Man and Machine: Subject-industry Relationship of Images in Chilean Technical Magazines (1929-1939)

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Rodrigo Andrés Vera Manríquez
Bruno Perelli

Abstract

This article is part of a research that addresses the history of design in Chile from the historiographic perspective of cultural history. Such research studies the conceptual art-technique binomial, exploring the artistic and industrial publications in Chile between 1929 and 1939. Using the semiological analysis methodology proposed by Roland Barthes, this article delves into the antecedents of the type of relationship between man and machine established by the images contained in this visual material, to understand how the industrial guilds projected this productive binomial. The theoretical framework is made up by combining Ivan Gaskell’s concept of visual material, Gilbert Simondon’s notion of technical object, and the relationship between design and machine proposed by Wilhem Flusser. As the main conclusion, it is stated that the relationship between man and machine is presented harmoniously and as an ideal of progress, which is expressed both in photographs and illustrations.

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How to Cite
Vera Manríquez, R. A., & Perelli, B. (2021). Man and Machine: Subject-industry Relationship of Images in Chilean Technical Magazines (1929-1939). Diseña, (18), Article.4. https://doi.org/10.7764/disena.18.Article.4
Section
Original Articles (part 1)
Author Biographies

Rodrigo Andrés Vera Manríquez, Universidad de Chile, Design Department

Bachelor of Arts with mention in Theory and Art History, Universidad de Chile. Master of Arts with mention in Theory and Art History, Univer­sidad de Chile. He also holds a doctorate in History, Universidad de Chile. Assistant Professor of the Design Department and the History and Heritage Institute of the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism at Universidad de Chile. His work pertains to the study of modern design practices in the context of the welfare state in Chile. He is the author of Modernidad, espacio urbano y representación de mundo (LOM, 2020) and co-author of ‘La AEG y la instalación de una visión modernizadora en Chileʼ (with R. Harris and P. Bascuñán; Revista 180, n º 44). He is the researcher responsible for the Fondecyt Initiation Project ‘El binomio conceptual arte y técnica en las publicaciones artísticas e industriales en Chile (1929-1939) como introducción de una idea de diseño modernoʼ (The Conceptual Binomial Art and Technique in Artistic and Indus­trial Publications in Chile (1929-1939) as an Introduction to an Idea of Modern Designʼ).

Bruno Perelli, Universidad de Chile, Design Department

Graphic Designer, Uni­versidad Chile. MA in Design, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez. Assistant Professor of the Design Department at Universidad de Chile. He has explored topics related to the relationship between technique, technology, and design by working in research projects and through artistic creations such as the technological heritage of neon in Chile, the conformation of urban imaginaries, computer vision, and image processing. He lectures courses and workshops related to technology, covering production processes for printing, programming, and digital manufacturing. He is co-author of ‘Relevancia de letreros de Neón en el imaginario nocturno Santiaguinoʼ (with J. M. Bravo-Sánchez and R. Dueñas Santander; Revista Urbano, Vol. 21, Nº 38) and ‘Modernidad, habitar y fotorrealidad: una propuesta de lectura a la obra de Richard Estesʼ (with R. Vera; Revista 180, Nº 41).

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