Comparative
Observational Matrix Analysis
This mode of research was designed to provide me with
information integral to the success of my Honours project. My Honours project
relies upon my ability to choose objects of significance that reveal the
narrative and character without direct input from the character herself. Objects
of significance, refers to objects that are significant to the character, the
story and the setting and it is through the objects that the audience is
invited to actively participate in the construction of the narrative.
This quantitative data collection and subsequent comparative
analysis will provide me with visual references in creating these objects of
significance. The original source of the objects is less important as it is in
the visual- design, shape and colour- that I am collecting information useful
in interpreting how these objects should look within the project and not the
history of the object itself.
The idea behind the collation of the comparative matrix was
to collect objects noted as being within a particular era. The broad parameters
enabled me to collect objects with a variety of shapes, design features and
colours to provide a visual cross section of designs from the 1930s-40s and
modern day objects. The only requirement was that the piece had to be
stipulated as coming from a particular era, be in keeping with expectations of
that era and not be a form of retro style that could blur the recognition of a
particular object as being from a particular era. This was particularly an
issue in relation to the collation of objects from the modern day, as many
items now use a retro look as a selling point in their design, most notable in
this was the kitchen items and radios. The objects of significance themselves
were selected based on their prominence in the story and the importance of
their visual transformation (as per the narrative) from the 1930s-40s to
current day items.
Variables such as the legitimacy of certain objects as being
a part of a particular era and the organisation and selection of the actual
objects on the matrix are acknowledged, but since it was the visual qualities
of the objects that were to inspire my own incarnation of specific objects
within the narrative it is believed that these variables are outweighed by the
variety in the objects selected and the way in which these objects were to
inspire rather than become the objects used within the project. From the cross
section of object designs from individual eras I will be creating my own
representation of these objects from a range of objects listed on the matrix
not from a single source. This will enable me to capture the design essence of
an era rather than simply copying a single object from a single source as
definitive of an era.
When viewing the matrix, images of objects were collected
then colours were recorded to provide me with a base palette when considering
the objects in their respective eras. The shape component utilised the idea of
silhouette and was a combination of design aspects that were prominent in each
of the objects selected within a particular era. This silhouette will form the
basis of my own visual interpretation of the object as seen within the project.
Individual observations, similarities and differences were then recorded in
relation to a particular group of objects for example cars, kitchenware and
radios.
In an attempt to become familiar with the visual essence of
an era across a range of objects it is also useful to compare not only within a
single matrix but also across the three matrix to identify similarities and
hence capture a sense of continuity in design identifiable in a particular era.
The objects from the 1930s-40s did display similarities in
design that I was not expecting given the historical era in which they were
created. Given that the 1930s and 40s were a time of economic and social
upheaval in Australian society with the 1929 American stock-market crash and
the associated depression followed by the Australian entry into World War Two
in 1939, I had expected the design of cars, kitchenware products and home
appliances such as radios to be exceedingly plain and functional. However
across each of the object groups in this era there was an attention to detail
and a design emphasis on long sweeping curves, curls and flourishes. Of course
these objects would not have been available to every social strata of society
but I selected objects that would have been present in the narrative of my
project (white, upper/middle class suburban). Cars would have been a rare
commodity in this time period as most people would have walked or taken public
transport so the design quality of the car in this era can be closely aligned
with the upper social classes only. Yet, these same design qualities are found
within household objects frequent within the aspirational middle classes of
society. Teacups and kettles seem to have been designed with an emphasis on the
English tradition and heritage associated with the domestic ritual of tea
drinking. Teacups with scalloped edges, gold trim and a dominance of floral
motifs all reinforce this idea of a typically English tradition that was
refined, civilised and a small statement of luxury amidst a broader social
context of change and strain. This emphasis on curves and flourishes in design
also carried over to the central appliance of any household wealthy enough afford one, the wireless. The radios of the
1930s-40s were works of art and their design reveals the prominent position
they would have played within the household. These boxes were designed to be
seen in the ‘good room’ and their delicate wood carved flourishes and art deco
style shapes indicate that the radio itself was as important as the link they
provided with the news and entertainment of the day.
Now seen by some as fussy, the flourishes and flounces
present on many objects from the 1930s-40s including cars, radios and
kitchenware have now been replaced with a harsh streamlined functional look of
the current day design across the very same objects. Cars, although now
available in many more colours, have an almost uniform flowing design that seem
to hug the road, is lower to the ground and designed to evoke a sense of speed
in contrast to the boxy tall shapes of the past. This streamlined almost no nonsense
shape follows through to kitchenware and radios where there is a focus on
neutral earthy tones and colours in kitchenware that could be seen as a focus
on reaching the widest possible demographic to compliment a myriad of
individual styles. Cups and mugs are thicker, chunkier with large handles designed
over the smaller delicate teacups of the 1930s and 40s. This perhaps reflects
the changing nature of the tea drinking ritual with people no longer having the
time to sip tea at a specific time of the day and instead make a cuppa and
drink it as they work. The radios of modern day have also shifted in their
emphasis and there seems to be more concentration on the function of the radio
rather than the look of the object itself. Although many now have lights, these
boxes made of plastic and usually black or grey are no longer designed to be
the centre piece of a room, they are expected to be unseen. The radio is no
longer a status symbol in this format, it is the advancements in the audio and
function of the unit that is now the focus, these radios are designed to be
heard and not necessarily seen.
Given that my project will use these objects to show the
contrast between a golden age that is a memory and the ‘realities’ of today, it
has been useful to compare and identify the similarities between the objects
across the three matrix. From this research I now have a reference library and I
will be able to create objects that have a design grounding in the era in which
I am representing within the narrative.
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