The Great Depression & Design

By Jyotsna Sharma

I decided to revisit design in America and Britain during the time of the Great Depression to see how designers responded to scarcity.

The Great War was over, businesses started making money and people actually experienced a luxury called ‘free time’. The 1920’s, or the ‘Roaring Twenties’ as they were called, saw lavish parties hosted, hem lines go up and short hair styles come into vogue. This was also referred to as the ‘Jazz Age’, as Jazz became popular; the movies, even though silent and black & white, were a favourite pastime, and with Saturdays and Sundays free, entertainment surely became popular. In America, in addition to entertainment the New York Stock Exchange was the other favourite and became the primary method of investment. People started borrowing on ‘margin’ to buy stocks and assumed that they would get greater returns on investment, which they did, but were also warned that this was a risky business and soon the warnings came true. In 1929, the stock market crashed.

As a result, people and businesses lost money on the investments. Consumers stopped buying products, which resulted in companies losing money and in turn, firing employees. Banks lost money as people started withdrawing their savings. Therefore, banks stopped lending money; there was a collapse in credit flow, which in turn led to a collapse in consumption causing deflation. This saw the America that had become very rich in the aftermath of the World War I plunge into depression. The United States government imposed the ‘Smoot-Hawley tariff’, which was intended to increase the demand of US produced goods in America by allowing fewer imports into the country. However, this resulted in the disintegration of worldwide trade and led to global depression. The other factor commonly attributed to the spread of global depression was the ‘gold-standard’ (a system that linked a country’s currency to gold). This system should have been abandoned after the First World War but was still in use even during such a time of credit scarcity.

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Great Depression - Unemployed march in Canada

The Great Depression affected nearly all countries worldwide. The effects of the Great Depression were disastrous; in Britain by 1931, there were three million unemployed people. By 1935, in France, the level of production had dropped to what it was before World War I. The German economy was badly hit and it had six million unemployed due to the collapse of American loans in 1928-29.

Every industrialised nation suffered as a result of the Great Depression and the collapse of world trade. Yet, despite the havoc the depression wreaked on global industry, there were some successes, such as Chevrolet (a deferrable purchase) and Proctor & Gamble (essential consumables). These companies continued to spend on advertising and innovation, which in turn helped them gain market share and remain profitable during that time of scarcity. In general, the Great Depression brought about a change in consumer spending habits primarily because of a lack of disposable income. People started looking for value driven purchases as opposed to luxury purchases.

In America, during the depression, people who could spend money were prejudiced against sending their wealth to other nations. This gave rise to fresh functional forms that were a result of current needs, and helped push the designer to the forefront. These forms assimilated new materials, could be mass-produced and turned their backs on the designs and techniques used in the 1920’s. Art Deco with all its opulence fell out of favour. ‘The Modernistic’ (the influence of Art Deco in America)

with its zigzag and asymmetrical patterns, was cast aside too. Favoured was ‘streamlined design’ also called ‘depression modern’. Based on the principle of aerodynamics, streamlined design was born out of the need for speed. Designers found that a teardrop shape met less resistance and a streamlined shape could remove as many wind deflecting obstacles as possible. This streamlined form was ovoid, smooth, continuous, had an unbroken surface of gleaming steel. Streamlining soon started being applied to objects such as furniture, toasters, electrical appliances, false teeth and even coffins.

Raymond Loewy, also called the father of Industrial design, is credited with bringing streamlining to America. His first major success was the Coldspot refrigerator for Sears in 1934.

Loewy started off as an illustrator. His illustrations for Harpers Bazaar led him to design windows for Macy’s, which weren’t well received by the management at that time. However, his later designs brought him acclaim.

Allen Coldspot ad ( Flickr - All Creative Commons)

The previous Sears refrigerator was a box-like structure; Loewy’s streamlined design, along with rustproof shelves, increased sales of the refrigerator from 60,000 units to 275,000 units by 1936. This success led Sears to ask Loewy for a series of three annual model changes. “If you have two products which do not differ in terms of price, function and quality, it is the product’s attractive external appearance which wins the race.” This is the principle that Loewy recognized and employed in his designs. He rightly said of himself, “I can say of myself that I have made the mundane side of the 20th century more beautiful”. In addition to the Coldspot refrigerator, he used streamlined design for cars such as the Hupmobile, which he designed in 1932 but was finally produced in 1934, and even cigarette packets such as Lucky Strikes. Loewy started off as an illustrator. His illustrations for Harpers Bazaar led him to design windows for Macy’s, which wasn’t well received by the management at that time. However, his later designs brought him acclaim.

