Ahhh, to be young…
Yesterday, a comment popped up here at BMA that likely would have gone unnoticed given that the post it is directed toward is a year old. However, it’s a good, and in many ways entertaining, read, so I wanted to share it here. The post in question is from last July and talks about a group of Cooper-Hewitt design winners who turned down an invitation to the White House based on their political beliefs.
Anonymous, currently a graphic design student, posted the following yesterday:
I’m late to the game and I doubt anybody will see this, but what the heck! I am a graphic design student, and I am so tired of the graphic design profession and their ridiculous rhetoric about how they feel they have some mission to "save the world" and do all of these "socially responsible" pieces. What a load of crap. I am not taking design classes to be a political activist. I am not taking design classes to save the world. I am taking design classes because it is something that greatly interests me in many different ways. Everybody has their political points of view, and that’s great. But I am so tired of the "graphic arts community" trying to shove their politics and agendas down my throat. I fully understand now why it’s called a "liberal arts" program…
I have my own thoughts on these statements, and I’ll be happy to share them. I’d like to see a few others respond first, though, before I color those responses with my opinions. So please, comment away…
Do you think that graphic artists have a responsibility to society? If so, what form does it take…political? Environmental? Is this something that’s being taught in school, or is it something that happens afterwards? Can you be a successful graphic designer without taking a stand?
Technorati Tags: beyond madison avenue, design school, graphic design, cooper-hewitt, national design awards, white house, politics, social responsibility
