Counter Culture and Design
Counter culture and design are two closely related subjects. Often associated with youth movements and anarchy, counter culture relates to people leading movements against societal norms.
Unrest and frustration is often best expressed through the mediums of art, music and fashion. Historically speaking, some of the best works in design and the arts derives from channeling these feelings in times of particular societal strain like; wars, changes in power, governmental or political injustices.
Groups and movements such as the punk movement in the U.K. helped shape the modern country. Punks groups in the U.K. were primarily composed of dissatisfied and frustrated working class youth. These left wing groups were brought together by select common ground on social issues and ideologies such as egalitarianism and humanitarianism.
The movement of punks was fueled by music. Figures like John Lydon and David Bowie spurred on the movement by helping to legitimatize and validate the ideologies pushed by Punks in a pop culture setting.
This led to a culture of expression and rejection of injustice via the creative mediums. In graphic design, Punks would create zines, posters and art that helped push the Punk ideology and helped give people a platform to speak from or at least rally upon.
The punk visual aesthetic is highly influenced and related to that of the 50’s Situationist International subculture. These subversive designs take existing features from existing popular culture and wider society to frame them in a completely different provocative light.
Featuring garish tears, mixed fonts and strong visual imagery, Punk visual aesthetic has its own personality and distinctive identity.
In fashion, prominent designers like Vivienne Westwood were closely related to the Punk movement. Societal unrest featured in music and visual arts translated well into her fashion design and she is now internationally recognized as a leading figure in Punk culture.
Punk fashion influences much of what we wear today, distressed denim, leathers and shoes like Dr Marten’s were big then and remain so to this day. Likewise in graphics, striking discourse in typography and imagery remains as one of the stronger ways to make words hit beyond their characters and offer a new perspective on the subject it concerns.
This is why I believe counter culture is essential in progressing art, design and music. Each motion of counter culture influences the next and helps shape and progress a societies identity. I feel as though we have reached a rather stagnant point in history regarding counter culture. People living in the current decade are either ignorant to the injustices of their own country/government, or countries that are suffering from oppression or injustices are just too far away for most people to care.
