Turn on, Tune in, Drop out
“Everything unbelievable was possible.”
Josef Koudelka's statement concerning the events of the Prague Spring in 1968 serves as a theme for the historical framing presented in the DC IV programme, whose main focus consists of the countercultural movements that occurred in the second half of the 20th century; particularly emphasising the decades of the 60s and the 70s (...). The characterisation of this period, marked by strong political and ideological convulsions, an accentuated crisis of cultural values, and an exponential technological evolution, allows for an understanding of a group of factors which, directly and indirectly, have affected the design condition.
Subject: Communication Design IV
"Plug In, Drop Out", the first issue of the periodic publication “Suffix”, explores the evolution of countercultural movements: from the 60s counterculture, which promoted the sensibilisation of awareness through the use of psychedelic substances; to the 90s, in which technology emerged as a symbol of spiritual transformation, giving life to the dream of empowered individualism, collaborative community, and communion.
It emphasises the very first completely globalised music genre: “Vaporwave”. It is described as a digital form of punk that defies concepts such as “property” and “copyright”, establishing itself as an anonymous art to anonymous people. Just as the 60s had their counterculture, “Vaporwave” is the artistic movement of the countercultural music industry inspired in “DIY” and in the awareness of escapism — online.