Another noted designer of the time, Russel Wright, is credited with bringing modernism into the American home. Russel Wright has been called America’s answer to the Bauhaus. He was an industrial designer, who designed streamlined furniture and dinnerware that was cost effective, looked good and could be mass-produced. Americans, who valued the simple Bauhaus designs but could not afford to buy expensive products of Breuer or Le Corbusier during the years of the depression, embraced his designs. During the 1930’s, 40’s and even in the 50’s his designs were found in nearly every middle-class US home. He is best known for American modern dinnerware with its simple rimless form, which was a great success with the American public. His other success was in 1934, when he designed a line of furniture and accessories that was displayed at Bloomingdale’s department store in New York.

William Creswell - 1927 Magazine ad for Hupmobile Eight( Flickr - All Creative Commons)

Karen Green - Russel Wright for Steubenville Pottery, 1937 ( Flickr - All Creative Commons)

Meanwhile, in Britain, modernism flourished despite the Depression. Norman Foster attributed the beginning of modernism in Britain to the arrival of émigré architects such as Marcel Breuer, Walter Gropius and Laszlo Moholy- Nagy in the mid 1930’s, even though it is widely believed that modernism was already present in Britain as far back as the late 1910’s and 1920’s. During those decades it was seen in the form of an interest in new materials and technology, in simplified forms devoid of ornamentation and in an engagement with universal design principles instead of any specific ones. However, it was in the 30’s that modernism truly thrived in Britain. Architects such as Etchells, Coates and Chermayeff, in the1930’s, spoke about the use of new materials (like steel, steel-concrete and glass), new sciences, and a need for a fitting expression of the contemporary times.

One of the pioneers of the modern movement in Britain was Wells Coates. He is best known for Lawn road flats in Hampstead, London. He was commissioned to design these flats in 1929, based on the principle of ‘minimum dwelling’ by Le Corbusier. The flats were made of reinforced concrete and were aimed at young professionals. He believed that furniture should be a part of the building. Therefore, the flats had divans, side tables, mirrors etc. all built in.

Coates, and fellow modernists Raymond McGrath and Serge Chermayeff were invited to design the interiors of the BBC studio in 1930. Coates’s design, of the suspended microphone for the BBC studio was very well received because it could be moved to any part of the studio and still remain perfectly balanced.

J.L. Ordaz - Lawn Road Flats 1 - ( Flickr - All Creative Commons)Anton Raath - Lucky Strike Vintage Advertising From Life Magazine, January 14 1946

( Flickr - All Creative Commons)

The reason for the success of his design was that Coates, like all the other modernists of that era, believed in functionality. He also endeavoured to reduce costs while allowing the end product to be aesthetically pleasing.

A mention of the London Underground station architecture is a must when discussing modernism in Britain during the 1930’s. Frank Pick was the vice chairman and the CEO of the London Transport Passenger Board, which oversaw buses, trams and the railways. Pick said, “We are going to build our stations upon the modern extension railway to the most modern pattern. We are going to discard entirely all ornament. We are going to build in reinforced concrete.”

Pick wanted to turn the London Underground into a work of art; a combination of modern architecture, painting and modern sculpture would be a part of it. Initially, Charles Holden was commissioned by Pick to design the Piccadilly Circus Station in 1928 and the London Underground headquarters at 55 Broadway in 1929.

In 1930, Pick toured Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden with Holden to study the modern architecture of those countries and to assess what could be applied to Britain. The result was modern British structures with sweeping curves that had geometric detailing, exposed brickwork and concrete. These were the glass and brick stations at Boston Manor, Sudbury Town, Arnos Grove, Southgate and Oakwood, all designed by Charles Holden.

In his attempt to make the underground more popular and have people use it to visit London attractions, Pick commissioned artists to make posters for the underground.

