… or The Ballad of Joe Blow & Joe CEO

Joe CEO made lots of bad bets.
Joe CEO ended up with bad debt.
Joe CEO says government is bad.
But Joe CEO doesn’t follow his own fad.

Hungry & Poor? Get out of line!
Joe CEO is running out of time.
You see, Joe CEO is TOO BIG TO FAIL !
As for Joe Blow… that’s another tale.

Joe CEO is now in the sunny Caribbean.
Sipping piña colada and watching the scene.
But Joe Blows of the world have a role to fill;
We are the ones stuck with the bill!

Copyright © 2008 by Kofi Garbrah

Honore Daumier says it best… Tax-dollars go in, favours to friends of the king come out!

The writing’s on the wall for old views…

…Or more precisely, what is Visual Art? My definition has changed considerably since high school. I once thought that only realistic painting was “true art”. Having studied graphic design, I now realize that the same principles of design that make paintings memorable are also what graphic designers, photographers, cinematographers, and digital sculptors use to make their work memorable. I have since expanded my definition of art to include many mediums and many forms (e.g. Abstract Expressionist paintings). This definition may be too broad for some critics but I will attempt to justify it.

“Modern Art” has had a profound effect on the development of modern graphic design; for example the treatment of shape and color in much of graphic design can be traced to the work of Abstract artists such as László Moholy-Nagy, El Lissitzky, Piet Mondrian, and Wassily Kandinsky. Moholy-Nahy and Lissitzky were particularly influential in the development of typography. Graphic design/Commercial Art has also influenced “Modern Art”. Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein copied the work of comic book artists and graphic designers; they were praised for their “originality”. Graphic Design IS Art. Just as Roman statues inspired the artists of the Renaissance to create art, “Modern artists” have been inspired by commercial art to create their own art. Unfortunately, some critics still assert that graphic art is not “real art”. These critics equate profitability with inauthenticity; artists who profit from their work are “Selling out”.

This view of “true art” as a non-profitable venture is completely wrong and goes against much of the history of art. Da Vinci worked for some of the wealthiest families in Italy. He was not a poor man. Michelangelo didn’t paint the Sistine Chapel just because “he felt like it”; the Pope paid him large sums of money for his work. Prior to the 20th Century, Art was a profit making venture for artists.

The notion that “True artists” suffer and live in poverty while creating masterpieces is an invention of the Impressionists. Because so few of them were able to find patrons (customers), the Impressionists made a virtue out of not selling their work. Many of the great artists of the past (Titian, Peter Paul Rubens, and Rembrandt van Rijn to name a few) were well-paid during their lifetimes for their work. Art critics still point to the work of these wealthy successful artists as examples of what great art can be.

I began by saying my definition of art was very limited in high school. Now I would consider 3-D animation, photography, comic book illustration, and abstract expressionist painting as forms of art. Anytime the human mind considers where to put a mark on page, a canvas, a computer screen or a home, I would consider that art. That is not to say all art is great art. But then for me, Art is Everywhere.

picture from WQPT TV, a PBS Affiliate

Communication requires retention. When presenting new ideas to students, how much information is retained can often influence the success or failure of the idea. In Malcolm Gladwell’s book The Tipping Point – How Little Things Can make a Big Difference, he points to 3 things that make for effective communications: the Law of the Few, the Stickiness Factor (Retention), and the Power of Context. In both visual communication and education, the Stickiness Factor (making a message memorable) is probably the most important. Advertisers want their messages to be remembered (buy my product!) and Educators want their lessons to be remembered (pass my test!). The book details the level of research that went into giving Sesame Street the Stickiness Factor. In the new field of computer-based learning or E-Learning, there is convergence between visual communication and education. Gladwell’s ground-breaking ideas can help guide the artists who develop E-learning modules.

According to Gladwell, Critics of Television argue that:

…what’s dangerous about TV is that it is addictive, that children and even adults watch it like zombies… [It is the] violence, bright lights, loud, and funny noises, quick editing cuts, zooming in and out, [and] exaggerated action… that hold our attention.

Gladwell p100

Some of the same criticism has been leveled at E-learning. People do not absorb the information displayed by technology; they only watch mindlessly and uncritically because of its flashiness. Contradicting this view, the primary finding which guided the development of Sesame Street is that children tune out when a TV program is confusing and tune in when it makes sense. “Flash and dash” is not the only reason they watch. Extrapolating from this finding it is not just the flashiness of a presentation that engages learners, it is whether learners can make sense of the presentation. Fancy graphics are not sufficient for teaching; the fancy parts must be combined with a narrative that makes sense.

Unlike TV, computer based-learning has the potential to be more interactive; imagine if Big Bird or Oscar stopped what they were doing when they saw a little girl or boy could not understand. This would be impossible to do with TV but quite possible to do with an interactive computer program. The potential for innovation is great. The tipping point for effective learning involves skillful use of both graphics and narrative, a blend which shows once again that Art is everywhere.