Contemporary Issues in Design @cca-cid - Tumblr Blog

Jan. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Stories of a dystopian future often

We look at how new technologies are allowing print designers to do more – while craft skills remain in demand.

As graphic design is moving more towards digital, this article briefly describes four trends shaping the future of print design.

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It’s exciting to learn that print is evolving in ways that will potentially retain its relevance in the field. What stood out to me the most from this article was the section “Interactive Print Projects.” It’s the first time I’ve heard of the use of electroluminescent ink and thermo colours. It sounds and seems cool and makes me curious of further print applications. I’d hate to kill my own optimism, but are new inks and printing processes enough to stand up to advancing technology and combat the mantra “Print is dead”?

-- Leona

#response

We look at how new technologies are allowing print designers to do more – while craft skills remain in demand.

As graphic design is moving more towards digital, this article briefly describes four trends shaping the future of print design.

cca-cid

A friend and I joke about the island of lost interaction designers, a place where we will all land after turning 50. Her…

I was curious about the title since I figured these “kids” are probably people from my generation or so. I was surprised to read they were CCA students. It was a good read and I enjoyed that they had the chances to share these “secrets” with designers who are already in the field.

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I appreciate that student insights and practices are being listened to and shared. The dynamic between student and educator has always interested me. I think it’s more worthwhile when learning and teaching is exchanged between student and educator. There’s always much to learn from each other, regardless of experience or skill.

– Leona

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“Originally trained as a graphic designer, I have a (sometimes outsized) passion for choosing the right typeface, color harmony, and balance. Those things, while important, are not primary for my students.” As CCA gd majors, I feel like we have always been taught that form doesn’t matter until you’ve gotten a solid concept down, until then– no matter how pretty it is– it’s shit.

“Is this the right problem and the right approach?”: As we discussed in class, it’s no longer about solving the problem– it’s more about what the problem is. Also, we’ve heard time and time again not to get too precious with out ideas, and to always test on a small scale before anything.

Honestly, I’ve noticed that to be an art student, you do need and have a strong ego (as does everyone, but especially in art school). Art students seem to need to develop a unique style and reputation because their work needs to be, well, unique if it’s to compete with others– but that’s just my opinion.

-Eve

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I found the format of this article interesting and the fact that it was all CCA majors made it even more relevant. I think that point #5 (Build Responsibly, Then Get Out of the Way) relates to our discussions we had about sustainability. It seems like when design is put in context with sustainability it becomes idealistic. I feel like the capitalistic structure makes sustainable design seem idealistic, but outside the parameters of capitalism it could really be the start of a paradigm shift for our generation.

by Tobias van Schneider first appeared on my private email list.

“I like to see my “style” more as a definition of how I approach my work. How I work with people, how I deliver results, and how I solve problems.”

I think by this point we’ve developed a good sense of what our individual work flow is. Even I find it difficult to manage my time in perfect proportions before I resort to procrastination. But the main point is creating your own effective process which I believe goes along the line of given assignment, brainstorming, prototyping, iterations from critique, to final product. Schneider advised us to keep our "style” and approaches open to change yet confidently bold in everything we create.

-Eve

cca-cid

A friend and I joke about the island of lost interaction designers, a place where we will all land after turning 50. Her…

I was curious about the title since I figured these “kids” are probably people from my generation or so. I was surprised to read they were CCA students. It was a good read and I enjoyed that they had the chances to share these “secrets” with designers who are already in the field.

cca-cid

I appreciate that student insights and practices are being listened to and shared. The dynamic between student and educator has always interested me. I think it’s more worthwhile when learning and teaching is exchanged between student and educator. There’s always much to learn from each other, regardless of experience or skill.

– Leona

cca-cid

“Originally trained as a graphic designer, I have a (sometimes outsized) passion for choosing the right typeface, color harmony, and balance. Those things, while important, are not primary for my students.” As CCA gd majors, I feel like we have always been taught that form doesn’t matter until you’ve gotten a solid concept down, until then– no matter how pretty it is– it’s shit.

“Is this the right problem and the right approach?”: As we discussed in class, it’s no longer about solving the problem– it’s more about what the problem is. Also, we’ve heard time and time again not to get too precious with out ideas, and to always test on a small scale before anything.

