Sylvestre photoshoot

Decades of Design - the 1900s

The first decade of the 1900s has been deemed "The Decade of Firsts." Developed communities were on the cusp of science, technology, and hygiene, and innovation as well as efficiency were pressing goals that ultimately drew America closer and closer to the Great Depression. Big cities were promoting expansion, sanitation issues were influencing movements in science such as the invention of Penicillin, and new money began to allow young business owners to prosper and indulge.

Inspiration pieces for the poster development for the decade of 1900-1910 were pulled from existing event posters from the era, newspaper ads, photographs, and early 20th century typography.  I decided to showcase a Triumph motorbike with British influences before 1910 in a piece that draws attention to political and economical developments on a global scale. For instance, motorcycles were the first reliable form of motorized transportation and made a worldwide impact for personal travel and recreational sport (i.e. board-racing was started in 1910 in America).

In addition to the impact of motorized bikes beginning with their marketing in 1899, Triumph motorcycles offered the opportunity for this poster to focus on British Imperialism and the East India Trading Co, which lasted nearly a century and ended in 1914. Although my poster incorporates a Britishness to the theme of context, it incorporates design elements such as typography, halftones, the quintessential orange, as well as a formality to the design that transcended cultures during the beginning of the century.