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12
By
Angus
Campbell
Sen
i
or
lect111r
,
Department
of
lndntrllllnlt
•.
U.!Yerslty
11
Johuub
11
1.
Shop
shelves
throughout
South
Africa
evidence
an
ever
increasing
and
daunting
selection
of
products
for
sale.
Many
competing
products
that
are
designed
to
ｰ･ｲｦｯｲｾ＠
the
same
function.
contain
similar
technologies.
are
ｰｲｩ｣ｾ､＠
similarly
and
perform
equally
well.
Could
it
therefore
be
said
that
i•
is
ｴｨｾ＠
style
of
the
product
that
is
becoming
increasingly
important
in
the
sale
of
manufactured
items?
lf
:his
is
true.
style
becomes
an
increasingly
important
and
powerful
tool
to
be
utilised
by
designers
in
order
to
allow
them
to
compete
on
aesthetic
and
emotional
ｧｲｯｵｮ､ｾＮ＠
not
those
of
function
and
price.
National
style
has
also
been
used
for
many
decades
internationally
as
a
marketing
technique
to
further
the
sales
of
company's
products.
whether
locally
or
abroad.
National
style
in
products
can
be
seen
as
s
very
powerful
and
lucrative
myth
whereby
the
consumer
is
not
simply
buying
a
physical
product
but
also
the
idea
of
the
product.
Product
design
has
thus
become
an
extremely
important
design
discipline
for
commerce.
with
multinational
companies
generally
retaining
their
own
in-house
design
teams
and
consultancies
in
order
ｾｯ＠
be
internationally
competitive.
Product
design.
as
with
other
design
disciplines.
has
a
craditionally
Western
history.
Product
design
in
South
Africa
ts
taught
with
a
similar
syllabus
and
in
a
similar
manner
to
product
design
internationally.
Industrial
design
history
uses
the
Britibh,
American.
Scandinavian
and
European
designers
as
"he
benchmarks.
lt
is
in
this
frame
of
mind
ｾｨ｡ｴＬ＠
as
a
designer.
it
became
apparent
that
as
a
developing
nation.
there
is
a
gap
in
the
South
African
product
design
industry.
There
is
an
underdevelopment
of
styles
in
South
Atrica
that
can
be
regionally
or
even
nationally
located
mainly
because
of
a
slavish
adherence
to
Western
models
of
style.
This
lacuna
in
｡ｴｾ･ｮ､ｩｮｧ＠
to
influences
on
our
own
back
door
means
that
there
are
oppor•unities
for
South
African
compani
s
to
differentiate
on
the
basis
of
style.
COMMUNICATING
STYLE
AND
CULTURAL
IDENTITY
The
culture
out
of
which
styles
are
born
may
be
very
influential
in
determining
the
character
of
these
particular
styles.
However.
globalisation
undermines
cultures
which
were
once
homogenous.
so
that
they
become
multilingual.
and
Lhere
is
an
ｾｲｯｳｩｯｮ＠
of
traditional
languages
and
values
in
favour
of
economically
desirable
lingua
francas
and
commercially
inspired
values.
This
process
of
pluralisation
in
terms
of
culture.
religion
and
social
values
undermines
the
individuality
of
the
culture
with
a
content-less.
but
widely
understood
'world
style'.
For
this
reason
designers
need
to
cre.ote
culturally
dist'"inct
styles
that
stand
in
opposition
to
this
'world
style'
since
it
is
the
style
of
products
that
are
paramount
to
their
success.
There
are
so
many
products
on
the
market
using
similar
technologies
of
an
equal
quality
that
style
becomes
a
crucial
tool
to
allow
differentiacion
with
which
to
make
a
product
potentially
more
marketable.
Likewise.
it
is
very
ｯｦｾ･ｮ＠
the
market
that
detetmines
the
style:
an
unacceptable
style
will
not
sell
readily.
so
manufacturers
are
ｯｦｴｾｮ＠
forced
to
satisfy
market
tastea
be£ore
·progressive'
design.
