“Genius only comes to those who know how to use their eyes and their intelligence.”
These words were said by none other than Rodin, the man who created The Thinker. How appropriate. Watching the Artist Series reminded me of this quote, and how it typically rings true for those who emerge as great talents of their era.
The two segments I loved the most were the features of Paula Scher and Malcolm Gladwell.
I have always adored Paula Scher. My artistic interests have always lied in the creation of the posters, the idea of mass production and branding, and how simple ideas can come alive. How does something as static as texts become personified? Through Scher’s rendering of these simple characters, she makes her words sing. She turns the text into music and motion; she arranges the letters into her own kind of jive.
One of my favorite artists of all time is Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. The man was a branding genius. He illuminated the late 1800’s with his bold visual representations of Parisian life. Capturing the seedier side of back street Parisian culture, Lautrec was everywhere. The taboo nature of his work was embraced by his contemporaries, you couldn’t walk into a bar in Paris in the 1890’s without seeing a Lautrec poster mounted somewhere.
Lautrec branded those notorious for improper behavior; homosexuals, prostitutes, exotic dancers, male escorts…you name it. But people loved him. He took reality and threw it in the face of society. Paula Scher is doing the same thing for New York City in the 21st century. She takes the seemingly elementary ideas of posters, texts and mass production and raising it to a fine art form through her genius of design. She takes elements of contemporary culture and entertainment and illuminates them through the creation of typographies. The juxtaposition of her original typefaces catapults these people, places and forms of entertainment into the public consciousness. Her posters bring their subjects into the public fruition and give them a new life.
These elements of design tell a story. Malcolm Gladwell is another individual who creates a narrative and illuminates it with visually stimulating elements. DeeDee Gordon discusses Gladwell’s role as a storyteller. The process of taking complex content and transcribing it in a way that people can understand and relate to it is the basis of communication and constructing a societal connection.
Both Scher and Gladwell exercise their genius through understanding the ways in which visual aesthetics weave a society together and allow publics to form a common bond and a mutual connection. Using both elements of visual interpretation and intelligence these two have managed to speak volumes in a time where more and more people are fighting to be heard. Whether it is over digital platforms or a street corner in New York City, there is information overload and an overwhelming amount of visually stimulating material. These two have managed to emerge as driving names in design.
I believe that trusting her own intuition and her talent has allowed Scher surpass her peers. Just as I believe that trusting others, such as Brian Rea, has given Gladwell an advantage, serving to further the quality of his work. Either way, both have used their genius to contribute to our visual culture and develop narratives that bridge societal connections.