs’ History of
Graphic Design.
Straufeld's visual displays at Bloomberg corporate headquarter
JACQUES KOEWEIDEN
Jacques Koeweiden is a Dutch designer born in 1957. Koeweiden studied graphic design at the Royal Academy of Art and Design in the Netherlands.
Koeweiden created the “Mind the Gap” festival to work with big brands to help them create visual identities for themselves. He also helped create and identity for the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. In Amsterdam during Coronation Day 2013, Koeweiden was a part of the collection at Stedelijk museum Amsterdam
Eventually he was a founded Koeweiden Postma, a Dutch design and communication agency. At the agency he took inspiration for many cultural designs. In this poster for Marhaba, an Islamic cultural center opening in Amsterdam, Koewiden used Islamic patterns throughout the poster to create interest and help communicated who the poster was for at first glance.
KIT HINRICH
Kit Hinrich is a visual storyteller, born in California in November 1941. He graduated from the Art Center College of Design in California in 1963 and worked in New York Design offices before becoming a design consultant.
In 1972 he founded Hinrichs Design Associates where he focus on creating visual character for companies. Later began Jonson, Pedersen, Hinrichs & Shakery, a designers’ association on the United States coasts. In 1986 became partner at Pentagram.
His work was inspired by typefaces and their designers.
Having worked with printer throughout his career he was very knowledgeable and
helped fuel his editorial success.
In 1995 he cofounded @issue: The Journal of Business and
Design with the Corporate Design Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated
to promoting the role of design in business.
Covers designed by Hinrich for @issue
“About.” Jacques Koeweiden, https://www.jacqueskoeweiden.com/about.
“About.” Madeinspace, https://www.madeinspace.la/about.
“About.” Studio Hinrichs, http://www.studio-hinrichs.com/about-kit-hinrichs.
“April Greiman: Biography, Designs and Facts.” Famous Graphic Designers, https://www.famousgraphicdesigners.org/april-greiman.
“Lisa Strausfeld.” GD 203, NC State History of Graphic Design, https://go.distance.ncsu.edu/gd203/?p=82601.
“Walker Art Center.” Minnesota by Design – Design Quarterly 133, https://walkerart.org/minnesotabydesign/objects/design-quarterly-133.
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