Design
Design as art
by Bruno Munari
Design as art summary
Bruno Munari's Design as Art is the 1971 English translation of the Italian Arte come mestiere (originally published in 1966). Rather than defending a boundary between “high art” and ordinary designed objects, Munari examines visual, graphic, and industrial design through things people actually encounter: lamps, road signs, typography, posters, children's books, advertising, cars, chairs, and other artifacts. The recurring question is whether design can unite beauty, function, accessibility, material intelligence, and clear communication without turning useful objects into status-driven decoration. Munari's tone is exploratory rather than procedural; the book is a set of observations and arguments about seeing, making, and the designer's responsibility to everyday life.
Key ideas
Everyday objects deserve serious design attention. A chair, lamp, sign, or book can shape experience as meaningfully as an object displayed in a gallery. Function and beauty should reinforce each other. Aesthetic effect is strongest when it grows from material, structure, use, and communication rather than being pasted onto an object. Design should be accessible. Munari resists the idea that good visual culture must be rare, elite, or unnecessarily expensive. The designer solves communication problems. Typography, signs, posters, and books are judged partly by how directly they help people perceive and understand information. Materials have their own logic. Good solutions respect what a material can do rather than forcing it to imitate another medium. Simplicity is achieved, not empty. Removing unnecessary elements requires understanding which relationships are essential. Children's design is not minor design. Books, toys, and visual learning environments can cultivate curiosity and perception through thoughtful form. Standard objects can still contain invention. Innovation does not require novelty for its own sake; it can come from a better relationship among use, production, form, and human behavior. The designer is not merely a stylist. Design choices involve technology, economics, reproduction, human needs, and social context. The book is historically situated. Mid-twentieth-century industrial optimism and modernist values should be compared with today's sustainability, accessibility, digital, and participatory design concerns.
Practical application
Everyday-object audit: Pick one ordinary object you use daily and list what its form communicates about use before you touch it. Note one decorative decision that helps and one that obstructs. Function/beauty test: Redesign a simple sign or control so visual appeal comes from clearer structure rather than extra decoration. Material question: For one product, identify the material choice and ask how durability, repair, cost, and environmental impact might change the form.