It is evident through this account that even through the hardships of the Great Depression, modernism and streamlined design flourished. These were designs where simplicity of form had become paramount.

The reason for the success of his design was that Coates, like all the other modernists of that era, believed in functionality. He also endeavoured to reduce costs while allowing the end product to be aesthetically pleasing.

Tom Brandt - 1921 Hupmobile ( Flickr - All Creative Commons)

Rocor - Marcel Breuer “Wassily” Armchair, 1925. Chrome plated steel, cotton canvas upholstery(1902-1981) Metropolitan Museum ( Flickr - All Creative Commons)

ChakraviewBy The Wall Art Team

Serendipity Arts Festival opened on the 6th of April at the Bikaner House. A part of the festival was CHAKRAVIEW, an installation curated by Rajshree Pathy and designed and put together by scenographer Sumant Jayakrishnan, design strategist Avinash Kumar, artist Hanif Kureshi and designer Rutva Trivedi.

The installation attempts to showcase modern India while referencing our rich cultural heritage, using traditional textiles and ancient mythology, with modern design innovations. The work presents a unique blend of the social, political and religious themes that will always characterise this country.

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CHAKRAVIEW  was first presented as India’s official entry at the inaugural London Design Biennale in 2016 and was very well received. The theme of the Biennale, and therefore the project, was ‘Utopia by Design’. According to Sumant Jayakrishnan, utopia is a state one is always trying to attain, similar to the task of trying to balance the chakras in one’s body. They worked to create this installation in an attempt to portray the multiple utopias that India emulates.

Among the comments on it was that of Dr Turner’s. “Your installation was such a highlight of our event. With its mirrored floor, hanging textiles, and walls of street signs, it was definitely the most vibrant of our exhibits, and certainly one of the most photographed.” Dr. Christopher Turner - Director, London Design Biennale

At the current Art Festival the curator of the installation announced “We are delighted to be exhibiting CHAKRAVIEW in New Delhi in association with The Serendipity Arts Festival, as part of our shared ambition to promote creativity and innovation in art and design in India. Following an extremely positive reception at the London Design Biennale in 2016, where the installation invited viewers to pause in wonderment at the abundance of India and the myriad emotions that are conveyed through this work, we are thrilled to be exhibiting it in the place from where it draws its inspiration.” Rajshree Pathy, Founder, India Design Forum

The installation is supported by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Govt. of India, Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Aadyam, the Aditya Birla Group weaver’s initiative. It is on view at the Bikaner House till the 16th of April. View more on www.indiadesignforum.com 

Scenographer Sumant Jayakrishnan inside the installation

Rare Studios By Madhurima Chaudhuri de

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Rare Studios was launched by artist and designer, Revati Jayakrishnan as part of her creative journey. With the constant need to experiment and combine, her forte includes ceramics, glass, paper and jewellery making. From installations to functional objects, she integrates unconventional materials and designs with age old techniques adding a unique touch. Yet, what truly sets Revati’s work aside is the conscious decision of creating a dialogue and an interactive atmosphere for the viewer, an extension of her own interaction with the artistic process.

Dabbling with craft from a young age motivated Revati’s decision to go to design school instead of being a doctor or a lawyer. It was at the Indian Institute of Crafts and Design, Jaipur that she developed a holistic foundation and ultimately specialised in Fired Material Application. However, the most enriching experience in terms of traditional skill building was her interaction and training under artisans, potters and craftsmen. It was this creative process which fuelled a deep appreciation for handmade objects made from scratch. A process which she further pursued at Farnham as a postgraduate student.

For Revati, the need to explore technical aspects through extensive research is vital as she often derives and develops her designs from this process. Also,inspired by Islamic geometric patterns and Celtic designs, her artworks reflect the idea of repetition marked by an infinite effect. Using sustainable and often recycled materials she translates two dimensional patterns into three dimensional products. With unique artworks such as cerigami

(a combination of ceramics with the usual paper based origami), glass dokra - Revati always has a new take on things. With several new projects underway, we can’t wait to see the new creations she has in store. View more on www.rare-studios.com

Choreographed geometry

Terracotta Tie-dye

Harappan influenced mural pottery

Hand-made jewellery Hand-made jewellery

Dhokra Glass

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