As a Graphic Designer, this is one of my favorite topics to discuss. I often tell people that Design and Art are the extremes of a spectrum, cominication vs evocation, utility vs beauty. I don't believe that any one piece of art or design can be categorized as entirely one or the other, rather any piece can be placed somewhere in the spectrum.
Thank you for laying this out in such a thoughtful way! I’m also interested in the class element involved: craft as associated with labor and therefore lower in the hierarchy. It also makes me think of the recent tendency for clothing companies to say on their labels that something was “designed” in, say, San Francisco, even if it was sewn in China or Bangladesh-as if the physical act of making doesn’t matter. Also, it’s a small thing but I really appreciate that you simply said Brazzaville and Kinshasa without prefacing them with Africa, just as if you were talking about Paris or Miami, or any other major city.
I'd fallen off of Crash Course for a couple of years now, but this came up in my feed and I really enjoyed it. I never got to fit in an art history course in college, so I'm looking forward to using this as a strong substitute. Thanks for the great vid!
I have taken just a semester long course of art history (which isn't much haha but still) and a lot of the art pieces she brings up were discussed in these videos. It is a good substitute
I am loving this series! I'd love to hear your thoughts on Gardens. As a gardener, when the blurred lines of Design and Art were brought up I immediately thought of a garden, or living space. I personally see them as pieces of sculpture that are in constant flux because you aren't the only artist in control; Time and Nature are always adding their masterful brush strokes too.
My dad is an artist and also a professor whose subject of instruction is exactly the overlap in the venn diagram. His department’s name translates to “creative cultural industries” and he basically teaches students to look at design and capitalist creations through the lens of art, art history, and creativity.
I do love when people build beauty and meaning into everyday things. I tried to do it myself in my work as a design engineer and now i try to instill the philosophy in my team as an engineering manager. If it works, good. If it works and looks nice, great. If it works, looks good, and conveys the meaning, you're a star.
I studied to be a carpenter and design furniture. I remember our class having a discussion about where to draw the line between art and well designed furniture. We all agreed that the Rietveld chair should be considered art, because with how uncomfortable it is, it's an absolute failure as furniture. So seeing it put in the catagory of things with a practical purpose makes me think whoever put it there never tried sitting on it.
As a maker who lives in the land of textiles, I really enjoyed this! We talk about these things all the time. In my guild, some of us focus on making primarily functional cloth, others focus on tapestry that will mostly be displayed, and on and on. I think I have a feel for which "language" I am speaking, or Venn circle I am working in depending on the project. For example, today I am spinning yarn for a specific piece of clothing. I am thinking about it's wearability but not really that I have anything to "SAY" right now with this project. But that will be different on another day when I am working on a weaving primarily for hanging, even though the skills of my hands are involved in all the making. But that is from the maker's point of view and really depends on understanding context and intention....
I love how it challenges the traditional boundaries between the two. The examples of Judy Chicago's Dinner Party and the Sapuers are perfect illustrations of the blurred lines. It's important to remember that art and design are often intertwined, and that's what makes creativity so fascinating.
As an architect I really was excited to see this one explored. And as always, Sarah didn't disappoint! "Human creativity is too vast and varied to be limited by our pesky urge to define it." So well said. Where does spatial art like that of Richard Serra or James Turrell end, and a building such as a Ghery or an Ando begin? There's no line, it's always such a gradient (or venn diagram, as the video started with). Even if we limit it to 'purely architecture' where we might look at form/aesthetics compared to function; again, a gradient. Intention might be key, but it's not a dichotomy nor does it need to be a battle with one winning. :) Great episode, thank you!
I trained as a contemporary jewelry designer in Italy. Fine design requires a rigorous thought process aside from function. If you observe, you can really tell the difference between a pleasant piece made merely to serve a purpose, and a piece with a developed thought process behind it, even if you don't know what that thought is. The way I see it, design is the point of tension between art and function.
Design also has a lower tendency to be representational. A chair can just be itself, it can be carved to look nice but usually isn't trying to represent something else.
Yes, but even then, there are distinctions of "High" Design vs "Low" Design, where High Design elevates pieces to a sort of Art, Cult-like, and/or Collector status. I can't tell you the number of times I've heard a designer go ga-ga over an Eames coat hanger. Yes, it's modernistically beautiful, but it's also a coat hanger.
This is the problem I have in any portrait gallery where I look around and can’t help thinking this is just a bunch of headshots and not even talent headshots, corporate headshots for your LinkedIn profile
Great lesson! Arts, crafts, and design are all intertwined. (that rhymed. And so did that.) Artists learn both the elements of art and the principles of design.
Hmm I'd never heard of La Sape! I'm seeing some parallels between it and NY's ball culture as shown in Paris is Burning. Ball / vogueing / drag is definitely an art form!
I spent a summer working as a set dresser. The warehouse was filled to the brim with everything. Safes, vases, plants, chairs, bedding, drapes, lamps. I asked if I should worry about breaking something, but I was assured there was nothing of real value. It makes me wonder if I am the only one who knows the art is fake, especially a very good fake. Is it still art?
