Shaping Democracy – The HfG Ulm

The Ulm School of Design, a legendary Ulm-based design incubator, lasted only 15 years, from 1953 to 1968. Alongside the Bauhaus, this school successfully helped shape the appearance of our modern age. The designs created here are characterised by a product aesthetic focused on pure functionality, and quite a few products achieved worldwide fame: the Ulm stool by Max Bill and Hans Gugelot, the Sinus ashtray by Walter Zeischegg, and the corporate design for Lufthansa by Otl Aicher and his team, to name but a few. Nevertheless, this promising post-war experiment was closed in 1968. The lecture provides important background information on the origins, influence and closure of the university.

Playing with meanings. Postmodernism

The lecture deals with postmodern trends in design, illustrated by examples from Charles Venturi and Denise Scott, Superstudio, Studio Alchimia and Memphis. Postmodern reflection was characterised by doubts about previously unquestioned basic assumptions and criticism of outdated ideas of modernism. After the euphoria of mass production and functional rationalism, cracks began to appear... the smooth façade of modernism began to crumble. A specific unease arose against the pillars of modern views based on certainty, consensus and determination. A distanced perspective was adopted, focusing on individuality, heterogeneity, emotionality and contradiction, but also developing an awareness of how we constantly reconstruct our everyday lives and imbue them with meaning. In addition, capitalist society was called into question and criticism of consumerism grew louder. Designers no longer wanted to be mere players in industrial production. They felt committed to social issues. Open concepts developed between design, architecture, painting and sculpture, allowing for expressive designs. The postmodern movement opened up space for cultural complexity and heterogeneity, setting no limits on the imagination!