Module: Sociology of Design

Assignment 1: Impact of Bohemianism in New Media Design

M.Des 1.1

Name: Harshal Desai

Lecturers: Dr Kelvin Lee & Arabella Pasquette

Date of Submission

7/25/2011

Word Count: 3292

ABSTRACT

We live in an age where consumerism and technology dominate our lives. Almost

everyone has a laptop or a cellphone, everyone aims to get the latest furniture

designs, the best branded clothes. We have to wonder, in the process of

succumbing to mainstream society are we losing our identity?

So far, in every era, bohemians would appear when there is a need for change.

They would shake society up with their bold, innovative and often controversial

ideas, and eventually fade away until their necessity rises again.

However, is it possible to be bohemian at all in this modern era? When consumerism

has reached massive heights, does bohemianism still exist in this world? And if so,

how does it influence the modern day design and lifestyle?

We conduct our research to find out.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 3

Defining A “Bohemian” .......................................................................................................... 5

Origins of the word “Bohemian” ........................................................................................ 5

Understanding the BOHEMIAN MIND ................................................................................ 7

Types of Bohemians ............................................................................................................. 9

Dandies .............................................................................................................................. 9

Gypsies ............................................................................................................................... 9

Beats ................................................................................................................................... 9

Zen ...................................................................................................................................... 9

Nouveau ............................................................................................................................ 9

GLOBALIZATION OF BOHEMIAN CULTURE ........................................................................... 10

First Generation: 1820 - 1840 ............................................................................................. 10

Second generation: 1850 - 1900 ...................................................................................... 10

Third Generation: 1900 - 1940 ........................................................................................... 11

Fourth Generation: 1950 - 1970 ........................................................................................ 11

Fifth Generation: 1997 – now ............................................................................................ 11

Bohemianism in art ................................................................................................................ 12

Influence of bohemian values in New Media Design ...................................................... 14

Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 21

Works Cited ............................................................................................................................ 22

IMAGE REFERENCES ............................................................................................................... 23

INTRODUCTION

After the era of Romanticism, France made its transition towards modernism,

creating a consumerist society. Amidst that transitional phase, a group of people

sought to question the ideologies of the new world.

They defied traditional norms, challenging conventional rules of living in society. They

did not succumb to social pressure and stuck to their beliefs and their avant-garde

lifestyle.

They were the Bohemians.

Laren Stover, renowned author, described bohemians as radical, revolutionary,

provocative, “gracefully volatile”. They immersed themselves in the world of

literature, paintings, music and performance arts. They loved to travel and refused to

let the materialistic possessions of society chain them down. (Stover, 2004)

In the modern world, it is quite rare to find a true bohemian. However, there is a little

bit of „bohemian‟ in all of us, albeit with a lot of materialistic possessions than

necessary.

However, the term “Bohemian” is not just living an alternative lifestyle; it has become

a trend. Interior design industries have an entire category of products marked as

„Bohemian style‟. Fashion design periodically keeps bringing up the bohemian style

of clothing, referring to it as Boho-Chic. How much of these trends derive from the

actual bohemian culture? Is it possible to be bohemian at all in this modern era? Our

studies seek out an answer.

This paper will explore the origins of the Bohemian culture, delving deep into the

mind of classic bohemian values and beliefs; the globalization of this culture and

finally, a comparison of the late 19th century design and ideologies v/s the ones of

the recent 21st century designs. We will discuss how bohemianism influences New

Media Design today, and to what extent does it exert its influence. Towards the end,

we aim to understand whether true bohemian values still live on or are the words

solely used to sell products in the market. Do bohemians really exist today or is it a

world of bohemian imitators.

DEFINING A “BOHEMIAN”

It is an alternative, almost avant-garde form of living where the people seldom

focused on materialistic possessions. They concentrated on the creative lifestyle,

often spending a major portion of their time writing poetry, composing music or

creating art.

