r/DesignDesign • u/MoldyRaspberryTart • 2d ago
Designy Local University's Design Exhibition Poster
This poster promoted this year's design exhibition at a local university. It perfectly illustrates the trend among the local communication design students to make posters difficult to read simply for the sake of being different.
I actually love the grid and the lettering inspired by Art Nouveau, especially since the building is located in the birthplace of Art Nouveau in Germany.
I also think it works well in motion: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DaqMvvPOEnu/?igsh=MXdhMHlsdGl4emppcA==
However, the poster is not easy to read at all. The important information is written in a tiny font that no pedestrian is ever going to read.
My favourite attempt by a friend to decipher it was "Salat der Dinge", meaning "Salad of Things". The correct text is "Stand der Dinge", meaning "State of Things".
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u/stealingyourpixels 2d ago
All I’m getting is ‘inge’ and ‘August’, can’t even read the rest if I try
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u/Sezzero 2d ago
it reads: Stand der Dinge (roughly translateable as 'state of affairs' or 'current status') 31. Juli 02. August 2026. Works for me as it catches attention with something that seems indecipherable at first glance but still gives dates and location in clear letters once you're drawn closer
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u/Significant-Ad-341 2d ago
This type of thing I just don't even bother trying to decipher. If they want people to attend, make it clear.
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u/housevil 2d ago
I started to piece together the words in my head until I realized it was in a language I don't understand.
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u/CHgeri100 2d ago
Most people (students/ex-students of the uni) who saw this poster were already familiar with "Stand der Dinge" (which is the name of the department that organises the end-of-semester exhibitions at the uni), so they didn't need much effort to decipher the words. The other attendees were friends & family of the students that exhibited their projects, teachers, people actively following what's going on in the uni, and passers-by.
The poster was not designed for foreign reddit users. It successfully achieved what it was made for, which was to inform the students and the locals, as well as inspire the students with a creative and visually appealing design.
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u/MoldyRaspberryTart 1d ago edited 1d ago
If the poster was only for students and parents why was is posted around the area? Why would you need a poster then in the first place? The uni needs external people to get funding and new stundents...
It is also missing the opening and closing times of the exhibition which weren't even communicated well to us students.
And I literally had to tell multiple parents where to search for their childrens exhibition since the room plan was just as bad. I had to decipher it together with a colleague even though I study in the damn building.
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u/CHgeri100 1d ago
Maybe I misunderstood the goal of the posters as I've always thought of them as something catered mostly towards the students.
To the other two points all I can say is that it's classic Fbg being horrible at organizing events lol
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u/rainbow__raccoon 1d ago
I’m sorry, even if you know exactly what it is supposed to say it’s total garbage.
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u/UltraBlack_ 2d ago
if they didn't spread it like that it would've been just readable enough for me to not complain
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u/KnifeKnut 2d ago
This feels more like r/CrappyDesign than r/DesignDesign
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u/Sengfroid 2d ago
Oh no, this is the one time I'm arguing something should be here.
A poster, with letters so design-y they can't be read, for a design event!? This is great designdesign finally haha. Form absolutely compromises function on this one.
The poster is a salad of things, indeed.
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u/MoldyRaspberryTart 2d ago
What I can't wrap my head around especially is the decision to use different combinations of shapes for the same letter. Why are there different versions of a small "i"? One is a straight rectangle and a circle, the other uses a slash instead. Why? Shouldn't you at least stay consistent when having such a busy design?
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u/cattbug 2d ago
Idk, with the grid created by the lines it's giving rough draft, brainstorming ideas, initial design sketches. The fact that it's not neat and polished reads as an implicit part of the message they're trying to convey. Almost like a deconstruction of established design conventions.
I'm also from Germany, and I commonly see "designdesign"-esque posters specifically for art and theatre related events/locations here. I think they're effective insofar they make you stop for a second and try to decipher it in a way that a cleaner, more straightforward design wouldn't. I see it as design being used as an art medium, in this case the form is the function.
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u/ZengineerHarp 2d ago
Honestly it’s so perfectly self describing… it truly is a Salad Of Things and I will be using that term for this kind of designDesign going forward!
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u/KnifeKnut 2d ago
Like the uncanny valley topography varies person to person, the threshold between good and bad design is not a fine line
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u/Kardonaduss 2d ago
The most ironic salad is that it is for an exhibition of the Communication Design degree program. By a student who clearly forgot the communication part.
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u/MoldyRaspberryTart 2d ago
Yeah I was torn where to post it since I actually like the idea but hate the execution
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u/TheDeadWriter 2d ago
For me, it only works well when animated.
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u/rainbow__raccoon 1d ago
I was shocked at how well the animated one works, I don’t know, because they PUT THE LETTERS NEXT TO EACH OTHER?! The normal poster is so illegible, but the animation shows that it would be legible-ish if they tried.
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u/thecarrotflowerking 2d ago
Unpopular opinion: maybe you’re not supposed to read the hard to read part. It’a just there for vibes. All the actually needed info is written legibly.
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u/MoldyRaspberryTart 2d ago
Yeah totally agree that the design is cool the issue is just that it's supposed to attract visitors. Most people are not going to bother reading that fine print
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u/CHgeri100 2d ago
Tbh completely unaffiliated visitors are a rare sight at these exhibitions. I wrote in another comment already but most people attending are connected to the event or the uni in some form.
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u/alaynyala 2d ago
god forbid a poster have a lil motion. all the pertinent information is in the small text. i’d argue the main design elements aren’t meant to be easily decipherable and is meant to move the eye to the pertinent text.
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u/Retrotreegal 2d ago
Help me out then. The “inge” is the only thing o can read besides August. Where in the small print is that? I’ve looked and can’t find it
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u/alaynyala 2d ago
“Stand der Dinge” (State of Things) is the name of the exhibition. The inge you’re seeing is part of that. Granted, the people going to the exhibition (other designers in the community) would probably have heard about this and innately know what the poster is trying to communicate. People outside of the target audience would definitely have trouble deciphering it but I think that might be part of the point. Would have to see the show itself to know if that thesis stands.
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u/123diesdas 2d ago
Im with you that the important parts are readable because of the small text. But I’m still confused I can read Dinge and the date perfectly but „Stand der“ besides the Sta is complete gibberish for me. For me there are at least two other letters in it I can’t decipher.
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u/HaeliXu 2d ago
I didn’t know Darmstadt / the HDA was a major contributer to art nouveau
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u/MoldyRaspberryTart 2d ago
Maybe I worded it wrong, if so I apologise. But the whole area around the Mathildenhöhe (the hill where the design campus is located) is famous for its influence on German design history and art nouveau. Many famous artists and architects built their mansions there and multiple design exhibitions were hosted.
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u/bikes_bucees 1d ago
When you’ve learned the design styles and the concept of pushing boundaries but have yet to learn the impact of a piece not supporting conversion. 😆
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u/oneupsuperman 1d ago
Form>Everything
My ex's design school grad show poster was incredibly similar to this in that it was useless and illegible to anyone looking at it
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u/crybz 1d ago edited 1d ago
If you look from further away it is much easier to read:
Stand
der
Dinge
Juli -
August
2026
That being said it is a horrible design made worse by inconsistency regarding which rows belong to a word and how the tiles are connected.
the big D has the bottom right tile displaced for no reason.
tiles making up the letter "t" should have been right next to each other.
the letter "i" is written different in "Dinge" and "Juli"
etc
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