Our serious need for frivolity

No.137: Wed 22?Mar?2023

Hi, it’s David here.

And it is a joy to have community member Silas Amos share his thoughts on the importance of frivolity in our lives and the history of design as an antidote to dire times.

His words also remind me of the importance of creativity and culture as a way of conveying important messages around very important topics.?

And the growing need for strategic imagination to understand what is possible in this world.

As always, we are curious to hear what you think.

David Alberts (Co-Founder and Chief Vision Officer?at BeenThereDoneThat)

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Hi, it’s Silas here, and being human, I am on occasion frivolous.

The practice of branding and design can sometimes feel rather weighty. Form follows function, less is more, brand purpose is everything... and all that jazz. And typically when we label something 'frivolous,' we don't mean it as a compliment. The OED defines frivolity as 'not having any serious purpose or value'.

And yet to dismiss frivolity is to dismiss such unserious nonessentials as holidays, art, lingerie, pop music and ketchup. Frivolity is a basic human need, keeping us sane and lifting us out of the gutter in the darkest times.

A quick zip-through history might support this. The visual flamboyance of the baroque era counterbalanced the bubonic plague. The great depression of the thirties was alleviated by escapist movies typified by Busby Berkeley and Fred and Ginger. The full skirts of Diors' 1947 new look signalled a shift from the sartorial restrictions of World War Two and marked the dawn of a new era. In the wake of the national mourning following JFK's assassination, The Beatles' music and cheekiness put them in the right place at the right time to cheer up and conquer the U.S.A. The exuberant fashion explosion of the early seventies happened against the backdrop of the oil crisis and social upheaval. Mama Mia was a big hit in not-so-fun 2008. TikTok spread at roughly the same time and pace as the Covid lockdowns.

As Bertolt Brecht put it, 'food comes first and then morality'. I'd add to this '...and then the need for a little frivolity'. Given that the Collins Dictionaries word of 2022 was 'permacrisis', now seems like a good time to make work that lifts the human spirit. Perhaps Nero fiddling while Rome burnt might be seen as a forgivable human reaction in this context.

Frivolous design can have a significant impact. The lipstick-red 1969 Olivetti Valentine typewriter (to be seen in any design museum on earth) is the spiritual godparent of the bubble-gum-coloured iMacs of the nineties that single-handedly converted functional beige box home computers into the objects of desire that boosted Apples assent to a rather valuable position. Marc Jacobs Daisy perfume (my favourite 'frivolous' design) generates around $300m in annual sales. And did Dysons vacuums conquer the world because they were technically superior or because we frivolous consumers rather liked their playfully coloured styling?

As a designer, I'm drawn to visual wit. It not only buys a couple of seconds in the audience's mind (the greatest gift we can give any client) – it also can get under people's guard, bringing them onside by delivering 'a smile in the mind'. Is such wit frivolous? Perhaps it's actually seductive camouflage for things with an often more serious purpose??

So what? Many of us are in the business of baiting the line for our clients. To quote Voltaire, 'it is not enough to conquer; one must learn to seduce'. And adding a little visual or conceptual frou-frou can be alluring in times that embody all the joy of a Soviet-era bread queue.?

Whether through wit, superfluous design decoration, or just pure silliness, I would make a case for providing work that makes the world happier. This needn't compromise 'the serious stuff' - it can just offer a more appealing frame. Personally, I might start asking myself if anything I produce could be soundtracked by Beethoven's Ode to Joy, and that would be as challenging a bar to clear as any I can imagine.

As always, we are curious to hear what you think.

Silas Amos?(Community Member at BeenThereDoneThat)

Supporting Articles

1. The Third Man – the relationship of crisis and culture

2. Where joy hides and how to find it

3. The Taliban can’t stop TikTok

4. How the Radical, Rebellious Valentine Typewriter Was Labeled a Mistake

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