Can we talk about the Trump aesthetic?

This is not a political post! (Well, as apolitical as possible)

Even before he became President of the United States, I've been interested in learning of the design decisions (or lack thereof) involved in Trump branding. I'm an amateur with a fascination for logos, branding, and commercial/industrial design.

I can't help but feel everything Trump-associated is just so TACKY. I'd love to know what exactly I'm picking up on. It's interesting because Trump is presented to be a luxury/high-end brand. Yet it just screams cheap materials, poor balance, gaudiness, and conspicuous consumption to me.

Let's see some examples? This is the Trump organization website. I mean? It's bland, blurry, low-contrast, outdated. I think it would have looked very high-class in 2005.

This photo of Trump Tower (NYC) lobby was good enough for their website. First of all was the photo taken by a mouse? Where are we? What happened to the rule of thirds, why are the chairs and tables in the bottom 1/8 of the picture and the escalators taking up the entire left half? Now let's talk about the design decisions that went into this lobby. Fake-roughly-hewn stone and big bland gold (everything is always gold) escalators. Enough plants to technically have something there, but not enough to make a statement or balance anything. It looks like a shopping mall from 2009 was built in an aztec temple? Or more accurately a RainForest Cafe a la DisneyWorld Florida Chic.

Where do I start? I mean seriously, the caption below this atrocity brags about how it is "The centerpiece of Trump National Golf Club" but I don't think I could have made a better McMansion satire.

Trump jet omg wtf was this picture taken in 1992

This tackiness reminds me of the branding of Beats by Dre (I do audio work and anyone will tell you that they are an overpriced status symbol first and high-end audio second) or of Cristal. As if the point of owning the product is to broadcast status more than to enjoy a subtly-crafted experience.

I'm contrasting this flashiness to brands like Brooks Saddles (bike seats) or Persol sunglasses. Equally expensive in their markets, but downplaying flashiness and playing up craftsmanship, tradition, and simple elegance.

I could go on but I really want people with more technical knowledge of design to weigh in!

Great design resource

100 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People (Voices That Matter) Submitted August 18, 2017 at 04:35PM by AskYourDoctor http://ift.tt/2vKXrJu