Graphics Incognito Essay

Graphics Incognito by Mark Owens focuses on the relations between

American punk music culture and history of graphic design and the meanings of

it and its notions by comparing them through the origin myths. He starts by

giving the example of American punk rock group “GERMS (GI)” and how they

became the symbol of American hardcore. The image of their logo became

recognizable by every fan out there, used on t shirts, albums and everywhere.

Like Bauhaus triangle-square-circle, the blue circle they used as their logo

became a shorthand for American hardcore, known by every fan and been used

variously for many times since. The designer of this “blue circle” image is

unknown however it is clear that it has a designer touch as it

The vocalist Darby Crash ( was

originally called With Pyn) found the image as an ambiguous symbol. This image

later became “designed” and produced everywhere as an abstract representation

of the band and its fans. It can be said that the lack of designer in (GI) album

cover, is a perfect match with the Germs, a sense of secrecy and occulted

knowledge and spread out with Darby’s death. The unknown designer and the

usage of primary colors and abstract shapes are evidence of modernist graphic

abstraction, which roots back to at least Bauhaus. The cover of (GI) questions the

traditional modes of design and finds an alternative way to it with its form of

hardcore abstraction.

As a second example he talks about the American punk rock band “Black

Flag”. Similar to the Germs, they defined the protocols of the American

underground and became a symbol of it. Their logo, the four blocks, spread out

everywhere as a result of their DIY work ethics. The Black Flag bars are an

example of the hardcore abstraction. It uses the geometric forms of De Stijl and

early modernism. Both Germs and Black Flag, aimed to rupture the surface of

normality, by using strategic anonymity, pseudonym and graphic