The other day, the School of Visual Arts Designer as Author students visited the Zaha Hadid-designed Chanel Mobile Art display in Central Park's Rumsey Playfield. It was a gorgeous fall morning, leaves falling from trees painted with oranges, reds, siennas, and fading greens. The 7,500 square foot orb is filled with installations inspired by the quilted Chanel bag (bottom) and perfume pervades the air. A personal tour is narrated by the deep yet dulcet tones of Jeanne Moreau "discussing everything from sex and love to the secrets at the bottom of a woman's handbag," writes The New York Times. However, with everyone listening to their own prompts (i.e. "now walk with me to the stairs, and turn left") on individualized MP3 devices, visitors became willing zombies, walking slowly, mindlessly to Moreau's resolute commands.
    Some of the artworks were clever (a series of cardboard boxes, below, with witty videos projected from above showing naked people frolicking and assaulting one another with Chanel bags) and some were more tritely surreal. There was also a hint of the 1964 New York World's Fair to be found in the space-age orb that seemed to be plunked down from the heavens in the anomalous surround.
    The students left with mixed feelings. The morning was blissful and beautiful enough, but this monument to high-end commercialism (guarded by Chanel-clad docents) at such a critical period of economic distress seemed a tad out of touch with reality. But maybe that's the point.

How effective are posters in altering people's perceptions? Are they only worth the paper they're printed on or are they truly persuasive papers? The debate rages at the exhibition Signs of Change: Social Movement Cultures 1960s to Now at Exit Art in New York, where hundreds of posters, photographs, moving images, audio clips, and ephemera document more than 40 years of activism, political protest, and campaigns for social justice. Many of them have indeed altered perception and triggered action. Curated by Dara Greenwald and Josh MacPhee and organized thematically, the current show presents issues from Civil Rights and Black Power in the United States to democracy in China to anti-apartheid in Africa to environmental activism and women's rights internationally. "The exhibition also explores the development of powerful counter-cultures that evolve beyond traditional politics and create distinct aesthetics, lifestyles, and social organization," say its organizers. Exit Art exhibitions are famous for presenting a critical mass of unique artifacts and this one is no exception.

Whatever your party, your VOTE is important. The following initiatives have been launched by designers to help get out the vote next Tuesday.

PLUS ONE: "Some people donate money. Most don't volunteer. But what if
everyone got just one more person to vote?" asks Scott Stowell. PLUS ONE (above) is a way to get involved that is modest and personal. If enough people do it, it really could make a difference. And if people send their PLUS ONE stories to hello@plusonevote.org, "we might have a nice collection of anecdotes to share for the future."

VOTEHOUR.ORG: This from Ji Lee: "According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in the last election, the #1 reason eligible voters didn't vote was because they were 'too busy.' This shouldn't happen in this important election. Let's encourage EVERYONE to vote!" Get employers to designate one hour on November 4 for voting. Show your boss the video on votehour.org.

NOV4.NET: From Brent & Andrew: "Promote the vote NOV 4. Let NOV4 help you get out the vote in 2008." This site sells media kits, stickers, iron-ons and tattoos (below) all with NOV 4 emblazoned in stark type.

AIGA GET OUT THE VOTE: "Help motivate your friends, family and others in your community to vote by spreading the AIGA Get Out the Vote campaign. AIGA invited designers from across the United States to create nonpartisan posters."

Why can't every week be National Design Week? Well, maybe that's asking for too much. Or maybe we should be careful what we wish for. In any case, on Thursday, the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum will host the National Design Awards, featuring winners Scott Stowell for Communications Design and Michael Bierut, the Design Mind. The museum also has designated this week, October 19-25, as its third National Design Week. In addition to events across the country, the Cooper-Hewitt will offer free admission to all visitors. Moreover, the museum will host a series of free public programs in the Target National Design Education Center and Arthur Ross Terrace and Garden. And don't forget that the winners of the People's Design Awards will be announced on Thursday at the awards gala: Nominees (and you can still vote) include the McCain and Obama logos, as well as Helvetica, the movie, and Design Observer, the blog. BTW, The Cooper-Hewitt invites the public to comment on the awards here.

For his 1966 Bob Dylan poster, Milton Glaser used a silhouette inspired by a self-portrait of Marcel Duchamp; the rainbow hair derived from Persian miniatures. The confabulatory result was a graphic design icon that epitomized the late ’60s. Although it is not as iconic, Glaser's 1969 poster for the industrial design icon, the Olivetti Valentine typewriter, designed by Ettore Sottsass and Perry A. King, featured another of his sublime borrowings. As Gerrit Terstiege of Form magazine notes, Glaser referenced The Death of Procris (above), painted in 1495 by Piero di Cosimo. Glaser told Form: "When I got the assignment to design a series of posters for the Valentine, I thought it would be quite charming to design each motif as a paraphrase of works from Italian art history. I particularly loved this painting by di Cosimo, above all because of the sorrowful dog in this magnificent, metaphysical landscape. It reminded me a little of the dog on the RCA Victor logo, listening to his master's voice."


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