The Relationship Between Art and Design
The Nature of Art
Ever since man discovered his propensity to create and recreate things as he perceives or imagines them, art-making has been around as the father of all human activity. Its primeval status is unprecedented, its importance as an evolutionary agent undisputed and its continuing relevance even in this age of interface technology and robotics, unmatched. Artmaking corresponds directly with man’s intrinsic nature of potentiality and creativity which is nothing but the nature of life itself. In and through art-making man not only discovers his inherent tendencies, but also discovers and hones his faculty of free will- that exalted state which holds promise for the realisation of man’s capabilities and enables him to wilfully transcend his current state. Art has an empowering quality and therefore it is, that in the making of art, we make ourselves. Richard Wagner finds nothing less than salvation in the experience of art. “I believe in God, Mozart and Beethoven… I believe in the Holy Spirit and the truth of that one indivisible art… I believe that through this Art all men are sacred, and therefore each one may die of hunger for her… I believe that the disciples of High Art will be transfigured in a heavenly veil of sun-drenched fragrance and sweet sound and united for eternity with the divine fount of all harmony. May mine be the sentence of Grace… Amen!”
Thus art-making, as implied may be understood as a situation in human activity which is closest to divinity. In the creation of art, what emerges is that not only is that which is being made art, but art is also the artist, art is also the skill. Thus, art has the ability to infuse its character in the doer, the done and the doing.
Art, by its nature leads us to truths in a way that no other human activity or institution can. It pitches its enterprise in discarded mental spaces or those that we are too afraid to dwell in. It urges us to think about, introspect, feel and resolve the morass of our existence and thereby paves the way for our evolution.
Art and Design in modern times
Art in modern times has come to be understood as a separate human activity- separate from say trade or manufacture. Although such a segregation serves in assigning a special status to art, it can also- by that very token- render it irrelevant or meaningless. Art, instead, can very usefully be understood as the pursuit of truth and perfection in all human activity; yes, even trade and manufacture. Any activity can be imbued with artistic qualities when it is done in communion with the doer’s inner calling, governed by intent and led by its pursuit of truth and perfection.
Design, in contrast, inhabits a more defined space. Its primary task is to fulfil a need; the need may be physical, emotional, intellectual or societal. Designs are reckoned responses to identified problems. If art lays before us, things we should be concerned about, design busies itself with working through those concerns. Art stems from philosophy, design from teleology.
The symbiotic relationship between art and design
The making of art can be both an instinctive act and a carefully measured and charted process. “Art,” according to artist SH Raza, “is a profound personal reaction.” If we view art from that standpoint, it may seem that art-making requires spontaneity, an instinctive urge or something as quick and as unpredictable as a reaction. This may be true to the point when an artist feels moved by a particular thought, idea, event, or circumstance and finds in it a need or a calling for resolution for working through its character. This need for working through a subject matter seems important for human beings, for society-at-large, because there is a universal need to understand appropriate ways of feeling, to clarify our thoughts, to articulate ourselves better and to transact with the world upholding those moral values that we hold dear intellectually but find great difficulty in putting into practice. But art-making doesn’t reach its function with simply feeling. The expression and presentation of art require skill, an understanding of the materials that the artist puts to the task of expressing his feelings and an exemplary understanding of his craft. Yes, art-making begins with feeling and finds expression through craft. Great craft, in turn, must reach out and connect with the beholder.
So then, is the culmination of art, design? The process of art-making requires a keen understanding of the materials that the artist will use to present his subject matter. And this understanding, in turn, comes with the observation that the material world holds immense possibility and purpose. What those possibilities are and what that purpose is, is subject to the imagination of the human mind. The human mind can imagine and see value and breathe life and purpose in seemingly inert matter. He may craft it carefully with respect to its inherent character so that we may find in it beauty and reaffirm our faith in the sublime.
This ability to see value, usefulness and possibility in the material world is the office of the designer. Thus, the relationship between art and design appears to be a symbiotic one where the making of objects is not purely a mechanical activity; it requires the imagination and sensitivity of an artist. And the artist, in turn, in order to express himself purposefully and with clarity, requires the mindset of a designer.
How can the study of art be useful to the designer?
The study of art can lay before the student-designer an intimate account of the history and evolution of human thought. It can reveal to the student those past existential arrangements, those knots in the collective consciousness, those dilemmas that seemed to have touched the most sensitive of humans; who by their inherent vulnerability and sensitivity felt things more deeply and readily than the rest of the clan. Because they felt, they introduced us to those feelings. In and through their sensitivity, they sensitised and civilised the human race- at least to the extent of inspiring appreciation for their work. What was it they felt? What moved them? How did they express themselves? What methods did they employ? What attitudes governed their purpose? What were the elements of their work? What were their chosen arrangements?
Leave alone the answers, just the questioning that the study of art can inspire, itself is of immense value to the student-designer. It equips the student-designer with a probing mind- a mind that questions in a bid to sieve out the most intimate, essential aspects of a work. And such a questioning as an apt and necessary beginning in the unfoldment of a creative mind.
Conclusion
Perhaps art and design are not separate. Perhaps they are one and the same thing. Perhaps all creation begins with the stirrings of art and is manifest as design. Perhaps the human mind can only understand art through design and conversely, our sense of appreciation can only be developed through art.
References: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Art: Richard Eldridge; Cambridge University Press.
