December 1988 Signs of the Times Cover Embraced Computer Tech

Art of the People, for the People

THE INCREASING AFFORDABILITY of personal computers and digital graphic software led to very — for lack of a better word — funky aesthetics, as evidenced by the cover for Signs of the Times’ December 1988 issue, which spotlighted the resurgence of public art in diverse forms: from traditional wall murals for historic scenes in Centralia, WA, to three modernist contest winners mounted on outdoor boards in Austin, TX. Associate Editor Wade Swormstedt visited the Ohio riverside during Cincinnati’s bicentennial celebrations and wrote about a 112-ft.-long, 45-ft.-high plywood facade that emulated the riverfront of the 19th-century paddleboat era. See complete issues of Signs of the Times dating from 1906 to 1921 at signsofthetimes.com/archive.

• Luminous Heart
  Appropriate for its art direction that embraces the promises of computer technology, the issue pairs the riverfront scene with Metrobot, a gigantic sculpture outside the Contemporary Arts Center in downtown Cincinnati, also commissioned for the city’s bicentennial. The opening description by contributor Bill Dorsey says it all: “Question: What stands 27 ft. tall, weighs 5,700 lbs. and comes complete with three television screens, an electronic message board, a wrist watch, a telephone, a blue neon face and a pink neon heart?” Local signshop Broadway Sign Co. constructed the robot according to conceptual designs by artist Nam June Paik, despite legislative setbacks along the way.