The last two pages of the 1979 book Future Cities: Homes and Living into the 21st Century describe what will happen on earth over the next 120 years. Reproduced below are the authors’ predictions for the first ten of those 120 years, from 1980–1990. Source: Paleo-Future.com
1980–1990
- Satellites in Earth orbit beam educational programmes to many countries in the underdeveloped Third World.
- Wind turbines—modern windmill designs—are developed which can supply electricity economically.
- Domestic computers run household equipment. Electronic chores include keeping accounts, ordering supplies, suggesting menus, cooking meals and keeping a diary for the people living in the house.
- Newspapers supplied to homes either via a computer print-out or in electronic form over the TV screen.
- First domestic robots used as household “slaves” to do simple tasks.
- Terrorists steal nuclear warhead from military base. Threaten to blow up a city unless their demands are met. General realization of the appalling risks of poor security promote measures to keep atomic weapons under proper “lock and key.”
- Nuclear fuel detector-satellite placed in orbit to maintain a watchful electronic eye on the world’s supplies of atomic material.
- Good insulation and other energy-saving features built into all new houses.
- Solar panels in general use to heat water in homes. Solar-electric cells used to generate electricity for some uses, such as recharging batteries.
- World tree planting programme begun. Aim is to restore the oxygen-producing capacity of the world’s plant life. Centuries of being chopped down have reduced the world’s forest areas to a fraction of their former size. Other benefits include the production of wood-alcohol to use as a substitute for petrol in cars.
I hope I’m remembering this right, but I think it was one of my favorite teachers, Paul Elliman, who once remarked that some classes start with a program and others start with a provocation. He was often fond of the latter approach, and in the case of teaching this class, so was I. The goal of the class was to introduce students to different kinds of publications, but I chose to focus on artists’ books, catalogs, and magazines. Simply designing these forms in a vacuum, however, wouldn’t do: what makes any publication great is its context and, more importantly, its content.
The future seemed like an ideal subject. First, everyone has an opinion about it. Second, it hasn’t happened yet, so it’s impossible to be wrong. Third, especially for a group of Juniors and Seniors about to begin their professional lives, it seems like something worth stopping at least for a little while to think about.
Students began the class by researching and then trying to convey some aspect of the next 10 to 20 years in the form of a loose artists’ book or zine. Parsons students have a rich background and interest in fashion and upcoming trends, so the subject of the future fit naturally into that way of looking at the world. Some students’ visions were aesthetic, some were practical, some philosophical, some even spiritual. All were lively and resulted in illuminating and spirted conversation.
This conversation continued as we passed content around and began reforming it into other publication types, first as a sales brochure and then as a full-length magazine. Throughout, we had discussions about not only the future, but about the nature of collaboration and about the many publications and periodicals that inspired us to think about what’s coming next. —RG
PROJECTS
CLASS BLOG
http://4030class.wordpress.com/
Above: As one of his magazine posts, Scott Kellum shared the Andrew Heiskell newsletter. Scott writes, “I receive this newsletter about four times a year. Unlike what you might expect, the content of this newsletter doesn’t come on paper but comes on a cassette for blind people. Accessibility is always something that interests me. […] When inserted into my government issue 4-track tape player a brief introduction about the library is red aloud. Later books and other recordings are listed around a specific topic. The beginning of this tape is focused on topics of personal finance. Then a overview of library events, and other events in the area is given. Then new and popular books are listed.”
Once a week, share a publication you like with the class. It could be something you see in a bookstore, something from your bookshelves at home, or something you’ve read about. Write a paragraph describing why you like this publication and post at least three images of it for the class to see. Remember, a publication is anything with multiple pages (books, catalogs, brochures, reports, magazines, etc.) These posts will count toward your final class grade. You will need 12 posts in all for full credit. When you send me your preferred email address, I will send you a login for the blog to use throughout the semester. I will also use the blog to post images related to our class critiques and brainstorming for our in-class projects. You should feel free to do the same.
Note on posting images: The storage on our free class blog is quite limited. If possible, please post all images from your own Flickr account (or something similar) using Flickr’s embed codes (instructions).
A note on CLASS FORMATS
A “class crit,” where the whole class is involved in the critique, is useful because the critique not only refines the work being discussed but also becomes a teaching tool for the students listening in. As a result, everyone benefits from the ideas being shared. But repeating this format each week can also grow tiresome and counterproductive.
Whenever possible, I have tried to use a variety of class formats to keep us all engaged and learning in the right ways at the right times. “Desk crits” are adapted from architecture classes: the instructor wanders from desk to desk and students share what they’ve been working on. on these days, please use your time wisely and bring things to work on during class. “Small group crits” are better for critiquing projects in the “first draft” stage and for students who find the full-class critique format overwhelming and are more comfortable with speaking in smaller groups. “Presentations” as students to prepare short slide talks on a given subject to share with their fellow students. Students are expected to be timely and prepared. Finally, “guest crits” will introduce some valuable new perspectives into our full class critiques. When guests visit class, your attendance and attention is essential and expected.
SCHEDULE
- Class 1. Introduction to the class; grids (Casa Da Abitare); parts of a publication (NYT Magazine); intro “Language of forms”; intro “+ 10 to 20 p1”
- Class 2. Language of forms p1 (desk crits)
- Class 3. Language of forms p2 (presentations); intro “+ 10 to 20”
- Class 4. + 10 to 20 p1 (desk crits)
- Class 5. + 10 to 20 p2 (class crit)
- Class 6. + 10 to 20 p3 (guest/class crit); intro “Object of desire catalog”
- Class 7. Object of desire catalog p1 (small group crits)
- Class 8. Object of desire catalog p2 (class crit); intro “Tomorrow today”
- Class 9. Tomorrow today p1 (desk crits, presentations)
- Class 10. Tomorrow today p2 (small group crits)
- Class 11. Tomorrow today p3 (guest/class crit)
- Class 12. Tomorrow today p4 (class crit)
- Class 13. BREAK
- Class 14. Tomorrow today p5 (guest/class crit)
- Class 15. Tomorrow today p6 (working class)
- Class 16. LAUNCH PARTY
FINAL CLASS DELIVERABLES and GRADING
Please put all assignments in an envelope with your name on it for grading. This envelope should be well-organized and should include everything below (unless delivery by email is specified):
- Grid assignment
- List of blog permalinks (12 writeups and week 2 assignment by email)
- + 10 to 20 book (comp to be returned and PDF by email)
- Object of desire catalog (comp to be returned and PDF by email)
- Object of desire ad (PDF by email)
- Everything you did for Tomorrow today (initial pages, round 1 and 2 revisions, covers, etc.)
- Classwide final magazine project (PDF and print version)
Each of the three major projects (+ 10 to 20 book, Object of desire catalog, Tomorrow today) will count for 30% of your final grade.
The grid assignment, blog posts, and class participation will count for 20%.
This adds up to a total of 110%. That’s what you should always plan to devote to your work, especially during the time you’re in school. But it also creates a cushion: if one of your projects falls a little bit short in terms of its design, you can always make up for it by being an active contributor to class on the blog and during critiques. Think of it as built-in extra credit.
This class was first given in fall 2008 at Parsons School of Design in New York, NY.
