Design Conceptualization and The Power of Media
“Whoever controls the media, controls the mind.”
Jim Morrison
A few days ago, I came across several articles that criticized the design of a pair of Puma sneakers that supposedly alluded to Hitler’s face. I also read that the famous brand had historically been part of the Nazi Regime, so I decided I had to investigate and give my opinion about this case.
I should clarify that my writing is nonpartisan and that I try to remain an observer — what I’m sharing was not promoted by Puma nor is there an ounce of fascism in my belief-system.
While the sneaker’s design may comically resemble a face with a mustache because of its contrast between light and dark colors, there is no connection to nazism. It could be any face. Aside from my skepticism about focus groups and of asking people what they want, I used a tool I had available to make an experiment measuring the collective unconscious. I made a binary survey on Instagram to compare the design of the Puma sneakers to either Hitler or Edgar Alan Poe. Many of my 6 thousand followers felt intimidated to share their opinion for fear of appearing fascist or being judged, while many others couldn’t resist the game of pressing that button.
The results didn’t surprise me at all. They confirmed what I had imagined — 67% of my followers thought the design was inspired by Hitler’s face; the other 33% by Edgar Allen Poe’s. I’m sure that due to their age and general knowledge, most of my followers would probably not know who Edgar Alan Poe was, even more improbable that they had read his work. On the other hand, Hitler’s image generates a lot of controversy, especially in this era of post-truth, where everything is taken lightly and with little historical accuracy. But I don’t want to seem pedantic or a “pseudo-intellectual” — on the contrary, I am equally immersed in the chaos of information and communication, but I try to read beyond what various media try to affirm as a supposed truth.
If we give a non-designer the task to design a pair of shoes, he will most likely not be able to do it. In my subjective opinion, a designer’s years of study and practice are not in vain, and establish their ability to build and project ideas. If you can’t take my word for it or you disagree, you can see the Simpsons episode where Homer designs a car and bankrupts the company that hired him. In recent years, design careers have been the most growing careers in terms of number of applicants. And as technology advances, many tasks done manually today will continue to be replaced by machines, though some fields like design are exempted since it is made by humans, for humans.
In my humble point of view as a designer, the Puma design is very innovative — it proposes a beautifully harmonious design and its color palette generates enough contrast to attract people’s attention and not be able to resist the temptation of wanting to put on such beautifully and carefully-designed shoes. I was not lucky enough to try them, but with the technological advances and quality of materials that exist today, I am sure they have an ergonomically approved design.
The design’s subjective value is worth much more than its functional attributes — it’s common to try to define everything from a scientific/rational point of view, but for the most part, design caters to our emotional intelligence. Similar to how a well-written song or work of art can move us, a sometimes invisible design can be on the threshold between emotion and reason, and join them to create a new synthesis. So no, I don’t believe Puma made a reference to Nazism, and I consider that often, the power of design attracts those without talent to question everything from a sinister perspective. I will reiterate that I am personally not a fan of Puma — I prefer Adidas or Nike if I had to choose sportive or informal wear.
We have to be careful with what we read. It’s very important to be able to discern among the invasive overload of information that often clouds our judgement, and beyond the journalistic opinions that can carry so much power, they destroy anything as innocent as it may be.
~
Thank you so much for reading my article about the “Design Conceptualisation and The Power of Media”
Check out my Behance Portfolio
If you ever want to speak about the Design Conceptualisation and The Power of Media, please feel free to email me at info@crescimone.com
