Exercise 7: Making a manifesto

I have revisited this exercise. When I originally worked through this exercise a few weeks ago, I made a list of bullet points about the Manifesto I had chosen from my paperback book 100 Artists’ Manifestos from the Futurists to the Stuckists, I picked one that interested me called M87 Coop Himmelblau – Architecture Must Blaze (1980).

I can’t pinpoint what drew my attention to this particular manifesto, maybe the title intrigued me, maybe the date 1980 caught my attention, having spent my teenage years growing up in the 80’s which was the most influential time of my childhood life. Either way I’m glad I chose this manifesto, I agree with the meaning behind it, to push boundaries as far as design and architecture is concerned, to make it interesting, intriguing and desirable. I understand that they saw the 1970’s architecture as uptight and so wanted to create designs that didn’t exclude feeling worried or anxious but that make you sit up and take notice. This was a big influence on their design style.

You can judge how bad the seventies were by looking at its uptight architecture. A democracy of opinion polls and complacency thrives behind Biedermeier façades. We have no desire to build Biedermeier. Not now or no other time. We are tired of seeing Palladio and other historical masks. Because with architecture, we don’t want to exclude everything that is disquieting. We want architecture that has more. Architecture that bleeds, that exhausts, that whirls, and even breaks. Architecture that lights up, stings, rips, and tears under stress. Architecture has to be cavernous, fiery, smooth, hard, angular, brutal, round, delicate, colorful, obscene, lustful, dreamy, attracting, repelling, wet, dry, and throbbing. Alive or dead. If cold, then cold as a block of ice. If hot, then hot as a blazing wing. Architecture must blaze. 1980 (Coophimmelblau, s.d.)

So having written bullet points in my original post that was all based on my research, I then created an image in 2D. The idea was to challenge myself to do this without using any written words. I found this difficult and after speaking with my tutor I now realise that I may not have really understood the manifesto, my image was not a true representation and definitely not my best work!

With this in mind I went back to the very beginning and using the words that they adopt to their designs I have created a mixed media image in 2D that I feel best reflects some of the key words and feelings. The backdrop is a beautiful photograph of an iceberg with a reflection in the water. The Architects believe their designs should either be as cold as a block of ice or as hot as a blazing wing. I have used the pen tool to draw flames, using the colours red, orange and yellow to represent fire.

Fig. 2 – My own 2D image that I feel represents some of the key words that Coop Himmelblau use to describe their designs.

I also decided to continue practising using Adobe Illustrator by creating an image using words that Coop Himmelbau describe for their designs and architecture I then placed them in creative way using different fonts and sizes.

Fig.3 – A 2D image, with words, based on the Manifesto – M87 Coop Himmelblau, Architecture Must Blaze (1980).

Knowing that I need to keep practising with drawing and sketching, I sketched an image using a pencil, then added different mediums to give texture and character, which I did by using colour brush pens and oil pastels.