Tag: defamiliarisation

Design is not going to save the world: we’re good – but not that good

Abstract image of underground railway station.

Design's storytelling is compelling yet can oversimplify its role, risking diluting the practice and reducing its criticality. The belief in universal grand narratives about design can undermine professional practice, while reliance on reductive methods can flatten creativity. Design should focus on its specific, contextual influences rather than claiming to resolve all societal issues, promoting clarity over inflated narratives.

Graphic design & media literacy: exploring design methods?

Upsidedown orange juice bottle on in street - slightly abstract

Design is increasingly used to address societal challenges, engaging with social and cultural issues. Can graphic design contribute to media literacy educaiton by deconstructing narratives, using defamiliarisation methods, to foster critical reflection and enhance media communication understanding?

Graphic design as a re-creational tool, process & research method

Graphic design is re-creational – re-presentation, as opposed to representation. Graphic designers often also have to face creative limitations and disappointments. Like theatre, graphic design is uniquely communicative and innately performative practice. This performativity provides an opportunity for professional graphic designers to assert their unique, practice specific, skills and talents.