Functionalism

When I took philosophy class in the summer, we talked about the subject of existentialism which means that essence comes after existence, but that clearly only applies to humans. The idea of essence coming before existence (or form follows function) is very interesting as well. If you think about it, you can't just make a fork and decide what to do with it, first you decide the function and then the form follows.

I've used this concept of functionalism before, when I was in my AP art class senior year in high school, I decided to make art that wasn't meant to hang on the walls but be wearable at the same time.
As for classes I'm currently taking, functionalism clearly influences graphic design, specially in the area of industrial design and commercial art because a design is used for packaging that is aesthetically appealing.

An artist I've been looking at lately that seemed to follow this idea of functionalism is Frank Lloyd Wright. As an architect and furniture designer, he created functional things that were appealing.

 


As for my next project, my idea is to create an elegant looking and multitasking toothbrush holder which also holds my small hotel soaps that I've been collecting over the summer. It is meant to be a little shorter than a tooth brush, and wide enough to hold the soap and the brush. It would be round all over with a flat base of course.