Check out Gary Hustwitt’s cool new blog Objectified. The blog is about his upcoming movie by the same name. Here is what it is all about, in Gary’s words:
One reason that I’m delving into the world of objects in this film
is that I, admittedly, am obsessed by them. Why do I salivate over a
shiny new piece of technology, or obsess over a 50-year-old plywood
chair? What does all the stuff I accumulate say about me, and do I
really need any of it in the first place?Those of you who followed the making of my first film, Helvetica,
know that the reason I make these films is not that I have a
comprehensive knowledge of the subject matter. I wasn’t an expert on
graphic design, and I’m certainly not an expert on industrial design.
But they’re both fields that fascinate me, and that I want to learn
more about. I’m interested in industrial designers because their work
influences so many aspects of our world yet most of the time it’s taken
for granted. And I think that, especially today, it’s crucial for us to
re-examine how we make and use consumer products at every level.And if you could get all of these designers and design experts
together at a dinner party, what would they talk about? This film will
hopefully represent that conversation. I’ve been lucky to be able to
include an amazing group of participants in the film so far, and I
sincerely thank them all for their time and knowledge.The term objectified has two meanings. One is ‘to be
treated with the status of a mere object.’ But the other is ‘something
abstract expressed in a concrete form,’ as in the way a sculpture
objectifies an artist’s thoughts. It’s the act of transforming creative
thought into a tangible object, which is what designers in this film do
every day. But maybe there’s a third meaning to this title, regarding
the ways these objects are affecting us and our environment. Have we
all become objectified?
About Dieter Rams: nothing. What’s cool is what is on his reel-to-reel. Man, that thing is awesome. If Apple sold one, I’d buy it in a second.
Which reminded me of:
Fritjof Capra in The Hidden Connections writes that Culture is created and sustained by a network (form) of communications (process), in which meaning is generated. Culture’s material embodiments (matter) include artefacts, and written matter through which meaning is passed from group to group over time.