Leuchtendes Löffeln in Leipzig. Design als kulturelle Praxis im öffentlichen Raum

Abstract

Summary. The present contribution aims at discussing the social function of design as a sign practice intended for public perception. It argues that design objects construct identi­ty depending on an interplay between cultural and social contexts, materiality, color, and form. These are semiotic resources which express style. Style can be considered as a crea­tive act through style practices, which emerge from the selection, formation, and composition of semiotic resources. These practices are exemplified with reference to an illuminated advertising, the so-called “Leipziger Löffelfamilie”. It was constructed in the GDR in the 1970s and has gained the status as a protected monument.