Between Silence + Light

Craft. With the turn of the 19th century, the design process began to change into fields or sectors. The idea of an individual having a certain aspect of design to work on became their task, job, or craft. There were those who focused on the interior of a structure as opposed to the exterior and vice versa. There were also those who were skilled in designing furniture as opposed to wall hangings. In other words, sectors of design were developing in the 18th and 19th centuries; individuals began to focus on their craft, what they were skilled at. When I saw that the word craft was a prompt for this week I first thought of the saying “I am focusing on my craft” or “I am dedicated to my craft.” I then assumed that in order for one to have a craft, they must receive some sort of delight from it; whether it was the outcome or the pleasure from enjoying the activity itself. I hope that one day I will be able to say that I enjoy my craft, or that I am good at my craft. Judging by the way this class is going for me, interior architecture may not be my craft… Also, the term craft makes me think of doing a little artsy piece to which is not necessary but brings pleasure and is delightful and is physical, or able to be presented. My mother and I did crafts as I was growing up; I made picture frames from Popsicle sticks like nobodies business. The 19th century brought about the Arts and Crafts Movement which was “the most important design reform movement to affect the interior in the nineteenth century (Massey 7).” This movement brought about a sense of east meeting west in the interior of many structures; Japanese designs became incorporated in pieces of ornament in the interior of homes. Also, during the arts and crafts movement, little physical pieces were presented to show exotic tastes as well as wealth.

Public/private. With the turn of the 19th century, the concept of what should be public and what should be private had a fuzzy line. It seemed as though the interior of homes, which at one point were considered to be very private; the palazzo style homes had the living quarters on the third floor because it was most private, and even the entertainment quarters a floor above industrial quarters. The 19th century seemed to change the thought of the interior as being private into making the appearance of the interior so important, almost as if it were to be open to the public. There was an increase on the significance on the interior of structures. Massey says that the “Victorian middle-class desire to express comfort and wealth (9).” Who was going to see the interior? Why was it so important for the homes of the middle class to display such things if the home was considered private? On page 10, Massey quotes John Ruskin “things which cause half the expense of life, and destroy more than half of its comfort, manliness, respectability, freshness, and facility.” I interpreted this quote as to saying that the attempt and impression others through immaculacy in the home is a waste. I feel that this shows that traditionally, the home was a place of comfort for the family; it was not a concern to appeal to others that the home was comforting through ornament. The line between public and private became less visible after the Arts and Crafts Movement.

Technique. Along with the Arts and Crafts Movement came new technology. This new technology brought new materials, new ways of construction, new controversies. There was the introduction of wrought iron, steel, and glass into the production process. This allowed quicker construction, stability, new methods of construction, strength outside of concrete’s porous tendencies. There was also the development of machinery which was able to mass produce items. This brought controversy. The question of hand crafted versus machine made became a burning question for many designers. It was said that “the more clearly expressed the construction the more honest the piece, and the greater the contrast with the machine-carved, highly polished veneers of mainstream taste (Massey 15).” This view was supported by Morris, who aided in developing the ‘Antiques Movement’ which supported the hand crafted pieces as opposed to the standard, machine made pieces which seemed to have a cookie-cutter quality about them. As an artist, I use different techniques with different mediums in order to create the look that I am going for. Technique is the way in which one goes about designing something.

Language. Art became the language of architecture during the aesthetic movement. All surfaces of a room were touched by art, and the more exotic, the more was said about the individual. There was an appreciation of eastern style art, like the block print pieces, which expressed to the audience a sense of power. Also, the interior of a building became the language of the building; the interior is what spoke to the viewer. At earlier times, the exterior of a building was what spoke to the viewer, it communicated power or nobility, that role entered the interior in the 19th century. Also, images at one point were the literal language for societies; images depicted stories; stories of war, biblical stories, and stories predicting the future. Visuals were a language which told stories themselves; visuals became the language which told stories of the owner, expressing their power. Language could be expressed through the Art Noveau form. In Spain and Italy, it spoke of political aspirations and for individuals like Antoni Gaudi, it spoke for religious beliefs (Massey 46).

Virtual. Virtual is the state of being or containing. The Art Noveau time brought about a sense of virtual experience through the asymmetrical line which was incorporated throughout the design (Massey 40). There was a sense of becoming contained or caught in the design during the time of Art Noveau; there were smooth curves, organic forms, and a repeated whiplash line (Massey 40).

This unit was very hard for me to address the prompts. I must not have understood the reading and the lectures in order to connect it all together. That is nobody other than my own fault, and I attempted to do the best that I could. I enjoyed reading about the Arts and Crafts Movement in Massey’s book; the incorporation of art into the class has helped me maintain my focus somewhat. I made the best connections as I could, given the prompts, yet I am not confident at all in what I connected (it still connected in my mind though). I also enjoyed hearing about the east meeting west in art; over spring break this year I was able to travel to China and see the eastern style architecture and art. It was exciting to hear about the east’s influences on the west.