Graphic design is a meta field, in the sense that it only exists in relation to something else. Someone else's content. Then we as graphic designers add a layer of design and make it more communicative.
I am wondering whether the fact, that it is not often us who create the content, affect the way we think about our work? Does it make us less responsible?
What if a client asks you to communicate something which you know is a lie? Do you care as long as there are fun design-experiments to be made?
"Don't shoot the messenger!" is what I come to think of.
Journalism which is also a meta field have very clear guidelines for their practise. They have a "Code of Ethics"which protects the main public -but also the journalists, in the sense that they have something to relate to, and hold on to, when they are confronted with difficult issues. http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp
I am wondering whether our profession would gain from "some kind of code of ethics"?
I know that a group of designers tried to do something like that, with the First things First" manifesto (1964 and 2000) http://www.xs4all.nl/~maxb/ftf2000.htm
which stirred a huge debate. I am still not sure whether it helped, or whether it was just the people who already agreed who cheered...
Wednesday, December 6, 2006
A soon to be graphic designer -or something like that..
That’s me.
I realised that I now have 7 months left before I am thrown into the profession of “graphic design”, so I decided that it was time to ask some questions about what this actually means -what kind of field is it that I am moving into, what should I look out for, where is the edge. Where is the line to balance on?
So I researched a bit. And will try to discuss different subjects on this blog.
I realised that I have no answers to the questions, I know as little as you do. But at the same time, I quess I just have to try.
We (at the Rietveld Academy) had a meeting with French graphic designer Pierre Bernard, who recently received the Erasmus prize. He stated that it was an important thing for graphic design that he got the prize -since “the position of graphic design is very fragile”
This fragile position is what I am trying to investigate.
I hope you will join me, and post your thoughts and ideas!
That’s me.
I realised that I now have 7 months left before I am thrown into the profession of “graphic design”, so I decided that it was time to ask some questions about what this actually means -what kind of field is it that I am moving into, what should I look out for, where is the edge. Where is the line to balance on?
So I researched a bit. And will try to discuss different subjects on this blog.
I realised that I have no answers to the questions, I know as little as you do. But at the same time, I quess I just have to try.
We (at the Rietveld Academy) had a meeting with French graphic designer Pierre Bernard, who recently received the Erasmus prize. He stated that it was an important thing for graphic design that he got the prize -since “the position of graphic design is very fragile”
This fragile position is what I am trying to investigate.
I hope you will join me, and post your thoughts and ideas!
What if you happen to be a graphic designer?
What if you are concerned about what happens with the field of graphic design?
What if the general public is not interested in graphic design?
What if no graphic designers are interested in moral, social and ecological causes?
What if all graphic designers are interested in moral, social and ecological causes?
What if an ecological organisation hires you to make a campaign where you have to twist and turn every statistic largely in their favour?
What if you reject the campaign, and the result is that much less people will join the organisation, whose favour is that?
What if you take the campaign and the result is that the ecological organisation looses a lot of credibility and a lot of
members?
What if you in general are held responsible for the credibility of a client?
What if the client is a big oil company?
What if you can actually improve the communication and
ethics of a big oil company by working for them instead of against them?
What if the client you work for determines what kind of design you make, and not you?
What if the designers who works for cultural clients and the designers who works for commercial clients swapped jobs?
What if that swapped who goes to the museum and who is the target of advertising?
What if it did not change a thing?
What if you can change the manipulative tendency in graphic design by setting an example and insist on progressive design?
What if a lot of the progressive design is produced in such small editions that no one in the public sees it, but
design-competitions all over the world are overloaded with it?
What if the progressive designers are more eager to get professional respect than actually communicating to the general public?
What if the general public is not interested in graphic design?
What if no graphic designers are interested in moral, social and ecological causes?
What if all graphic designers are interested in moral, social and ecological causes?
What if an ecological organisation hires you to make a campaign where you have to twist and turn every statistic largely in their favour?
What if you reject the campaign, and the result is that much less people will join the organisation, whose favour is that?
What if you take the campaign and the result is that the ecological organisation looses a lot of credibility and a lot of
members?
What if you in general are held responsible for the credibility of a client?
What if the client is a big oil company?
What if you can actually improve the communication and
ethics of a big oil company by working for them instead of against them?
What if the client you work for determines what kind of design you make, and not you?
What if the designers who works for cultural clients and the designers who works for commercial clients swapped jobs?
What if that swapped who goes to the museum and who is the target of advertising?
What if it did not change a thing?
What if you can change the manipulative tendency in graphic design by setting an example and insist on progressive design?
What if a lot of the progressive design is produced in such small editions that no one in the public sees it, but
design-competitions all over the world are overloaded with it?
What if the progressive designers are more eager to get professional respect than actually communicating to the general public?
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