I'm gonna say Diderot had soft hands. He might be a critic but I don't think he had a lot of experience with making art. Good design takes a lot of problem solving and thinking through how it will function and the users experience. He might have had a different take if he had had to assemble something from IKEA 😂
Interesting architecture didn't get a mention. I've debated it with colleagues for a while. Personally, I've said that art is more of a form of self-expression, while design is created for a client and users, placing architecture generally in the design category unless you're design your own home. That being said, I dislike creating a hierarchy between art and design, as I think both can be meaningful and difficult, and require creative solutions in their own ways.
How about this: design is about function. Art in design is anything that is not required for the design to fulfil its function. A skirt does not have to have a decorative pattern in order to function as a skirt, for example. When a pattern is included the pattern is art, but that doesn't necessarily make the skirt itself artistic. Not sure about things like a pleated skirt. An aesthetic flourish that doesn't contribute to functionality, yet at the same time seems too simple to be considered art. Too easily made and reproduced.
hmm i would think all design is art, some is just boring art? but i guess if it's totally practical and not expressing anything i can see the argument that it's not art
It just depends what is art in your eyes. One of the reasons why its so hard to categorize the two is that art just doesn't have a 100% agreed upon specific definition
I think drawing borders in a wide context is the very basis of building an understanding of the world around us. What separates circles from squares? What separates cats from elephants? What separates stars from comets? We draw borders to divide the world into smaller pieces that we can understand. Some borders are fuzzy, and then we call the whole thing a spectrum. I think design and art both lay on a common spectrum.
When I moved into my condo almost 3 years ago, I got obsessed with the decorative arts while I decided on my aesthetic(s), so while I don't have an answer, I still have a lot of opinions! GTFO, Diderot!
Ah, but then what of the who-knows-how-many paintings and such locked up in climate controlled warehouses in tax havens? (I'm being partially silly here.)
"Human Creativity is too vast and varied to be limited by our pesky urge to define it"
I love that
As a Graphic Designer, this is one of my favorite topics to discuss. I often tell people that Design and Art are the extremes of a spectrum, cominication vs evocation, utility vs beauty. I don't believe that any one piece of art or design can be categorized as entirely one or the other, rather any piece can be placed somewhere in the spectrum.
Thank you for laying this out in such a thoughtful way! I’m also interested in the class element involved: craft as associated with labor and therefore lower in the hierarchy. It also makes me think of the recent tendency for clothing companies to say on their labels that something was “designed” in, say, San Francisco, even if it was sewn in China or Bangladesh-as if the physical act of making doesn’t matter.
Also, it’s a small thing but I really appreciate that you simply said Brazzaville and Kinshasa without prefacing them with Africa, just as if you were talking about Paris or Miami, or any other major city.
I'd fallen off of Crash Course for a couple of years now, but this came up in my feed and I really enjoyed it. I never got to fit in an art history course in college, so I'm looking forward to using this as a strong substitute. Thanks for the great vid!
I have taken just a semester long course of art history (which isn't much haha but still) and a lot of the art pieces she brings up were discussed in these videos. It is a good substitute
I am loving this series! I'd love to hear your thoughts on Gardens. As a gardener, when the blurred lines of Design and Art were brought up I immediately thought of a garden, or living space. I personally see them as pieces of sculpture that are in constant flux because you aren't the only artist in control; Time and Nature are always adding their masterful brush strokes too.
My dad is an artist and also a professor whose subject of instruction is exactly the overlap in the venn diagram. His department’s name translates to “creative cultural industries” and he basically teaches students to look at design and capitalist creations through the lens of art, art history, and creativity.
I do love when people build beauty and meaning into everyday things. I tried to do it myself in my work as a design engineer and now i try to instill the philosophy in my team as an engineering manager. If it works, good. If it works and looks nice, great. If it works, looks good, and conveys the meaning, you're a star.
I studied to be a carpenter and design furniture. I remember our class having a discussion about where to draw the line between art and well designed furniture. We all agreed that the Rietveld chair should be considered art, because with how uncomfortable it is, it's an absolute failure as furniture. So seeing it put in the catagory of things with a practical purpose makes me think whoever put it there never tried sitting on it.
As a maker who lives in the land of textiles, I really enjoyed this! We talk about these things all the time. In my guild, some of us focus on making primarily functional cloth, others focus on tapestry that will mostly be displayed, and on and on.
I think I have a feel for which "language" I am speaking, or Venn circle I am working in depending on the project.
For example, today I am spinning yarn for a specific piece of clothing. I am thinking about it's wearability but not really that I have anything to "SAY" right now with this project. But that will be different on another day when I am working on a weaving primarily for hanging, even though the skills of my hands are involved in all the making. But that is from the maker's point of view and really depends on understanding context and intention....
I love how it challenges the traditional boundaries between the two. The examples of Judy Chicago's Dinner Party and the Sapuers are perfect illustrations of the blurred lines. It's important to remember that art and design are often intertwined, and that's what makes creativity so fascinating.