The
idea
of
national
style
can
still
function
as
a
lucrative
marketing
technique
.
For
instance
.
it
is
possible
to
view
the
efforts
of
Audi
as
supporting
a
national
style
in
order
to
perpetuate
the
myth
of
'German
engineering'
.
Audi's
sales
slogan
is
only
ever
expressed
in
German -
··
vorsprung
durch
TechniY.".
The
perception
that
Audi's
products
are
superior
in
quality
to
other
cars
on
the
market
is
being
maintained
through
its
styling
and
advertising
under
the
guise
of
'German
engineering'.
lt
seems
manufacturing
companies
like
Audi
want
to
support
the
idea
ｯｾ＠
a German
nostalgic
.
playful
and
outdoors.
ln
this
way
novelty.
or
changes
in
style
maintain
the
momentum
in
the
consumer
market.
How
does
one
go
about
creating
a
style
.
or
cultural
ｩ､･ｮｴｩｾｹ＠
that
could
be
perceived
by
Westerners
as
'influenced
by
Africa'?
It
will
be
important
to
create
a
style
that
will
be
desirable
to
the
West.
This
means
that
what
the
West
appreciates
as
being
'African'
or
'from
Africa'
has
to
be
better
understood
in
order
to
create
an
accessible
product
within
a
design
conscious
segment
of
European
and
American
markets.
There
are
three
elements
in
African
artefacts
that
differ
from
those
in
the
West
and
offer
opportunities
for
an
approach
national
style
to
help
perpetuate
their
brand.
Dominic
Strinati
(1995:225)
in
his
text
on
Postmodernism
feels
that
'images
dominate
narrative·.
Strinati
questions
how
deeply.
or
not.
consumers
probe
the
values
behind
the
signs
when
purchasing/
using
products
-
this
is
not
a
discussion
of
function
versus
style
but
more
one
of
style
versus
meaningfulness.
What
is
significant
is
that
style
is
increasingly
important
in
deciding
which
variant
and
for
what
reasons
(to
be
seen
to
be
as
'in',
stylish
and
hip
etc
. )
to
the
creation
an
African
style.
These
elements
are
the
contradictory
views
by
Westerners
and
Africans
of
African
aesthetics
.
abstraction
and
authenticity.
By
understanding
what
Westerners
expect
of
African
aesthetics
.
abstract
ion and
authenticity
and
understanding
the
African
perspective
with
relation
to
their
artefacts
various
devises
are
discovered
for
use
by
the
designer
to
create
an
African
style.
AESTHETICS
Aesthetics
from a
Western
perspective
relate
to
principles
of
good
taste
and
appreciation
of
beauty.
'lhen
trying
to
create
a
product
that
is
aesthetically
from among many
we
purchase.
For
example
.
if
ten
｣｡
ｭ
･ｾ｡ｳ＠
function
in
exactly
the
same
manner.
then
style
is
the
only
criterion
by
which
one
can
choose
which
one
to
purchase
.
Style
was
once
a
marker
of
status:
it
is
now
increasingly
a
marker
of
lifestyle.
This
is
to
say.
ｳｴ｡ｾｳ＠
was
once
a
matter
of
buying
a
superior
product
with
hidden
values
of
integrity,
but
now
that
·
superior
product
'
is
less
easily
distinguishable.
There
is
a
proliferation
of
alternative
lifestyles
which
are
now
represented
by
visu
al
styles
:
sophisticated.
pleasing
in
a
Western
context
some
process
of
design
must
take
place
.
'
Design
'
is
a
Western
construct.
it
is
therefore
inherently
Western,
and
in
this
sense
it
is
not
the
best
starting
point
for
discovering
a n
ew
｡･ｳｾｨ･ｴｩ｣Ｏｳｴｹｬ･＠
which
originates
in
Africa
where
the
term
'design'
is
necessarily
imported.
