All three manifestos contain
strong opinions on the current state of the creative industry. They all have
the mindset that marketing and advertising is beginning to overrule creative
industry and people are creating work for the sake of it, not for the passion
of it. Ken Garland addresses this in his manifesto First Things First, where he
claims that the creatives like him are “increasingly
uncomfortable with this new level of design” (Garland, K. 1964). This
manifesto was then reviewed and revamped by the Adbusters who shared the same
distain for the direction in which creatives are being pushed claiming that
society was “applauding the work of those
who have flogged their skill and imagination” (Adbusters, 2000). It is
shocking that the industry has still progressed in the same direction to fit
with society “our culture is corporate
culture”(Kalman,T. 1998).
This recent McDonalds
advertisement only proves all of the manifestos accusations to be right. The
corporate culture is trying to latch onto socialist trends and movements, this
picture in particular latching onto feminism movement where it is often
suggested women are used to sell a product and to be ogled at like meat.
Instead of a woman, a big mac is placed there to suggest that it is more enjoyable
than a woman but also mocks that culture. It is clear to see that Kalman was
correct when he said that creatives have “been freed from ideas, individual
passion and relegated to a role of corporate servitude” (Kalman, T. 1998). This
concept is creatively lazy and lacking in imagination and even the colour
palette is very much a “high pitched
scream of consumer selling” (Adbusters,2000)
Reflecting on the current
state of our industry I still believe that all three manifestos are relevant in
this time and age. Especially in their demands from the creative industry “We are proposing a reversal of priorities
in favor of the more useful” (Adbusters,2000), it is still the case that
fellow creatives are letting themselves be abused by the consumerism society.
Even back in 1964, the 22 creatives who signed Ken Garlands manifeso all agreed
that consumerism was the beast that the creative industry would some day have
to face and stand up to “consumerism is
uncontested, it must be challenged” (Garland,K. 1964).
Out of all three
manifestos Kalmans ‘fuck committees’ offered the most advice and encouragement
of how to defeat consumerism. His manifesto also addressed how other industries
and other designers which were allowing for this corruption in creativity “Film studios out films
in front of focus groups to determine whether an ending will please target
audiences. All cars look the same. Architectural decisions are made by
accountants. Ads are stupid. Theater is dead.” (Kalman,T.1998). He keeps his manifesto blunt and
asking the readers questions, why have we allowed this to happen? However out
of all three manifestos Kalman offers some advice to designers who do want to
make the change in the industry. He advices them to “find cracks in the wall”(Kalman,T. 1998) where opportunities can
be seized. He also encourages designers to find eccentric businesspeople “there are very few lunatic entrapeneurs who
will understand
that culture and design are not about fatter wallets,
but about creating a future”
(Kalman, T. 1998). All of the manifestos are united in their belief that
designers still have the power to make change and that creating a future where
consumerism is not a beast is possible.
Adbusters. (2000). First
Things First 2000 . Available: http://www.manifestoproject.it/adbusters/.
Last accessed 15th Apr 2016
Garland, K. (1964). First
Things First. Available: http://www.manifestoproject.it/ken-garland/. Last
accessed 15th Apr 2016
Kalman, T. (1998). Fuck
Committees . Available: http://www.manifestoproject.it/fuck-committees/.
Last accessed 15th Apr 2016 .
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