As an architect I really was excited to see this one explored. And as always, Sarah didn't disappoint! "Human creativity is too vast and varied to be limited by our pesky urge to define it." So well said. Where does spatial art like that of Richard Serra or James Turrell end, and a building such as a Ghery or an Ando begin? There's no line, it's always such a gradient (or venn diagram, as the video started with). Even if we limit it to 'purely architecture' where we might look at form/aesthetics compared to function; again, a gradient. Intention might be key, but it's not a dichotomy nor does it need to be a battle with one winning. :) Great episode, thank you!
I have always loved Judy Chicago's Dinner creation.
I trained as a contemporary jewelry designer in Italy.
Fine design requires a rigorous thought process aside from function. If you observe, you can really tell the difference between a pleasant piece made merely to serve a purpose, and a piece with a developed thought process behind it, even if you don't know what that thought is.
The way I see it, design is the point of tension between art and function.
So happy to see Sarah back and doing these art videos!
Design also has a lower tendency to be representational. A chair can just be itself, it can be carved to look nice but usually isn't trying to represent something else.
Yes, but even then, there are distinctions of "High" Design vs "Low" Design, where High Design elevates pieces to a sort of Art, Cult-like, and/or Collector status. I can't tell you the number of times I've heard a designer go ga-ga over an Eames coat hanger. Yes, it's modernistically beautiful, but it's also a coat hanger.
I think your's is on of the best crash courses ever
This is the problem I have in any portrait gallery where I look around and can’t help thinking this is just a bunch of headshots and not even talent headshots, corporate headshots for your LinkedIn profile
I particularly enjoyed your choice of sweater for this one!
Im an art student and these videos are great. Loving this series!!!
Before watching, I assume design is utilitarian in nature. Art is expression. Edit: They can overlap and also stand on their own.
Great lesson! Arts, crafts, and design are all intertwined. (that rhymed. And so did that.) Artists learn both the elements of art and the principles of design.
Hmm I'd never heard of La Sape! I'm seeing some parallels between it and NY's ball culture as shown in Paris is Burning. Ball / vogueing / drag is definitely an art form!
I spent a summer working as a set dresser. The warehouse was filled to the brim with everything. Safes, vases, plants, chairs, bedding, drapes, lamps. I asked if I should worry about breaking something, but I was assured there was nothing of real value. It makes me wonder if I am the only one who knows the art is fake, especially a very good fake. Is it still art?
this series makes me so happy
I'm really enjoying this series!
I'm gonna say Diderot had soft hands. He might be a critic but I don't think he had a lot of experience with making art. Good design takes a lot of problem solving and thinking through how it will function and the users experience. He might have had a different take if he had had to assemble something from IKEA 😂
Great episode!!! Love the series 💚
I love this series. I had never heard of Judy Chicago!
Great episode! I need to binge watch all of these
I have heard architecture called “the queen of the arts” because a building has to embrace both the aesthetic and the functional.
Thank you for the lesson 🇧🇩
great video - i loved seeing this!
Interesting architecture didn't get a mention. I've debated it with colleagues for a while. Personally, I've said that art is more of a form of self-expression, while design is created for a client and users, placing architecture generally in the design category unless you're design your own home. That being said, I dislike creating a hierarchy between art and design, as I think both can be meaningful and difficult, and require creative solutions in their own ways.
Loved it. Thank you!
Very nice, thank you!
NICE ! NEED MORE VIDEOS
How about this: design is about function. Art in design is anything that is not required for the design to fulfil its function. A skirt does not have to have a decorative pattern in order to function as a skirt, for example. When a pattern is included the pattern is art, but that doesn't necessarily make the skirt itself artistic.
Not sure about things like a pleated skirt. An aesthetic flourish that doesn't contribute to functionality, yet at the same time seems too simple to be considered art. Too easily made and reproduced.
hmm i would think all design is art, some is just boring art? but i guess if it's totally practical and not expressing anything i can see the argument that it's not art
It just depends what is art in your eyes. One of the reasons why its so hard to categorize the two is that art just doesn't have a 100% agreed upon specific definition
OMG I need the frog mug in my life
I'm with M le Marquis. Drawing (!) borders is seldom a positive thing.
I think drawing borders in a wide context is the very basis of building an understanding of the world around us. What separates circles from squares? What separates cats from elephants? What separates stars from comets? We draw borders to divide the world into smaller pieces that we can understand. Some borders are fuzzy, and then we call the whole thing a spectrum.
I think design and art both lay on a common spectrum.
Design implies intended or message usage. Not the same thing. The plate itself is designed. This is decorating with art.
I think all design is art, but not all art is design
When I moved into my condo almost 3 years ago, I got obsessed with the decorative arts while I decided on my aesthetic(s), so while I don't have an answer, I still have a lot of opinions! GTFO, Diderot!
It's art if it's only displayed. It's design if it's also used.
Ah, but then what of the who-knows-how-many paintings and such locked up in climate controlled warehouses in tax havens? (I'm being partially silly here.)
Thank you for this course!
Appreciate the commitment to her clothes. 🤌