Mapping a Graphic Genome: A Cross-Cultural Comparison between Korean and Japanese Designers

要旨

In this paper, the author proposes substitution of the biotechnical term genome for the aesthetic term style. The author does so in order to argue that a graphic designer's style is not purely an independent representation in visual form of factors interacting with free will, individual beliefs and personal talents. His or her style is also influenced by tacit knowing, to use Michael Polyani's words, by the phylogenetic factors imbued by a cultural context. The author posits that just as a map of genome - the collectivity of genes and chromosomes - explain the life structure and condition of an organism, it would be possible to trace a cultural genome by identifying designers' thoughts and actual works. What kinds of historical contexts, subject matters and inner logics are interwoven in the works of contemporary Korean and Japanese graphic designers? In what ways can such interrelated conditions and perceptions be compared and related to one another? For specific analyses in this paper, the author uses selected works by designers who participated in the exhibition, Contemporary East Asian Typographic Arts, held at the Seoul Art Center in late fall, 1999. The designers included in the exhibition are deemed well suited for this research, since the organizing committee of the exhibition carefully selected representative designers from Japan, China and Korea. Unfortunately no critical interpretation came out of this exhibit. The fact that it opened and closed without receiving criticism reflects the state of the field, which in Thomas Kuhn's words, remain in a pre-paradigmatic state. That is, it is a field of knowledge without a shared view of its concerns, common models of action and judgment and a baseline from which to evaluate particular exploration. From this missing inquiry, the issue of mapping a graphic genome emerges. Purpose of research The purpose of this paper is to consider the human graphic designer (a biological being) and his/her work as a genome, the collective grouping of genes and chromosomes as discussed in genetic engineering. By means of this conceptual ploy, this paper intends to provide some data for drawing a genome map of Korean and Japanese graphic designers. Background: the sampling method and delimitations On September 4, 1999, an exhibition titled Contemporary East Asian Typographic opened at Seoul Arts Center, Calligraphy Hall. Included in this exhibition were seventy works of typographic design, fifty visual art works and fifty works of calligraphy; they collectively embodied the ecology of East Asian graphic design. While offering a good opportunity to appreciate from a comparative point of view the present progression of contemporary graphic design in the Northeast Asian region, the exhibition was regrettably under attended not only by the general public but also by insiders in the field of design. Under the theme of typography, the exhibition brought together rarely seen works by Korean, Japanese and Chinese designers. Some of the participating designers were: from Korea, Young-Jae Cho, Byung-Kyoo Chung, Sang-Soo Ahn, Ki-Heun Shur, Joo-Sung Kim; from China, Taikeung Kan, Jingren Lu, Alan Chan, Xu Wang, Jiaying Han, Yungsung Hwang; from Japan, Ikko Tanaka, Masayoshi Nakajo, Katsumi Asaba, Kenya Hara, Eiji Yamada. Seen altogether, however, it was clear that grouping the displayed works together under one theme of typography was not appropriate. Rather, the list of works encompassed diverse genres such as posters, calendars and book design, besides typography. An unexpected result of this oversight on the part of the organizers was that the diverse works provided a good sample, with which one could broadly analyze the historical, cultural chromosomes and genes of individual designers within the larger genome of East Asian graphic design. Table I shows the distribution of these designers according to their nationalities and ages. Although it partially misses certain generations of designers, table I

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