To define a bohemian is not an easy task, and over the century, several definitions

have surfaced. Some defined bohemians as eccentric rebels (Walker, 2011),

troublemakers, vagabonds. Others associated the term in a positive aspect, calling

them free thinkers, innovators, trendsetters, romantics

In truth, bohemianism was a way of life in which the primary goal was to stand apart

from the conformity of society, and dedicate their life to the creative arts.

ORIGINS OF THE WORD “BOHEMIAN”

The earliest origins of the word came from France where “Bohémien”, meaning

gypsy, was a term used to describe the Romani immigrants of France who migrated

from Bohemia.

Bohemianism surfaced in the late 19th century in reference to the non-traditional

style of life of the various creative in that era. Back then, the term was almost

derogatory as it represented the anti-establishment; deliberately choosing a

nonconformist lifestyle.

Bohemianism rose to popularity and fame in early 1845 due to Henri Murger, a

bohemian performance artist who wrote down his entries in a journal named Scenes

of a Bohemian life( Scénes de la vie de bohéme). The journal described the daily life

of Bohemian artists and their eccentric idealisms.

Figure 1: Excerpt from Scenes de la Vie de Bohemei

It was such an incredible success that it inspired a musical opera based on the

culture (Puccini‟s La Bohéme) and even received a mention in Thackary‟s Vanity

Fair. (Sturgis, Christiansen, Oliver, & Wilson, 2006, p. 88)

In 1862, a popular British publication, the “Westminster Review” officially defined a

bohemian as

Simply an artist or litterateur who, consciously or

unconsciously secedes from conventionality in life and in art.

(Online Etymology Dictionary)

Bohemians are basically, outlaws of civilization. Their existence continues to this day

simply because they are the “ultimate elitists” (Stover, Bohemian Manifesto: A field

guide to living on the edge, 2004). By defying society and living on their terms, they

change the perspectives of people around them, influencing them to question their

current bourgeois lifestyles.

UNDERSTANDING THE BOHEMIAN MIND

Being Bohemian does not mean wearing odd clothes, living a difficult life and

constantly complaining about the government and society. It is an endless crusade,

a lifestyle choice that resurfaces to counterattack the bourgeois society as and

when necessary. It is an inherent desire for independence and artistic creativity to

flow freely. Bohemianism is an attitude, it is an aspiration to break apart from the

norms and reconnect with nature.

Bohemian lifestyle has been the subject of interest for many authors over the years.

Bohemians in general, do not like routine… the mundane lifestyle of the common

public. They loathe authority and have no need for fancy possessions. Bohemians

feel alive through observing life, experiencing its wonders and recreating them into

their arts as opposed to society, which gains contentment through consumerism.

They drink absinthe, discussing their art openly, and freely exploring sexuality and

romance. Bohemians did not just make art in their life, the made art OF their life.

(Nicholson, 2005)

A bohemian‟s perspective is unique, finding poetry and mysticism in the simplest

things such as the glow of a street lamp or the colours of soap bubbles. If their

clothes rip, bohemians will not go out and just buy something new, they instead see

an opportunity to experiment with different fabric and color, a potential to create

something off-beat and different. Bohemians are passionate about salvaging,

reinventing, transmuting and crafting art from the objects that others would not

consider valuable. (Stover, Bohemian Psychology, 2004)

Bohemians like creating a warm and beautiful environment just like the bourgeois

society, but they do it through their creativity.

They rarely have a fixed job, often considering “work” as having to sell their paintings

or sculptures. They loathed the classic nine-to-five jobs, finding them very restrictive

and mundane for their creative pursuits.

Modern day bohemians are often freelance, self-employed individuals. They may

not earn much, but they take comfort in having free time to read, draw, and explore

the intricate wonders of life.

