Designing in the here and now

The layers of history in Govan are uppermost in my thoughts just now – it is making me look at my surroundings with different eyes….thinking about who made things and why…what is design and how is it valued in historical terms....how are shapes and themes repeated and re-interpreted?

inscription on the Pearce Institute - ending '...time present is the only time for thee'

Govan's Subway Station ….a designed present in the 1970’s

The new Riverside Museum - a contemporary designed present

The Aitken Fountain ....Victorian design re-imagined for now (this fountain has a fascinating history - it was erected by public subscription in honour of a local doctor - the sculpted baby went missing at some point in the past and its absence was celebrated in a public art project by Colin Begg in 2009 ('Wheres Baby?') the fountain has recently been restored and a replica of the Baby created. The fountain is the centrepiece of the new Govan Cross square that will be opened to the public on June 1st 2011

30 year old Graffiti……what is the difference between this and a spray can ‘tag’?….so hard to imagine someone heading out of a night with a brush and a tin of gloss paint….retro graffiti anyone?

Govan war memorial – I find the niaivety of these figures incredibly moving……not difficult to imagine this being created by workers in the shipyards rather than ‘professional artists’

obviously the word  ‘designer’ has gone through some changes too….

next blogpost in this series