Graphic design, exhibition context, curatorial practices

In 2009 “Graphic” – a quarterly magazine based in Korea which covers, through monographic issues, topics that are topical for the practice and critique of graphic design – has devoted an issue to “Ideas of Design Exhibition.” This issue offers an interesting reference for our research, since it has caught a rising phenomenon, that of the engagement of designers in curating and exhibiting design, and has recorded some relevant ideas and hints around it.
As explained in the editorial statement the aim of the issue is to present the most recent trend in design exhibitions through a selection of 12 projects that have been held in various countries in the years 2006-2009. Exhibitions have been selected among shows that are different from the mere showcase of design products or portfolios, and that are «more conceptual», having «an insight into a definition of design». The selection includes: Kiosk, Forms of Inquiry, Kinross: Modern Typography (1992, 2004, 2009), In Real Life, From Mars, Place It, Designing Critical Design, Visual Poetry Kumgansan, Roma Publications 1–90, Extended Captions (DDDG), Graphic Design in the White Cube, On Purpose. Most of the selected exhibitions – which have been conceived and realized in different contexts, from galleries to the art museum – have been curated by graphic designers and independent curators. Besides presenting basic information on each project, the editorial staff of “Graphic” has investigated the points of view of the curators, through a series of questions concerning the concept and development of their show, the role of publication/catalogue and the trends of design exhibitions etc.
Some points seem to emerge with particular evidence from the pages of “Graphic.” Firstly, of course, there are the criteria chosen by the editorial staff, which are themselves already a reading of the considered phenomenon. That is exploring exhibitions which have a critical (speculative) approach to design and that «present a design methodology for design that makes it possible for design to convert itself into the various media, such as graphic design, architecture, public space, online space, publishing, etc.»
This latter quality – the design exhibition being an element in a chain of media – is specifically interesting with regards to graphic design, because of the relationship that can link editorial and curatorial practices, between publishing and exhibition making. In fact, several among the interviewees, who are also graphic designers, suggest or declare that editorial projects and exhibitions are different and yet complementary to one another, even comparable. For example, Christoph Keller, curator of the exhibition Kiosk, dedicated to independent art publishing, states that «one of the very reasons for doing books for me has-been not to have to do exhibitions and the possibility of finding other ways to mediate art.» Yet, for this very reason, it is also clear that exhibition projects and publications can be components of larger projects, in which different media and contexts are used to produce discourses and to interpret and communicate ideas and contents. For example, Zak Kyes – graphic designer, art director of the Architectural Association, editor, and curator of the exhibition Forms of Inquiry (see also the exhibition that has been recently devoted to him in Leipzig) – believes that «exhibition-making is quite similar to an editorial process, in which a narrative, argument or thesis is structured using other people’s words, images and artworks.» In his view, then, the publications accompanying the exhibition were not just «a means of documentation,» but really «an exhibition container»: «In this way publications are a means of taking the exhibition where it can’t go in the gallery.» Similarly, Min Choi – graphic designer and curator of his solo exhibition dedicated to the Korean translation and edition, he curated, of Kinross’ Modern Typography – says that there are «things that you cannot show in a book form, that you can more effectively communicate as an exhibition. Or, at least, an exhibition would provide a focus or a forum to discuss the ideas in the book.» In this direction Choi adds an observation about the context and use of books and exhibitions, indicating that a significant difference between the two media lies in the sense of place and communality of the latter: «I regard an exhibition as an intensified form of dialogue: people gather in a physical space, see the work and try to make sense of what they experience. The same sense of communality, of place, is what lacks in a publication.»
Another aspect that emerges from the pages of “Graphic” is the different levels of reading and identification with respect to the role of curator. The perspectives of the interviewees range from the seeming distancing from the position of the curator – as in the case of Radim Peško, curator of From Mars («we are not curators, nor design or art historians, but practising designers, so our position was seeing it as insiders rather than observers») – to the implicit idea of a coincidence of the curator and the designer – as in the case of Choi Min, who curated and designed his show – to the idea of a difference and of contiguity between designing and curating – as suggested by the words of Zak Kyes, according to which curating is a way to go beyond just giving form to supplied contents and «to invent new concepts of design and build bridges and links to other activities such as art, architecture, and literature for instance». In general, however, respondents appear to intend themselves as having occupied the position of an intermediary or facilitator who allowed other people to communicate their projects, rather than imposing his/her own view on a topic. In this line, the role of networks and relationships between designers or artists is also underlined in various interviews as an important motivation, stimulus and resource behind exhibiting and curating design. And a reflection, or evidence, of this role is the presence of the some designers in more than one of the selected exhibitions – such as Åbäke, Daniel Eatock, Min Choi and Radim Peško. In some ways departing from the low-profile attitude to curating, apart from Kyes, is the designer Angelika Burtscher, co-founder and curator, with Daniele Lupo, of the Lungomare Gallery in Bozen. Being not only episodically involved in curating, Burtscher claims in fact a special aim for her exhibition projects, which usually deal with topics other than design: to address the general public and to raise questions through design and visual communication.
Finally, of course among the issues raised by “Graphic” and the interviewees themselves there is also that of design and art, and particularly of their different treatment in the context of the exhibition. What appears from the answers of curators (not just designers), however, is clearly a non-relevance of the question or indifference towards it. For instance, Laurel Ptak, independent art curator, states that «I don’t see art and design as very different from one anohter at all. That’s probably because for me an exhibition doesn’t entirely rest upon what’s on display. The show itself is located somewhere in between what’s on view and the audience’s experience of it. I see my role as a curator as simply opening up that space, giving all participants – whether they are artists, designers, co-curators, or the audience – equal autonomy inside it.» Which basically means that one advantage of looking at design through the context of the exhibition is to avoid getting lost in too captious distinctions of art/design. (Although, we feel, this does not totally cancel the question about art and design, but rather suggests that it would probably be useful to shift it in order to explore other corners, such as the impact of design exhibitions on critical discourse – and vice-versa – or the public perception.)

