1. In The Grammar of Ornament (1856) Owen Jones argued that, “Construction should be decorated. Decoration should never be purposely constructed.”
+ What did Jones mean? Do you agree or disagree? Discuss in relation to an example of either ‘construction decorated’ or ‘decoration constructed’.
“Construction should be decorated. Decoration should never be purposely constructed”. When Jones argued this I believe he was verbally displaying his discontent for the design of objects which don’t illustrate their use. My belief is that when Jones stated “Decoration should never be purposely constructed”, he was displaying his belief in the dishonesty of incorporating life-like attributes to a unrelated design. Jones disliked the application of additional factors to an objects design when there was no need. Believing that it was a waste of material, as well as creating a dishonest persona for the designer of the object itself, I deem Jones understood this to be misleading the user.
Like most people within today’s society I disagree with Jones opinion. The freedom of adapting/choosing your own style is important in today’s world. Many individuals express themselves through their choice in household decorations and furniture.
Furthering the example utilized within the lecture (the lamp, which was designed to appear as a flower), I chose to link this into today’s society and chose another light stand to help discuss the attitude towards design today. This light stand, upon first glance appears to be ice cream cones (shown below). I believe that this, and the light displayed within the lecture are excellent examples of “Decoration constructed”. “Decoration constructed”, (referring to the decoration of the object being a higher priority than the use), is clearly displayed within these designs and within many objects today. The little to no connection between the appearance and the use of these two light stand design makes them perfect examples.
In Jones’s eyes the “dishonest” nature created by these light stands nowadays is simply seen as a creative design form, with a magic like attribute. Today the world is filled with misleading designed objects, however these objects are seen as intriguing, and in sense bring a sort of playfulness into the design world, which was once so serious. Perhaps as the generations have continued and the designing process as applied almost childish attributes to their design processes. As “decoration constructed” helps capture the use and transform it into a secret, turning the object into a mysterious one, thus bringing out the childish nature in us. This attribute perhaps makes the design more appealing in today’s world with the mystery of not knowing fascinates most people, making them interact with the object, and creating a desire to want.
2. Considering this week’s reading, “Design, Society, Standards” by David Raizman and Wed.’s lecture in relation to the questions above, post a response in your DSDN171 blog along with an image of either ‘construction decorated’ or ‘decoration constructed’ (can be contemporary or historical). Be sure to analyse this image in your response and incorporate specific references to your reading and/or the week’s lecture.
The chair shown above is a prime contemporary example of “decoration constructed”. The chair, which looks more like a scrunched lily pad enforces the negative aspects that induividals, such as Owen Jones and Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin gained from these types of designs.
Jones and Pugin both believed that ignoring the proper use of materials was both “dishonest” and “resulted in ugly designs”. Therefore the chair displayed above would not fit the bill. The Bloom Chair by Kenneth Cobonquue, upon first glance doesn’t not appear to have the structure a chair would need, with only one stand.