According to Laren Stover, the three main aspects of a Bohemian psyche are

Courage, Audacity and Revolt. It takes courage to give up traditional norms and

live a life outside the consumerist culture. It is the will to be true to you no matter

what the cost. Audacity is the “shock” aspect of bohemian art, the nerve to make

controversial artwork and display it to the world. Revolt is something that is second

nature for bohemians. It can be something simple as not wearing formal business

attire to sparking off entire revolutions (as was the case of the surrealistic DADA

movement)

Overall, bohemians are the front-runners of change. They are the first ones to

introduce new trends into society, make revolutionary advancements in art and

lifestyle.

Simply put, Bohemians are revolutionaries who change the world.

TYPES OF BOHEMIANS

After thoroughly understanding what it means to be Bohemian, it is apparent there

have been hundreds of prominent „bohemian‟ figures over the last two hundred

years. Stover researched into their lifestyles and managed to come up with five

generic categories of bohemians.

DANDIES

Usually broke, but pretend to be rich by purchasing and exhibiting valuable

items

GYPSIES

The traditional wanderers, often known as hippies, well known for their poetry

and music

BEATS

Also wanderers, but more focused on art and painting.

ZEN

An extension of the Beats, focusing on the spiritual aspect of life rather than

the artistic view like their counterparts.

NOUVEAU

Rich Bohemians who hold on to their materialistic possessions and try to live by

bohemian ideals in terms of freedom and art.

These are not set definitions and quite often, there are hybrids. Bohemians can never

fall under any classic stereotype as they constantly evolve with time. (Stover, 2004)

GLOBALIZATION OF BOHEMIAN CULTURE

Bohemian was technically a counter-culture, and like all counter-cultures in history,

they followed a cyclic process. At first, they were too radical and rejected by

society. Eventually the trend picks up, causing a shift where people who were

strongly against it, now willingly follow the beliefs. This is what happened when

Bohemian culture was reborn in plays all over Paris, and again as the Hippie

movement in America etc.

We will go through a quick timeline pointing out the important stages that allowed

bohemian culture to become a global phenomenon.

FIRST GENERATION: 1820 - 1840

It began with Henri Murger in the early 1840s when he jotted down the experiences

of his life and created the work, Scénes de la vie bohéme. While this work inspired

many musicals and plays for the future, currently bohemian culture was just taking its

first steps into the mainstream.

SECOND GENERATION: 1850 - 1900

As Bohemian culture picked up popularity, its principles intrigued many people and

they began to incorporate them in their lifestyles. The most notable result came from

Paris where Giacomo Puccini created a musical opera named La Bohéme, inspired

from Henri Murger‟s original work. Unfortunately, the impact did not last long and the

trend began to fade, and as the country descended into World War I, there was no

time to enjoy the arts, at least for a while.

THIRD GENERATION: 1900 - 1940

Bohemian culture resurfaced in London in the 1900s, having many similarities with its

French counterpart. However, one major difference was that it focused solely on the

men. Women were more submissive, to change their roles and beliefs in London was

frowned upon, and so bohemianism became a predominately-male oriented

culture in this era.

FOURTH GENERATION: 1950 - 1970

This generation, infamously known as the Beat movement first surfaced in New York

City. Its origins were similar to Henri Murger, starting as just a small group in the early

1950s, with the trend eventually picking up speed and popularity. This generation

was dominant in terms of producing literary work and eventually spun off to give rise

to the hippies‟ subculture in the 1960s. However, hippies are more of a trend as they

mimicked the original bohemian ideals and philosophies, borrowing their style of

fashion. While bohemianism was a lifestyle choice, hippie culture gained popularity

more on the charm of being “cool”.

FIFTH GENERATION: 1997 – NOW

Bohemianism resurfaced again and finally took its first steps in becoming a global

phenomenon with the release of the new musical, “Rent”. The storyline was heavily

inspired by Puccini‟s La Bohéme and many of the characters remained true to Henri

Murger‟s original description of the bohemian lifestyle.

