The 1960s planted the postmodern seed, and as it sprouted in the '70s, graphic design finally started to pay attention to the context in which they were creating their work. Since then Postmodernism has grown and changed throughout the years as we develop new technologies that affect how we live, but even as we have moved through the decades, Postmodernism still asks us to question everything. Not only does it encourage us to question the boundaries of art and design, but it has also asked us to address our surroundings, including our political systems, our idea of social norms, and consumerism along with a variety of other topics involving what is going on around us.

As the old homage goes, art imitates life, but in our contemporary world of consumer culture and capitalism, life can also imitate art. Postmodernism has opened up a two way dialogue between the designer and the audience, and this exchange has produced thousands of resources and events to pull from in order to inform future design, political, and social movements. As the digital age is in full bloom, and the internet has become it's own social networking system, we see those thousands of resources turn to millions, then to billions; all available within a split second Like Postmodern design preaches, we have documented our design history as it progresses through Postmodernism, the Digital Revolution, and anticipate what is still to come.

Feminist, gay liberation, racial, and environmental movements began to cause social and political upheaval in the 1970s. As a result, advertisers, graphic designers, and illustrators began to consider these issues and to address them in their work as a documentation of what was going on. The decontextualization that plagued the Modernist movement was dying out, as opinions of women, blacks, and other “minorities” became loud and clear. It became clear that it was a time of protest, of self-awareness, and of freedom.
In 1979, a nuclear accident occurred at Three Mile Island[1], causing political and social movements against nuclear weapons in a quest for peace. In addition, this era was a dark period for the economy. There was the oil crisis in 1973 and then again in 1979, causing an economic depression and high inflation in America[2]. Many advertisers focused and emphasized a product’s economical aspects to appeal to people having financial trouble, due to the economic depression. TV also became popularized and new and more creative TV commercials were produced. In addition, through television because they were more common in households, they helped to popularize many campaigns for public benefit.
In the mid 70s, Microsoft was founded and the Apple computer was also launched[3], marking the rapid development of digital technology and contributing to the morphing of Postmodernism. Objective and universal design in the modernism era became more experimental, multi-cultural, subjective, and dynamic as artist and designers began to use the tools that would fuel the digital revolution.