Choosing a particular period from the 1800 to the present, in what ways has art or design responded to the changing social and cultural forces of that period?
During the late 1950s, and blossoming into the 60s, something called a counter-culture became prevalent in England, that soon spread throughout Western Europe. The term counter-culture is used to describe the norms and values of a particular group that oppose those of mainstream society at that particular moment in time. Throughout these decades, the conventional social norms that the youth culture, mainly made up of the white working and lower-middle classes, opted to reject included capitalism, the cultural principles of their parents and the original support that emerged for the Vietnam War. From this, interest turned towards social issues, such as gay rights, and away from social conventions. This rejection of the mainstream soon took a hold of music, art, lifestyle and appearance.
Out of this counter-culture came an unmistakable influence on identity and design. As noted by Jobling and Crowley ‘the most self-consciously visible appearance of this phenomenon were the ‘mods’, who emerged in Britain in 1962’ (Jobling, P. and Crowley, D, 1997, pp211) Youth culture during the 1960s began to be taken over by this metropolitan movement, which flourished in Britain. Working-class and lower-middle-class teenagers were really taken in by this modernist culture that sought to gain identity and rebel against conventional behaviour. They were said to be 'aspirational, smartly dressed and secretive, the mods were a closed society that danced to rare soul records, spent a month's wages on a tailored suit, lost themselves in narcissistic dreams and paved the way for a new consumer culture.' (Melissa, 2011) These young people began to adopt a completely different sense of style to what was usually seen in big cities such as London. Influences came from far and wide – Italy and France in particular. They adopted ‘roman hairstyles, lightweight shiny suits, narrow ties and Vespa scooters’ (Thorne, T, 1993, pp184) that were said to denounce consumerism and the way in which fashion was dictated by others. Their impact on fashion also impacted art. It was the Mods who “first popularised the simple geometric shapes typical of the 1960s”. (V&A, 2011)
Mod influence on art stemmed particularly from customisation. ‘Customising of existing styles, symbols and artefacts became the hallmark of youth culture during the 1960s, a way of both ascribing a personal signature to something and of asserting creative autonomy as a consumer.’ (Thorne, T, 1993, pp184) A fine example of this is through the use of the Union Jack, which appeared everywhere, from within the home, to the wardrobes of the Mods. Pete Townshend, of The Who, famously wore a jacket made entirely from fabric in the style of the British flag, displaying a pop art mentality. A classic image is of Townshend in said jacket, smashing up a Rickenbacker guitar - 'The Mods deployed the flag, a symbol of imperialism, ironically in a way to unite individuals who did not necessarily feel patriotic in the usual sense.' (Theldman, C, J, 2009, pp35) As well as this, an extremely well known symbol, that is still seen today, is the Royal Air Force's red, white and blue target, otherwise known as a roundel. The Who made this simple symbol into something that was completely and utterly part of pop consciousness. It was there to epitomise everything that this culture stood for - an England where the working class youths could reject the conventional. It wasn't long until the U.S caught wind of the band, and soon everyone was wanting a little bit of what was said to be called 'The London Look.' Townshend claimed that he could see all the spectacular in what appeared to be objects and experiences that were simply mundane. People would flock to see the group purely for this jacket made out of flags. He stated 'a group is a fairly simple form of pop art, we get a lot of audience this way' (Theldman, C, J, 2009, pp35) This youth culture started to be seen as art, as a commodity of society. It was an underground scene that was soon to be sold.
Mary Quant was an example of Mod culture becoming a commodity, taking credit for the invention of the well-known mini skirt. Quant's fashion was said to 'celebrate femininity in a new way. She used lots of bright hues and atypical colour combinations, and unusual materials, while the skirts she designed became increasingly smaller' (Theldman, C, J, 2009, pp34) all of which is likened to this Peter Pan desire of a child to never have to grow up. They were modern, of course, and designed for every day life. 'I was making easy, youthful, simply clothes, in which you could move, in which you could run and jump' (Anon, The Telegraph) Quant made this acceptable and affordable, whilst representing a political and sexual revolution. The Mod female needed to epitomise this. In order to personify a teenage revolution, models were chosen especially, Twiggy being one of them. Her and Jean Shrimpton were used in order to embody the innocence and ease of Quant’s designs. However, it wasn’t just the designs that were representative of this culture, but Quant’s boutique named Bazaar became the spark for new ventures and young entrepreneurs, setting the standard. It was a new approach, and an innovation in retail. Although on King’s Road, Carnaby Street also became a main focus, taking on the idea of this Swinging London, mirroring all of the different changes that had previously occurred, and still were occurring, in culture and in society. They were both the so-called epicentre for social change.
