Practical initial ideas

 Initial ideas for the COP practical 

Project description and purpose

• Investigating the relevance of satire today; contemporary satire designed for screen?
• Analysing meme culture; contemporary design inspired by memes; translating memes into printed matter?
• The parallels between satire and meme culture 

What is the problem?

• Is satire dead/ outdated?
• The dangers of meme culture; viral media 
• The spread of false information through memes
• The censorship of satire 
• Generational changes in how we consume; social media 

How will I engage with it?

• Replicating the ideology behind memes; Richard Dawkins' theory of memes; media viruses 
• Noam Chomskys' concept of media viruses and activism 
• Create a user experience that replicates how memes are spread and interacted with; make your own memes
• Translate the theory of Gen Z humour into print or screen; the user can personalise their experience 

Methodology

Core theories/ concepts/ arguments 

• 'Every joke is a tiny revolution' - George Orwell
• 'Against the assault of laughter nothing can stand' - Mark Twain
• Media activists use 'viruses' to promote 'counter cultural agendas', subverting the status quo and leading to 'some sort of revolution' - Noam Chomsky 
• 'Mimicry and remix' - the two kinds of memes 
• 'Hackable interface' - the user can hack the visuals to create their own narrative 
• The 'meme-as-virus analogy' 
• 'Forcing satire underground keeps it alive' - make a niche satirical publication?
• Albert Camus' 'notion of absurdism'; uses the 'myth of Sisyphus' as an analogy for memes
• The 'superiority theory' - humour stems from the ridicule of something we consider inferior to make us feel superior 

How can I break the rules? 

• Flip the argument on its' head; satire for screen and memes for print?
• Remove censorship from satire; themes of controversy 
• Use meme templates for the navigation of the design 
• Take inspiration from anti-art design and intentionally bad design; graphic design memes like using MS paint or word art
• Create a really chaotic visual narrative; the chaos and spread of information online 

Possible proposal ideas

• Creating a contemporary satirical zine that communicates the relevance of satire today; taking inspiration from Crack Up Crack Downs' subtle homage to traditional satire, the publication will investigate how graphic designers are reinventing satire to stay relevant in todays' political climate
• Creating a visual response to Albert Camus' 'notion of absurdism' that investigates the changes in generational behaviour; looking at how Gen Z for example embraces the absurdity of life through meme culture; the response could be image based with self deprecating humour and niche references to meme templates/ formats
• Use a rule of 'media viruses' to create a layout for a publication; as the reader moves through the books' narrative, the layout gets more and more crowded to reflect the nature in which memes are spread 
• The visual language of the outcome could take inspiration from anti-art and witty design; inside graphic design jokes similar to Elliot Ulms' business card design
• The practical could use physical forms of censorship of elements of the design to investigate how satire today is being limited by changes in societal ideologies; things are becoming more censored for the public due to satires' presence in the public eye