(Hopf, Kogan, & Brown, 2001)

BOHEMIANISM IN ART

True Bohemians were very enthusiastic of the basics of design, paying special

attention to color, lighting, patterns and textures. They loved taking inspirations from

life. For them, life was a form of art itself, and they tried to incorporate it within their

designs. They are not afraid to let their creativity run wild, finding out ways to make

the most mundane day-to-day objects and perspectives into something artistic.

Pablo Picasso, a famous artist, painter, and could be described as a bohemian too,

quoted

“Art washes away from the soul, the dust of every day life”

Bohemians did not make art simply to sell it. For them, it was way to invigorate their

life. They made art because they loved it, and did not let other people‟s opinions

influence their artistic tendencies. Art was life, and life was art for a bohemian.

Take note that bohemians did not consider crafts as a different aspect. Everything

from literature to painting to creating sculptures is “art”, and the entire world is a

giant medium. A bohemian will eventually use up any surface that can be painted

on, scribbled, modified, or added upon. Laren stover mentioned humorously in her

book that it is unwise to leave a bohemian unattended at home for long hours

because one might end up with odd items all over the house. (Stover, 2004)

Bohemians challenge the conventional form of art. They like to be motivated,

exclusive, and bizarre. They love art that shocks people, and strongly support such

artists, until of course their works reach mainstream media. Of course, this does not

mean bohemians will back up any controversial work of art. There has to be an

underlying poetry to it, or an inspiration derived from life…something that stands out.

In contrast, bohemians also valued romanticized art. Many bohemians admire

poetic compositions of frost on a window or dust on the frame of a painting. Famous

musical "masterpieces” often involved talking about personal lifestyles, describing

their inspiration to create a table out of an old door.

Overall, bohemian art means to question, shock and inspire. If it was not breaking

traditional rules, causing controversy and making society wonder what they were

looking at then the work was just not good enough. (Nicholson, 2005)

INFLUENCE OF BOHEMIAN VALUES IN NEW MEDIA DESIGN

We discussed about the bohemian psyche and artistic values earlier and find out

that the field, New Media Design, is very much bohemian in nature….at least in

theory. The very name, “New” media design implies that artists within the industry

come up with innovative ways to create and show art. However, that is only one

aspect of bohemian values. As mentioned earlier, bohemian art inspires shocks and

questions the traditional style of art.

Often new media designers these days are trend oriented. One might come up with

something innovative, and then everyone follows through making variations of the

same art. You can see influences of that within the fashion and interior design

industries too.

In theory, there are bohemian values within many designers. However, for this report,

we are talking strictly about those who exhibit the most “bohemian” style of art.

Many multimedia designers have revolutionized the industry by creating products

and design that is revolutionary. For instance, British Designer Jonathan Ive, a

humble man who revolutionized the Apple iOS and creator of the iPod could be

bohemian. In an interview with BusinessWeek, Jonathan stated that most of the

design behind his products represented himself, “chic, elitist and with a Euro bent”.

He wanted to get rid of the giant, bulky CD and cassette players that were overly

bulky and hideous. Considering that music was so beautiful, the object emanating

music should match that tendency, and thus came the first generation iPod, a music

player with style.

Ive quoted,

“It’s the inquisitiveness, the sense of exploration and being

excited to appear wrong because only then you will have

discovered something new”

Ive qualifies as a bohemian in terms of his design sense simply because his goal was

to design what he considered beautiful and try to sell the idea. He was not afraid of

failure and continued deriving inspiration by the process of observation and

necessity. (Burrows, 2006)

Other notables would include Joshua Davis who heavily focused on patterns and

repeating textures in his design, derived most of his inspiration from the natural

colours in life. Most of his designs incorporate some form of floral elements to show

his passion for nature, and he loved using various media as his artistic canvas, be it

shoes, posters, billboards, bags, chinaware, windowpanes, or interactive films.