Pop and Op art can be seen as the main focus of Mod culture and Quant’s designs. Op art in particular is synonymous to Quant’s work, and the 60s - ‘The monochrome geometrics prints perfectly complemented the bold shapes of the Mod look’ (Oldman, C, 2012) An evolution in design soon commenced, and the Op pattern, which simulated movement, began appearing everywhere. The five point Vidal Sassoon hair cut was reflective of this, however, actual designs featured primarily on dresses, not just those of Quant, but those that had also been created by the Scott Paper Company. They were known as the Paper Capers, and as the name suggests they were indeed made from paper, they were also extremely popular. They were said to capture the ‘vibrant, youthful, optimistic and consumerist zeitgeist’ of the 1960s. They were described as brief but spectacular, cheap and disposable, capturing this idea of instant fun. As well as this, when discussing Pop Art, Warhol prints also donned everything imaginable, most notably on Yves Saint Laurent’s Mondrian shift dress, that was featured on French Vogue’s front cover in ’65. It soon got the point where Mod style ‘came to refer to several distinctive styles, being essentially an umbrella term used to cover everything which contributed to the myth of the “Swinging London.” (Hall, S. and Jefferson, T, 2007, pp71)
As time went on, the Mod culture grew less and less popular. Jobling and Crowley argue that the whole concept soon became difficult to grasp onto because throughout the era ‘it was prone to continuous reinvention’ covering several different ‘sub-scenes’ (Jobling, P. and Crowley, D. 1996, pp213) A psychedelic rock and hippie culture began to become a lot more prevalent, turning into a prominent form of “alternative society”. It was a counter-culture that consisted of individuals whom hoped for Utopian lifestyles. They were well-known for dabbling in drugs, such as LSD, as well as being influenced by certain oriental philosophies. The Hippies wanted peace - they wanted an end to both the Vietnam War and the materialistic ways that society was stuck in. It marked a time for change and experimentation. Features of this period included the surreal, paisley patterns with contrasting colours, repetition and the use of hand-drawn lettering, which was both diverse and unconstrained. Letraset was mainly used during the 70s, becoming quite a prominent characteristic of Type Setting in this decade. There was a kaleidoscopic feel to most designs, with the morphing of objects and shapes, which adorned posters, various publications and record sleeves. One publication reflective of these aspects of 70s design was a member of the Underground Press - OZ magazine.
To conclude, the counter-culture of the 60s grew so much that it managed to take hold of an entire generation. A possible revolution had occurred in regards to the perception of art and design and also the way in which people produced it. A rejection of the conventional and support for the individual led to a whole new world of art, music, phrases and style, which are still seen in today’s society. Work produced during these decades countered what was originally viewed as accepted forms of art. Unfortunately, Pop Art is now seen to be ‘commonly reduced’ (The 1960s, 2011) in the Western world of today. It is not longer wholly viewed as a representation of counter-culture - ‘once branded as immoral, anarchistic, and revolutionary, the counter-culture of the 1960s [Pop Art] is not playfully imitated.’ (The 1960s, 2011) By 1966, the Mod scene was in fast decline, with Dick Hebdige arguing that ‘the mod subculture lost its vitality when it became commercialised, artificial and stylised to the point that new mod clothing styles were being create “from above” by clothing companies and TV shows, rather than being developed by young people customising their clothes and mixing different fashions together.’ (Hebdige, D, 1993, pp174) The psychedelic rock and hippie culture, on the other hand, continued to grow and thrive. A resurgence is said to be happening, leading it to take it’s own place in our society today.
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