Ken Garland & Associates
‘Connect Game (1968)’
Typojanchi 2017 :
Mohm – 5th International Typography Biennale
Ken Garland (19 February 1929 – 20 May 2021)
Galt Toys Connect – Vintage Toys
Reputations: Ken Garland
Ken Garland – Design Lectures
Ken Garland Was Graphic Design’s Moral Compass
Remembering Ken Garland
Ken Garland obituary
Daeki Shim of DAEKI and JUN curated two exhibitions, ‘The Flag Show’ and ‘Playground: Play Designed by Designers,’ at ‘Typojanchi 2017: Mohm – the 5th International Typography Biennale,’ where he served as the lead curator. In these two exhibitions, Shim featured the ‘Connect Game,’ designed in 1968 by the world-renowned British designer Ken Garland & Associates, as the centerpiece of the curation.
‘The Flag Show’
Raising a flag is a way to express the opinions and ideas of individuals or groups to others, and the visual language of a flag, along with the act of waving it, creates an active mise-en-scène. Fourteen designers (or teams) explore various ideas surrounding the concept of the body through flags, using typography and graphics as their medium. The flags will be simultaneously exhibited at Culture Station 284 in Seoul, Korea, and at 019 in Ghent, Belgium.
Ken Garland’s “First Things First” (1964) manifesto emphasizes the social responsibility and ethical role of design, exploring its potential beyond commercial purposes. This manifesto outlines how designers should use design for social and cultural causes, offering a fresh perspective on the social role of design.
In this exhibition, the main exhibit was the graphic design for “Connect Game,” an educational toy for children, reflecting Garland’s ideology. This design integrates educational value with social responsibility, demonstrating how design can have a positive social impact.
Therefore, this exhibition not only conveys the voices of individuals and groups through flags but also offers a profound reflection on the social role and responsibility of design, presented through works that embody Garland’s design philosophy. This connection reminds visitors that design is a powerful tool capable of driving social change, far beyond just a visual expression.
‘Playground: Play Designed by Designers’
Play consists of participants, the goals of the play, and the methods and rules to achieve those goals. The designer assigns goals and methods to everyday actions, and the participants experience the physical and mental enjoyment that the play offers through the process of performing those actions. The exhibition space transforms into a playground, and through devices that encourage body movement and the experiences formed as a result, it shares the value of the theme of ‘the body’.