The
very
concept
of
design
as
defined
by
the
West
is
as
foreign
to
traditional
Africa
as
is
the
concept
of
art.
Many
African
objects
are
not
regarded
as
aesthetic
objects
in
their
society
despite
the
fact
that
they
contai
n
images
.
for
example
when
Dominique
Zahan.
recognised
as
one
of
the
great
French
ethnologists
and
Africanists
of
the
last
century.
talks
about
the
horizontal
ciwara
13
14
headrest
from
Mali
(Fig.
1).
used
by
:he
Samana
peoples
in
a
dance
during
agricultural
work
in
order
to
make
the
harvest
successful.
he
ｳｴ｡ｾ･ｳＬＢｴｨ｡ｴ＠
very
often.
if
not
al•ays.
African
art
objects
are
created
for
the
goals
of
ritual."
(2000:42).
Yet.
the
West
gives
:hesc
African
objec:s
'Art'
status.
altering
their
status
so
as
to
suit
Western
preoccupation
and
in
the
process
losing.
for
Westerners.
the
values
(ritual)
that
are
important
African
artefacts
and
clRssifying
them
as
aesthetic
art
works
before
their
function
in
African
society
removes
the
artefacts
from
ｾｨ･ｩｲ＠
intended
purposes.
The
usefulness
of
objects
i.
of
paramount
importance
in
traditional
Africa
ｷｨ･ｾｨ･ｲ＠
the
object
is
des.gned
for
ritual
or
everyday
use.
This
is
not
to
say
that
Africans
do
not
regard
their
objects
with
qualitative
judgement.
but
a
·useless'
chair
such
as
Gerrit
Rietveld's
Red/Slue
chair
(Fig.
2)
would
be
regarded
ss
absurd.
since
it
is
a
chair
designed
primarily
to
be
looked
at
and
not
to
be
sat
on.
Use
is
for
the
Samana.
Anthropologist
Wyatt
McCatfey
(1998:
218)
quotes
Danto:
"Neither
·art'
nor
'primi•ive
art'
is
a
class
of
objects
existing
in
the
world.
to
be
ｩ､･ｮｾｩｦｩ･､＠
and
circumscribed.
Both
are
categories
of
our
thought
and
practice:
ｾｨ･ｹ＠
are
related
as
subcategories
of
a
broader
ｩｮｳｴｩｾｵｴｩｯｮ｡ｬ＠
set.
and
have
evolved
continuously
as
part
of
the
history
of
the
west."
Three
things
according
to
McGaffey
important
to
the
West
but
not
as
a
means
of
differentiation
or.
as
for
the
Bamana.
as
a
source
of
ritual
meaningfulness.
Therefore
if
the
market
for
the
practical
research
is
the
West.
a
desi&ner
may
entertain
ideas
of
beauty
or
stylishness
before
use.
in
creating
an
African
style
because
the
Westerner
expects
an
African
artefact
ｾｯ＠
be
treated
as
art.
A
traditional
African
craftsman
would
however
create
a
chair
that
would
firstly
Qatisfy
ritual
meaningfulness
before
any
consideration
of
aeGthe-ics
could
bo
attached
to
it.
(1998:220)
are
required
in
order
to
classify
a work
as
art:
the
object:
a
critic
or
connoisseur:
and
a
public.
Someone
is
needed
to
mediate
the
object.
just
as
an
ins:i:ution.
such
as
a
2useum.
is
required
to
authenticate
an
African
artefact.
Art
needs
to
be
correctly
exhibited
in
an
institutionally
acceptable
space.
or
publication.
This
method
of
placing
an
object
on
a
pedestal
or
f,aming
it
removes
it
from
its
or-sinal
context.
Sy
taking
ABSTRACTION
rn
African
｡ｾｴＮ＠
abstraction
is
used
to
highlight
parts
of
the
whole:
the
reduction
in
size
of
the
ciwara's
body
gives
:he
head
maximum
emphasis
(Fig.
1).
