[ What is Standardisation? ]

The world today is covered with a vast and ever expanding myriad of consumer entertainment and as the population increases so does the range of entertainment and the available mediums for said entertainment to be expressed. The growing number of humans result in certain money saving tactics being introduced to maximise profit and reduce waste which is a perfectly rational and sustainable process for producers to do. The standardisation of some products for example: the CD, mean that the consumers can buy the corresponding players and enjoy music in the comfort of their own home. on the other hand these ergonomical, rational decisions made by businesses are arguably having negative repercussions on the entertainment it is linked to and making it lose value and resulting in commodification. The same process of standardisation can be noticed in the design work that is used to give visuals to the invisible nature of music, as the world, technology specifically, has expanded the mediums for design have always followed the same path. Obvious as since 1938 when Alex Stienweiss was hired by Columbia Records as its first art director, album cover designs or 'cover art' have been championed by the industry and in modern society cover art are essential for consumers to recognise and distinguish the vast range of music.