Comments on: Art School Cliche Spotting

By: Aw, I’m sorry art schools… «

Aw, I’m sorry art schools… « — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 23:35:59 +0000

[...] today’s Grain Edit post (via Johnson Banks: Thought for the Week), some checklists are passed on to carry with you to [...]

By: Multiplex

Multiplex — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 09:04:09 +0000

A lot of the negative comments here sound very much like they came from some of my shite tutors at Bath Spa Uni! And most of the cliches were evident at this year’s degree show too.

By: Coach Factory

Coach Factory — Thu, 26 May 2011 03:14:40 +0000

I find it truly ironic that graphic designers have to be thick skinned and well seasoned in the area of criticism,

By: B.DeHart

B.DeHart — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 07:20:21 +0000

I love these observations on trends. I think that it is this kind of awareness that helps keep graphic designers in check. Every cliche started out as a brilliant idea. So brilliant in fact that everyone borrows, does spin-offs and works it from every angle. And it continues uncharted until someone makes the official announcement that the horse has been beaten nearly to death and it’s time to put him in the stable for a while. Social awareness is key in creating truly fresh and creative work and commenting on cliches is a necessary part of that. I find it truly ironic that graphic designers have to be thick skinned and well seasoned in the area of criticism, and yet obviously a number of you out there can’t resist showcasing your bruised egos…and it’s not even your work! I think I may be beating the dead horse now, but in the words of some others on this page, “lighten up!”

By: jack

jack — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 17:49:12 +0000

post modernist attidue: find something everyone knows and tell it like a design

what you need is

1. editorial capabililty
2. windows / word to write
3. add some check boxes

sorry this is nice for school newspaper but it is not design yet

sorry it may be modern art?

By: lindsay

lindsay — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 17:12:14 +0000

very well put Ash…

By: Paz

Paz — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 16:38:04 +0000

Haha the obligatory stamp project, genius! I have to say I saw some good outcomes of the stamp competition last year. I love this one: http://sambestwick.blogspot.com/2009/05/rsa-postage-stamps.html (although the description is clearly for a different project)

By: Six

Six — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 15:33:27 +0000

Well I think this is genius! It’s very perceptive, well done!
…Do (uk) students still have the obligatory stamp project too?

By: Ash

Ash — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 09:58:02 +0000

I would love it if Lisa’s point rang true and we saw more accountability, less irony and the ability to commit to worthwhile design without being marked as po-faced. This debate might lead some to seem humourless, but all debate is good and even a cursory scan through reads far more interestingly than much of the “i like it, the colours are nice” comments. I think Lindsey’s point about the redneck jokes is the best way of dealing with something like this; IF you take offence, realise that to warrant humour, much of this has to be exaggerated to the point of farce.

There is obviously some truth in it all, but as someone who committed many of these clichés before graduating, the humour comes from the fact that designing whilst in education is a proving ground, a place to try things out, and you do often lack justification for adopting a technique; infographics with made-up data, trees lining up to (magically!) make the letter ‘K’, under-tracked Helvetica Bold, and the obligatory manifesto (baaad memories!). Once you’re in the design industry, you might create a beautiful spread of information graphics, the difference being that you were commissioned, supplied the data and it serves a client’s purpose. And a student might see it, and want to try it out. That’s how it works, and it’s lovely.

Remember that it’s ‘Art School’ cliché-spotting, not cliché-spotting in general. Overall my reaction was to laugh, then stop and realise I did nine-tenths of these things… and then laugh again.

By: Jay

Jay — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 07:33:49 +0000

I study at a design school in Southeast Asia; we had a good laugh about this site, though MANY of us have used precisely these techniques. I’m surprised Grain Edit readers are so offended by it!

This is one of the fun, strange things about the design industry, isn’t it? We all slip into trends, get hooked on something quirky or cool, get bored, move on to the next thing… Or, we grasp at things like scribbles and dictionary definitions and puffed-up manifestos to give our projects more depth, and cross our fingers that our tutors will be impressed. Having this site call us on our occasional bulls**t made me lol!

Thumbs up to the creators.