Design Basics. Form from Concept

Author: Wu Lieyan (Editor)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-12-01
Features: The form derived from ideas is undoubtedly a "meaningful form." It differs from the organic forms originating from nature and distinguishes itself from the compositional forms existing within architectural bodies. At the same time, it transcends the general concept of formal beauty in nature, no longer constructing formal order from external visual elements but generating the meaning of forms from within. It builds expressive styles in concepts, symbols, and culture. It is essential to emphasize that here, the meaning of form is no longer the so-called laws of formal beauty—such as unity in diversity, symmetry, balance, proportion, scale, rhythm, rhyme, density, and void. It can be said that any visual style or expressive approach has become a certain form or possesses a sense of form. These include realistic styles with anatomical, perspective, light and shadow, color, and compositional techniques, as well as expressive forms guided by technical theories; modernist styles with abstract compositional expressions of points, lines, planes, volumes, and colors; and many accidental and automatic, unconscious textures. They also include postmodernist styles such as "anti-form," "play," "process, behavior, improvisation," "no center," "syntax," and "uncertainty." Additionally, they encompass installation, performance, video, land art, minimalism, neo-expressionism, and conceptual art. In fact, as some researchers have pointed out, contemporary art has surpassed the so-called realm of fine arts, and therefore, there are no pure norms or standards of visual beauty. The original laws of formal beauty have also lost their restrictive meaning. What is needed is the original creation of the overall form or the achievement of irreproducibility. The techniques may include transplantation, borrowing, metaphor, irony, context, collage, aggregation, play, magic, mischief, and illusion.