Recently debated here at Banapana and elsewhere was the question: is graphic design art? As I stated before, I think that graphic design is a craft and that it can achieve art when it is practiced with mastery. ¹ One example of that sort of mastery can be found on Andy Mangold’s site where he has re-designed the monopoly game packaging. It is a stunning as well as functional re-design. It is, in short, a mastery of the craft. The aesthetic changes would increase the perceived value of the game, and the re-organization of the game pieces simply makes it easier to take care of and play. Brilliant.

And for those of you who have been looking for a good Monopoly strategy, I suggest you take a look at this simple instructive video.

source: Daring Fireball

First of all, free free to answer the question for yourself. It’s not what I would consider the most scientific study, but que sera sera. I draw a distinction between graphic design and art based on what is being communicated and what is the intent of the communication. Art attempts to communicate emotion, it evokes feeling. Graphic design has to communicate information—and I emphasize has to. If an artifact of the visual medium does not communicate information (or data, to be technical about it) then it is not graphic design. When information is communicated it can sometimes be done with excellence, and graphic designers want to call that art (because it is their art, as in trade) but other folks will still call it technical or design or advertising. But when the emotional content outweighs the communication of the information, as in, drowns it out, then I think graphic design can attain “artness.” And mind you, I am not saying the reverse of this: that art has nothing to say. On the contrary, art can say nothing at all or nothing specific. In my mind, a great deal of the cleaving of the two forms comes down to Andy Warhol’s “Soup Can” and an actual advertisement for the same soup. One form is trying to get you to think about your world, what it looks like and how it feels. The other form is trying to get you to think about soup. [Thanks to Kitblog for today's inspiration!]

From Buenos Aries and Baden and the obviously bent mind of Blu comes this beautiful animation called “Muto“.  But don’t suppose this is just any animation, this is a motion piece done on public walls over what must have been a period of weeks or years.  The soundtrack, created by Andrea Martignoni [^1], is appropriately strange and stilted.  The lack of standing camera work on the animation gives it a very unsettling life, like watching time-lapse footage of slow-moving living artwork.  This is one of the most creative ideas I’ve seen on the internet in months.

[^1:] I’m not clear yet at to whether this obscure mp3 link is the same Andrea Martignoni, but the sound is similar.  I’m looking into it.