On Modernism and Post-modernism Design (in Chinese)

The Relationship between Postmodernism and Modernism

"Qingshan can not cover, after all, Dongliushui." Modernism design is the product of the era, with a certain era mark. The principle of "decision form of function" and "less is more" has long been firmly rooted in the hearts of the people. It not only changed the lifestyle of a generation, but also changed the ideological and aesthetic consciousness of a generation. It contributed to the contribution of the times. However, with the development of productive forces, the enrichment of material life, people’s cultural level and aesthetic consciousness are also constantly improving, and the worship of high-tech and high-emotional people has caused people to lose interest in rational, indifferent designs. Whether it is pre-war modernism or post-war internationalism, the role of a consistent design style is considered to be the cancellation of beauty. Destroy the accomplice of human perfect ecological environment. It uses a simple mechanical approach to transform the urban environment that was originally integrated with the traditional nature into a glass curtain wall and a reinforced concrete forest, which deteriorates the human living environment and undermines the traditional aesthetic principles. As Mr. Lu Xun summed up the greatest tragedy of life in the era of cultural change, he once said that “the greatest tragedy is no more than the way people wake up and there is no way to go”. Modernism, as a new cultural trend in addition to the old cloth, has just awakened a generation from sleep, but has no power to point them out to practical realities. Apart from disappointment with modernism, a cultural phenomenon with modernism as its target has begun to emerge.

Postmodernism is a decorative development of modernism and internationalism. The centerpiece is the less is more reductionist style against Mes van der Rohe, advocating a visual enrichment with decorative techniques. Advocate for meeting psychological needs rather than just focusing on monotonous functionalism. Postmodernism in design has adopted a great deal of historical decoration and compromises in order to break the monopoly of internationalism over the years. The book "Complexity and Contradiction of Architecture" published by the American architect Robert Ventury in the 1960s is regarded as the earliest manifesto of postmodernism (Figure 3). In the book, he first affirmed the great contributions made by modernism to the process of human civilization. At the same time, he pointed out that modernism has completed its mission in a specific historical period. Outdated modernism will become the ideology of design. Everything becomes a mediocre, blank design. The ambiguous and ambiguous contextualism, metaphor, and decorativeism will guide the development of postmodernism design. (Fig. 4) The post-modernist design trend that originated in the construction industry in the 1960s was prominently reflected in the 1970s. The “Saint Family Church” of Barcelona designed by the Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi built in the mid-1970s ( Figure 5) and Mira (apart from Art Nouveau) One is a pair of corn cobs adorned with colored tiles, one is a four-story apartment with a wavy appearance, where one can see little rationality and logic, and seven Built in Australia in the late tenth century, the fan-frame architecture of the Sydney Opera House (organic functionalism) in Australia, this ambiguous, disorganized, unstructured design language, and arbitrary design style are widely criticized by the people. The American Telegraph Telephone Headquarters building (Figure 5), built in New York in the 1980s, has become the largest and most prestigious classic in postmodern architecture.

Postmodernism in the field of architecture has led to postmodernist design movements in other fields. In many post-modernist design trends, high-tech and Memphis, deconstructionism, and neo-modernism have all become the deductive elements that challenge the design of modernism. The high-tech style is actually a continuation of functionalism, but it does not satisfy too much dependence on function and general indifference to spirit. In the design, it boasts of advocating "mechanical beauty" and emphasizing technology and the sense of the times. (For example, the National Centre for Culture and Arts in Pompidou, France) as a culture is closely linked with the background of the times. Regardless of its structure, shape, or color, decorative style will deeply lay the mark of the times. At the same time, from the design, we can also understand the wishes, ideals, dreams, and civilizations of an era and people at that time. The post-modern design shows that people have doubts about the development prospects of modernism. At the end of the century, the nostalgic sentiment and the complex emotions generated under the new cultural background replaced the purely functional aesthetic requirements. All the power for modern progress, faith, reason, and human consciousness has been lost; people have questioned faith that resembles absolute truth; they feel embarrassed and dim in their own future. Can not help but ask: "I come from there, who am I, where will I go again." People are eager for greater freedom and complete liberation of human nature, and the emergence of post-modernism has brought this desire for freedom to the world. People can choose their own belongings according to their individuality and hobbies.

(to be continued)