Eventually, design and the ever-changing topic of politics were bound to collide at some point. I feel that this can be a good thing. I feel like designers/artists can be ignored, embraced, or patronized depending on how a political movement or political party reacts to them. When I think about it, I feel that in the US liberal parties and movements are much more dedicated to the arts than more conservative movements. Which would make sense, since most of us designers and artists just so happen to be of a liberal background.
For example, when you look at Republican vs. Democratic design for running for office, promoting an agenda, or just simple branding, the Democratic designs tend to be… a lot better. Now, I am not saying that conservative design is bad, but in my opinion, it is definitely boring. In the grand scheme of things, I feel that liberal design will always be more artful, bold, and successful than a conservative party.
The simple fact is we were embraced by the left and dismissed by the right. Maybe Deann is right in saying that there needs to be more conservative designers, even though the words “more conservative” makes me a bit nervous.
Looking back on the past, I feel like some of the greatest impacts in design history were a product of politics. Just look at the two World Wars, amazing movements like the Bauhaus, De Stijl, Art Nouveau, Modernism, Futurism, Cubism, and many others came out of that short span of time. Some of these movements were even embraced by countries and used as a branding of their heritage (Constructivism, Futurism).
Moving stateside, we look at great movements like the WPA. This gave the struggling artists of the Great Depression jobs that created some of the greatest landmarks in this country (looking at you Timberline Lodge, you sweet bastard). I believe there should be more government programs to employ the weirdos a.k.a. artists, musicians, designers, writers, and hell even sculptors to have a good job so we can afford an $1800 studio apartment in lowly Portland, Oregon.
I feel that the world is in need of us artists right now, everything is so depressing in the media. Without art and design, the world would be one hell of a boring place. No matter if your candidate is wearing a red or blue tie, art needs to be embraced by both. You would be surprised by how much power an artist can wield at the end of their paintbrush, or the Pen Tool in their Adobe Illustrator. Personally, the initial thought of art fused with politics made me grimace. After the past few years however, I actually do see a need for it now and whole-heartedly believe that we represent the people more than our beloved politicians who are running for office.
