Susan Sontag’s writing is so decisive that it often reads like a manifesto, hence why the Conditional Design Manifesto felt like an apt method for exploration. I wanted to approach the written task for this brief from a more critical perspective, rather than a direct translation of its meaning. It was important to consider style through a contemporary lens, considering the major social, economical and technological shifts since Sontag’s essay was initially published. As a manifesto is an active document, I focused on re-contextualizing Sontag’s thesis as a critique of advertising and overconsumption. While I do understand that I am perhaps taking a more literal approach to style, I argue that the same threads are still evident.
REFERENCES:
Blauvelt, A. et al. (2013) ‘Excerpt pp. ii-xiv’, in Blauvelt, A., Maurer, L., Paulus, E., Puckey, J. and Wouters, R. Conditional Design Workbook. Amsterdam: Valiz, pp. ii-xiv.
Sontag, S. (2009) ‘On Style’, Against Interpretation and Other Essays, London: Penguin, pp. 15–36.
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