The unlikely influences of the LSD fuelled counterculture of the 60’s, surf/board/skate/ride culture and biker gangs fed the DIY tech start-up phenomenon of the 1970’s which continue to this day. From Disney to Xerox to Apple to Google. From the hippy communes and improvised festivals to the growth of Silicon Valley and driverless cars. Californian design has created the systems by which we live, work, play and communicate. From spoken language to visual language the stream of innovation coming from the West Coast continues to dictate our very existence leaving us permanently turned-on and tuned-in.
CALIFORNIA Designing Freedom 29.06.17
CALIFORNIA: Designing Freedom at the Design Museum looks at the origins of the technical and social innovations emanating from the sunshine state.
1. Disney: The garage of Walt Disney's uncle; 2. Hewlett-Packard: The garage of David and Lucille Packard; 3. Apple: The garage of Paul and Clara Jobs; 4. Google: The garage of Susan Wojcicki
Dome construction system used at festivals and communes
Xerox Star - the first graphic user interface, 1981
Apple 1 - sold as a kit for self assembly
April Greiman's poster for the California Institute of the Arts, 1983
Aerial photograph of the Burning Man Festival, Nevada
Original neon sign from Google's first office
Google Maps' layered information system
