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Research team


The 20th century saw profound changes in the physical, social and human geography of our planet. World wars, political and economic revolutions and the division of countries and peoples were some of the consequences of the industrial era that began in the 19th century.

The world witnessed the process of implementation of new political regimes and in some cases dared to build new societies, signaling new paradigms.

Technological development was the special leitmotif of the industrial symphony, which was almost always orchestrated in the great urban centers. The strengthening and organization of the working class were fundamental to the shaping of societies sustained economically by mass consumer goods. The idea of growth was allied to the demand for new jobs, nourishing the base of a model centered on the rationalization and organization of work.

These issues were widely publicized. One of the vehicles of communication most used for the quick spread of models was the printed poster.

Poster Gallery: Utopian Constructions is a small sample of the types of posters that were published in the most diverse contexts. Thematically, the preference was for posters that contained the spread and propaganda of some of the values that characterized these new social constructs in their immediate or underlying intentions.

The reiteration of standardized gestures that curiously and simultaneously illustrate different ideas and models is easily visible. The same publicity strategy is shown to be effective for contents and intentions diametrically opposed.

It is intriguing to observe the initial presentations of many political leaders as bearers of messages of peace and harmony, for, some years later, these same leaders are portrayed in the command of armies with impressive military might. The techniques of visual ridicule of the enemy seem to be the same, regardless of the country or model that produced some of these posters.

It is interesting to witness the diverse metamorphoses in the representation of women. If at the beginning of the 20th century, women were generally portrayed as objects of contemplation and beauty, during the revolutions and wars, a new feminine image arises, capable this time of substituting or complementing men at work or in national defense. After the wars and revolutions, in some bourgeois societies, women return to the role of housewife, this time operating sophisticated household electrical appliances and enjoying their comfort.

If in the bourgeois societies the idea of happiness lies in the leisure of contemplating endless natural landscapes, for the new socialized societies, happiness is found in collective work and in participating in production. In this last case the landscape is bounded and transformed by human labor.

If the bourgeois world prefers a unique, clean and individual elegance, in the socialized societies the work uniform carries with it the marks of dedication of this new man.

In the case of the printed poster, a significant technical evolution can be seen, one that goes from the nearly handcrafted ways of printing, such as woodcutting, silk screen and lithograph, to contemporary graphic production, based above all on offset, which made large runs more affordable and offered enormous chromatic and photographic possibilities.

In the aesthetic area (layout), typographical organization led to the standardization of vast families of fonts. The filling out of visual space underwent marked change with the advent of photography, which began to dispute the monopoly of illustration and brought a new graphic identity upon embracing the industrial design of the post-Bauhaus era.

With a database of more than 5400 posters from many countries, a system of classification and search was developed which allows for the establishment of links and crossing references that lend higher complexity to the interpretation of this visual material of such great impact in recent history.

 

 

How to navigate

On the site, each poster was classified according to its visual elements, as a first priority, but also according to the social, political and cultural context correlating to the content of the poster and the time of its creation. These elements were organized into key words that, in turn, belong to more general categories. Thus, the search can be carried out within a broad category or, for a more refined search, using specific key words. There are four types of searches on the site, using image notes (visual notes indexed directly to the images), the category menu, a free textual search and an advanced search.

The search using image notes was created specifically for the project since it combines viewing elements for which one wishes to search with the characteristics of a textual search. Through this type of search, the user can view visual elements that the researchers have deemed important in a poster. Each element is highlighted and functions as an "image note" of the poster. To use this search, the user visually selects the elements of interest directly on the poster. Upon making a selection, the elements go to a search box below the poster and become search parameters. In this way users can navigate through the posters and, when they discover one or more indexed visual elements that they find interesting, can perform a search using this or these elements to view all the posters that contain the element and how it appears in each poster. When more than one element is chosen, the search is carried out by association. For example, if the user chooses the visual elements "flag" and "emblem/logo", the system will return posters that contain a combination of these elements. Posters that contain only one of the elements will not be included in the search results. The search using image notes is particularly interesting in the case of the present project, since various groups of posters present similar visual patterns and uses of the chosen visual elements.

Another type of search can be carried out using the menu. It is the simplest search, and its operation is based on the selection of an item from the menu so that the posters associated with that item can then be viewed. For example, if the user selects the category "Country" and the key word "China", all posters associated with the keyword "China" will be returned. In this type of search, it is only possible to select one item at a time to define the search.

In the third type, the free textual search, the user types into a text box whatever words are desired. If these words are not key words, the system will not return any results. For this reason the first step is to understand that the words that already exist in the system, and can be found in the menu, must be used. Here the search operates by summing the words. For example, if the words "hand" and "satisfaction" are entered, the system will return all posters associated with one or the other word. The search is the sum of the posters that have one or both of the two words.

If the user prefers a more refined search, an advanced search can be performed on a page specifically for this purpose. On this page the categories in which one wishes to perform a search are chosen first and then the words in each category. In the advanced search, the chosen words are combined. If we perform the same search above, selecting the categories "Visual elements" and "Social behavior", and then the key words "hand" and "satisfaction", the system will present the posters that contain the two associated words simultaneously and will return only those posters in which the chosen key words intersect. The advanced search is more refined and allows for greater precision, but the selection of many words should be avoided for proper functioning.

 

 

Research team

Principal Investigator:


Prof. Heitor Capuzzo
School of Art, Design and Media
College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
Nanyang Technological University - Singapore



Co-Principal Investigators:


Prof. Marilia Lyra Bergamo
Escola de Belas Artes
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais - Brazil

Prof. Carlos Falci
Escola de Belas Artes
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais - Brazil

Prof. Manuel Reis - Brazil


ADM IT support:


Chan Cheng Seng, Darren
Assistant Director (Technical Operations)
School of Art, Design and Media
Nanyang Technological University - Singapore

Lau Kheng Hock
Network Engineer
School of Art, Design and Media
Nanyang Technological University - Singapore

Wendy Chua Chiew Ping
System Administrator
School of Art, Design and Media
Nanyang Technological University - Singapore

Melvin Loh Shang Wee
System Administrator
School of Art, Design and Media
Nanyang Technological University - Singapore


ADM Administrative support:


Lew Huey Shan
Assistant Manager (Research)
School of Art, Design and Media
Nanyang Technological University - Singapore

Serene Seah Mui Choo
Executive Officer
School of Art, Design and Media
Nanyang Technological University - Singapore