Figure 2: Josha Davis' interactive art and product designii

Davis explains his first inspiration came from the complexity of a snowflake and he

incorporated the style, adding color to it to make his own style which he coined

“dynamic abstraction”.

He definitely incorporates a bohemian‟s attention to detail in terms of his patterns

and while his work has often been labelled as weird. However, that does not stop

Joshua from creating more kaleidoscope-styled art.

In his own words,

“I’ve always done kind of weird, strange things, and that’s

what I get paid for: to do weird, strange things”

Whether he knows it or not Joshua follows most of the bohemian principles. He

continues to adhere to the belief of being different and inspirational in terms of his

art. (Malmberg)

However, can you truly consider these artists as actual bohemians? For that matter,

can anyone in this era be a true bohemian? With technology on the rise, the world

has become a massive follower of consumerism. So artists who have a conventional

job or use technology to create their artwork, are they bohemian?

The answer is yes and no.

As long as they follow the primary values of bohemian culture, set themselves apart

from the crowd and retain their creative individuality, they are bohemian.

Many artists however, get a bit too consumed with consumerism and tend to design

art strictly for its sale value. That is not creativity. That is conforming to traditional

standards, avoiding risk and for a bohemian that is as good as being faceless.

Jonathan Ive and Joshua Davis may have started out with bohemian values, but

you have to wonder whether their current sources of inspiration are derived from life

or from the sole prospect of earning more money.

Laren Stover, an author whom we have referenced quite a lot by now, classified

bohemians into five types.

As the eras changed, we could classify the modern multimedia designers under a

sixth category…

The Digital Bohemian: Artists who incorporate consumerism to their advantage and

still adhere to the beliefs of the traditional bohemians in terms of design and lifestyle.

Going digital just enhanced the bohemian way of life by allowing us to mix and

match ideas on a grander scale, removing almost all limitations. It is simply taking art

to a new level.

A computer does not make one bohemian just as a paintbrush did not make one

bohemian. As long as you stick to your own beliefs, that is what counts most.

This does not mean classic bohemia is dead. Quite the contrary, it is still making

headlines today, and very much in relevance with the field of “new media”

One prime example was the iLight event at Marina Bay in Singapore. It was a form of

installation art using all forms of light, a means to promote sustainable alternatives.

One particular exhibit stood out from the rest as being classically bohemian with a

modern day twist.

Figure 3: Human Tiles, iLight Marina Bayiii

Human Tiles, by Ocubo had a simple concept. They took a video camera, put it on

one side of the road, connected it to a projector and let it display on the other side

where a fake wall was constructed. The projector had a customized lens that

converted everything the camera viewed, into tiled patterns.

Whether Ocubo was aware of the bohemian implications or not is a mystery.

However, what they did create was live art. A display that mutated with its

environment recreating it into wonderful patterns reflecting life. By paying specific

attention to the movement of the people, the colors of their clothing, their actions, it

made people stop in their tracks and lure them to interact with the art. They were

shocked to see the changes happening at first, making them backtrack, question,

wonder, and slowly try to experiment around by waving their hands, jumping,

walking closer to the screen, further away etc. (Human Tiles: iLight Marina Bay)

Truly bohemian indeed.

One of the more recent examples comes to mind of a „new media‟

designer/performance artist by the name Iepe Rubingh. In an interview with

Elizabeth Haggarty, a reporter from Toronto Star, Rubingh said he was not a painter

as such, but was inspired to paint reality on a vast scale.

He had a truly radical idea, one that served his goal of wanting to create his “art”,

shock and awe the public, and it earned him ten days in jail too.

After carefully planning for weeks, mixing and testing out paint to ensure the safety

of what he was planning to do, he finally unleashed over 40 litres of different

coloured paint in a busy intersection in berlin and Tokyo, with the help of 60

anonymous people. It was only a matter of seconds before the criss-crossing cars

painted a wonderful picture of their trails on the road.