Certainly graphic works entered the white cube well before 2006. However, the exhibition curated by graphic designer Peter Bil’ak that year at the Moravian Gallery on occasion of the 22nd International Biennale of Graphic Design in Brno (CZ), Graphic design in the white cube marked a significant moment for the relationship of graphic design with the exhibition context – one that raises questions and allows to develop further considerations. Let us summarize the main assumptions and reflections behind the exhibition as outlined by Bil’ak himself in the text (available via typotheque) where he explains the concept of the show [1].

Bil’ak begins by stating decontextualization as the main problem of organizing graphic design exhibitions: «graphic design does not exist in a vacuum» he underlines, «and the walls of the exhibition space effectively isolate the work of design from the real world.» Just as many survey books and magazines do, when they present design as “objects” out of their context, with no trace of the process behind them. And yet magazines, books and exhibitions of the kind seem to appeal designers a lot. This is a phenomenon which Bil’ak explains in terms of recognition and promotion of the «the trade aspect of design.» As a curator Bil’ak seems not eager to go this direction.

He then introduces another issue facing those who aim to organize an exhibition of graphic design. He turns to design that is out of trade and draws instead «parallels with art»: uncommissioned and self-initiated design, or the «limbo between art and design.» This is an area encompassing activities such as writing, organizing and reflecting rather than just preparing business cards and logos. Here is the issue: does this kind of experiences reflect the common and established definition of design, and the expectations of the public of an event like the Brno Graphic Design Biennial? The solution that Bil’ak gives is that graphic design should be read rather as a «field in flux,» or a “ghost discipline” and a “grey area,” to use the words of Stuart Bailey which he quotes. Or as a synthesis of diverse elements such as «art, politics, poetry, industry, etc.,» to use instead the words of Experimental Jetset, that are also quoted by Bil’ak.
This move he makes – from the usual notion of design to the wider reading of it – helps him supporting/explaining, in front of the public/reader, the selection of designers he has made for the exhibition, all of whom work between «the worlds of art, design, music, theatre and writing,» challenge the established notion of graphic design, and «are no strangers to the gallery world.»
For example designers like Experimental Jetset, Bailey and Dexter Sinister, and M/M Paris (it is worthy of mention that the latter refused the invitation to participate in the exhibition curated by Bil’ak) [2]. Bil’ak mentions, for instance, the involvement of Dexter Sinister in the organization of the Manifesta 6 to be held in Cyprus in 2006 (and which, by the way, was cancelled), and the involvement of M/M in an exhibition held at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris in 2005 and which featured renown artists such as Koons, Cattelan and Kelley. These cases are not really examples of graphic design exhibitions [3]; they are used to evidence the relevance of graphic design for visual culture, making Bil’ak conclude that it is important to «critically discuss the work [of graphic designers] in the context of other visual arts as well.»
Also in this direction, however, Bil’ak warns that when graphic design is presented in the museum «the exhibition should attempt more than just passive presentation in glass cases.» To provide other examples, he refers to the exhibition curated by Rick Poynor, Communicate (Barbican Gallery, 2005, and then traveling to other venues), that examined «graphic design’s influence on contemporary culture, highlighting experimental work created by designers who aren’t limited by working to fulfill a commercial client’s brief.» About this show Bil’ak notes that the organization and presentation were similar to the structure of a book, with the rooms as chapters introduced with texts – an organization that he attributes to Poynor’s background in journalism and publishing.