Adjustments
are
made
to
form
for
ｲｩｾｵ｡ｬ＠
or
metaph
rical
purposes.
The
formal
｣ｨ｡ｲ｡｣ｾ･ｲｩｳｴｩ｣ｳ＠
of
traditional
African
art
inspired
the
West
(Modernism)
and
not
the
meaning
behind
them:
in
fact
these
characteristics
regenerated
the
whole
of
Western
arL.
WPstern
artists
seemed
to
be
unaware
or
not
concerned
with
the
reasons
for
African
'abstraction'
-
they
merely
uppropriated
the
abstraction
found
in
traditional
African
objects.
In
the
West
abstraction
ic
an
intPllectual
process
whereas
in
traditional
African
societies
meaning
is
invested
in
objerts.
a
meaning
that
accrues
from
empirical
experience
and
this
meaning
is
expressed
by
abstracting
elements
in
an
artefact.
For
example.
Zahan
feels
the
growth
patterns
o!
the
groundnut
arc
translated
1n
metaphoric
terms
in
the
above
Sidney
Kasflr
(1999:91)
feels
that
only
pre
·
colonial
artefacts
have
any
value
(authenticity)
to
the
West
due
to
the
notion
that
colonialism
destroyed
African
culture
as
opposed
tJ
stimu'ating
a
transformation.
Tht
use
of
pre·colonial
artefacts
as
a
designer·s
only
avenue
of
inspiration
would
｢ｾ＠
limiting
since
the
availability
of
pre
colonial
artefacts
has
dwindled.
ｾｨｩｳ＠
can
be
attributed
to
the
West'
n
tlun
ot
these
artefacts
｡ｵｴｨｵｮｴｩｾ＠
ty
and
therPfore
value
in
Western
collections.
If
on
the
other
hand
one
engages
with
Oguibe·s
(1999:320)
stance
that
the
West
should
no
ground
(largP.
detailed
head)
and
below
ground
(small.
simplified
body}
realisation
of
form
in
the
horizontal
ciwara
(2000:38).
Although
abstraction
is
used
by
Westerners
to
create
designs
(Modernism)
it
is
the
African
experience
of
abstraction
that
is
important
in
the
case
of
this
research.
By
looking
at
how
Western
abstraction
a!fects
or
determines
Western
aesthetics
and
the
internal
considerations
for
African
act.
this
longer
be
permitted
to
define
'Africanness'.
radical
departures
from
pre
·
colonial
objects
become
available
to
the
designer.
The
idea
that
Africans
define
what
can
be
classified
as
authentically
African
would
allow
the
designer
freedom
to
draw
on
many
sources
that
inform
the
experience
of
the
individual
living
in
Africa.
Thia
does
not
ｾ･｡ｮ＠
that
design
will
benefit
from
the
use
of
stereotypically
African
concepts.
Design
that
draws
on a
multiple
African
heritage
may
even
incorporate
features
of
Western
design.
since
globalisation
has
eroded
any
sense
contrast
could
create
a new
approach
for
a
no1w
style.
AUTHENTICITY
What marks
of
Ｇ｡ｵｴｨ･ｮｴｩ｣ｩｾｹﾷ＠
would a
Western
consumer
be
looking
for
in
a
contemporary
design?
This
would
be
important
in
order
to
create
an
African
design.
Designs
moy
need
to
refer
directly
to
pre•colonial
objects
in
order
to
satisfy
the
Western
consumer:
art
historian
of
?ure
nationalism.
and
boundaries
between
｣ｯｵｮｾｲＡ･ｳ＠
are
Western
constructs.
The
difficulty
of
this
approach
would
be
to
redefine
and
challenge
the
West's
perception
of
African
authenticity
.
so
that
the
incorporation
of
testing
or
alien
features
inspired
by
tradi:ional
African
artefacts
still
ensures
that
the
'African
style'
will
be
seen
as
authentic
by
other
Africans
and
especially
the
Western
buyers.
15