Figure 4: Live Painting traffic in Berliniv

While this stunt was mildly tolerated in berlin, it was repeating the feat in Tokyo that

got Rubingh into jail for ten days.

Nevertheless, that did not stop him from doing similar events elsewhere. He stuck to

his principles and continues forward with his eccentric style. (Haggarty, 2011)

CONCLUSION

It is quite strange to see many bohemian tendencies popping up in people who

may not even know they have them. It is almost a subconscious idea, embedded

within our brains. After the thorough research, we have found a few bohemian

tendencies within ourselves too.

Bohemianism is an essential part of life. It will never die out.

While bohemianism may evolve with the discovery of new technology, their lifestyle

and art form continue to live on.

It is actually one aspect of a loop. Bohemianism and Consumerism are latched into

an odd symbiotic relationship where one simply cannot exist without the other. It is

the desire to stand out from consumerist values that inspires bohemians to push

forward in finding new ways of design and lifestyle, while it is the consumerists who

eventually adopt the bohemian lifestyle and market it, which makes it no longer

unique, driving bohemians to come up with something new again.

It is a never-ending cycle of innovation and imitation.

In terms of new media design, or any industry in general, there will always be a need

to stand out and create something unique. It which will eventually shock the masses

because it is not what they are accustomed to and finally accept it once it is

advertised by mainstream media, causing things to settle down…before the desire

to be different and innovative rises up again.

Bohemianism and Consumerism will always bring change to the world, with

bohemians being the harbingers of that change.

WORKS CITED

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http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Bohemian

Burrows, P. (25 September, 2006). Who is Jonathan Ive? Retrieved 21 July, 2011, from

BusinessWeek:

http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/06_39/b4002414.htm

?chan=gl

Haggarty, E. (18 July, 2011). Painting reality in Berlin. Retrieved 23 July, 2011, from The

Star: http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1026659

Hopf, C., Kogan, L., & Brown, R. (May, 2001). Evolution of Bohemia. Retrieved 20 July,

2011, from Bohemianism and Counterculture:

http://www.mtholyoke.edu/courses/rschwart/hist255-

s01/boheme/welcome.html

Human Tiles: iLight Marina Bay. (n.d.). Retrieved 22 July, 2011, from iLight Marina Bay:

http://www.ilightmarinabay.sg/light/4-light-walk/25-human-tiles

Malmberg, E. (n.d.). Joshua Davis: Infinitely interesting. Retrieved 22 July, 2011, from

Apple.com: http://www.apple.com/pro/profiles/joshuadavis/

Nicholson, V. (2005). Among the Bohemians: Experiments in Living 1900-1939. New

York: HarperCollins.

Stover, L. (2004). Bohemian Manifesto: A field guide to living on the edge. New York:

Bulfinch Press.

Stover, L. (2004). Bohemian Psychology. In L. Stover, Bohemian Manifesto: A field

guide to living on the edge (pp. 12-26). New york: Bulfinch Press.

Sturgis, A., Christiansen, R., Oliver, L., & Wilson, M. (2006). Bohemia. In Rebels and

Martyrs: The Image of the Artist in the Nineteenth Century (p. 88). London:

National Gallery Company Limited.

Walker, A. (11 March, 2011). What is Bohemian? Retrieved 19 July, 2011, from BBC

NEWS MAGAZINE: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-12711181

IMAGE REFERENCES

i Excerpt from Scenes de la Vie de Boheme

Retrieved 24 July, 2011 from

http://www.mtholyoke.edu/courses/rschwart/hist255/bohem/tscenes.html

ii Joshua Davis‟ interactive work and product design.

Retrieved 24 July, 2011 from http://www.joshuadavis.com

iii Human Tiles, iLight Marina Bay

Retrieved 24 July, 2011 from http://www.ilightmarinabay.sg/light/4-light-walk/25-human-tiles

iv Live Painting traffic in Berlin.

Retrieved on 24 July, 2011 from http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1026659