Another example that Bil’ak makes is the exhibition he himself curated in Brno in 2000, Work from Holland (graphic design in context), focusing on the relationship client-designer-public. In this case Bil’ak decided to bring to the exhibition’s public not just the design work but also the “missing component,” that is the voice clients, whose words were presented instead of descriptions given by the designers themselves.
But Bil’ak is not content with the examples he brought and with his experience in 2000. In fact, the retrospective approach that tries to recreate the context for the work on display appears not the best solution. Again he quotes Experimental Jetset who warn against such false attempts and insist instead on the museum/gallery as «a valid context in itself.»

These reflections led Bil’ak to develop the concept for Graphic design in the white cube. In brief, it was decided that the Moravian Gallery acted as a client, inviting/commissioning 19 designers to design posters for the exhibition. Posters were then spread in the city to communicate the event, while the briefing of the project and the sketches of the designers – including “failures” – were displayed on the walls in the rooms of the gallery, in order «uncover the process of work.»

Indeed Bil’ak – who finally proposes his concept as a format for other design exhibitions – recognizes that the strategy he pursued may be risky, like a snake-eating-its-own-tail. Yet the issues that this kind of exhibition raises probably are more than those envisaged by its curator. First of all, isn’t it just another attempt to re-create the conditions for graphic design, and its context of existence? Isn’t it just an artificial reproduction of the relationship that normally links cultural institutions and designers in the real world, but usually with a wider scope than the occasional event?
Also, if we acknowledge that design is a “grey area,” then why stay sticked to the client-designer relation? Moreover is the poster on the wall the only, or best, way to present and represent contemporary graphic design? (A white cube is more than 2D, and history tells that graphic design has a multi-dimensional vocation.) Additionally, what about retrospective exhibitions: should we forget them?
But there is more. For example, one can detect a rather narrow and limited idea of the exhibition context, based on a too deterministic distinction between the outside, real world and the inside world of the gallery/museum. Another point that is not well on focus, albeit implicitly always there in Bil’ak’s discourse, is his position as curator, or as designer and curator. In this regard, also, the insistence on the process behind the work as an important feature of design that should be brought to the public of the exhibition reveals the bias of the designer for the production side of design. This is an aspect which certainly is of interest to some people but not necessarily to everybody in the “public” (a target which, by the way, is elusive); most of all, it is an aspect which is not at all sufficient to let visitors understand the impact of graphic design on visual culture or, more simply, the cultural role of design.

Of course it is not our intention here to diminish the work and ideas by Bil’ak. On the contrary: without them, probably we would not have even raised the topic of our research project. But his ideas and work encourage us to move beyond, to further investigate the relationship of graphic design, exhibiting and the curatorial.

Notes