Honestly, I’ve noticed that to be an art student, you do need and have a strong ego (as does everyone, but especially in art school). Art students seem to need to develop a unique style and reputation because their work needs to be, well, unique if it’s to compete with others– but that’s just my opinion.

-Eve

cca-cid

A friend and I joke about the island of lost interaction designers, a place where we will all land after turning 50. Her…

I was curious about the title since I figured these “kids” are probably people from my generation or so. I was surprised to read they were CCA students. It was a good read and I enjoyed that they had the chances to share these “secrets” with designers who are already in the field.

cca-cid

I appreciate that student insights and practices are being listened to and shared. The dynamic between student and educator has always interested me. I think it’s more worthwhile when learning and teaching is exchanged between student and educator. There’s always much to learn from each other, regardless of experience or skill.

-- Leona

#response

A friend and I joke about the island of lost interaction designers, a place where we will all land after turning 50. Her…

I was curious about the title since I figured these “kids” are probably people from my generation or so. I was surprised to read they were CCA students. It was a good read and I enjoyed that they had the chances to share these “secrets” with designers who are already in the field.

Collaborative, innovative and not defined by discipline – a new piece of research by Birmingham City University's Lara Furniss paints a picture of the modern designer.

I caught up on some reading during spring break. This article is about how teaching design has evolved in the UK but it’s relevant in the US as well. I enjoyed this article because I related to to discussion we had in class about what was being taught in design a couple years ago compared to what’s being taught today and how the role of the designer is evolving.

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A new book surveyed nearly 2,000 graphic designers to learn about their hopes, fears, and how much money they make.

A short article talking about a new booked called Graphic Designers Surveyed. The book is an in-depth look at the profession and is full of statistics and infographics. Some of the statistics are listed at the bottom of the article.

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This was a interesting article.

Graphic design is young: 85% of respondents were under 40, I wonder why? Surprise! Men make more than women: In the UK men were six times as likely to earn more than £60k /year. Typical It’s a bit of a boys’ club: 48% of women thought that graphic design had a masculine culture. Like everywhere else. Graphic designers work hard: 58% work more than 40 hours a week, and 78% say they worked more hours than they were paid for. Ugh that sucks. It’s not great money: On average graphic designers made less than their partners and worked longer hours. That sucks too! But people in the industry are generally pretty happy: 55% said they’re happy with their career, but 85% would recommend graphic design as a profession to a friend. A happy ending at least.

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I appreciate that all of this information regarding our field and profession has been compiled, especially in this straightforwardly-designed and near-casual manner. I already knew some of these things though, learned and heard from a few past professors. It’s a tad disheartening, but I had an understanding of the occupational struggle from the get-go. No matter how unfair or harsh some of the statistics may be, they shouldn’t keep us from designing. Every profession has their pros and cons.

-- Leona

#response

NOAA said Earth averaged 56.08 degrees (13.38 degrees Celsius) in February, 2.18 degrees (1.21 degrees Celsius) above average, beating the old record by nearly six-tenths of a degree .

Ugh this is so depressing, multiple sources are shocked that the temperature for every month in 2016 has been the hottest months since recorded history began. Georgia Tech climate scientist Kim Cobb said when I look at the new February 2016 temperatures, I feel like I'm looking at something out of a sci-fi movie.

#february smashes global temperature record astronomical experts warn new era climate change

cca-cid

A new book surveyed nearly 2,000 graphic designers to learn about their hopes, fears, and how much money they make.

A short article talking about a new booked called Graphic Designers Surveyed. The book is an in-depth look at the profession and is full of statistics and infographics. Some of the statistics are listed at the bottom of the article.

cca-cid

This was a interesting article.

Graphic design is young: 85% of respondents were under 40, I wonder why? Surprise! Men make more than women: In the UK men were six times as likely to earn more than £60k /year. Typical It’s a bit of a boys’ club: 48% of women thought that graphic design had a masculine culture. Like everywhere else. Graphic designers work hard: 58% work more than 40 hours a week, and 78% say they worked more hours than they were paid for. Ugh that sucks. It’s not great money: On average graphic designers made less than their partners and worked longer hours. That sucks too! But people in the industry are generally pretty happy: 55% said they’re happy with their career, but 85% would recommend graphic design as a profession to a friend. A happy ending at least.

Where We Live / American Refugee Committee Location: 615 1st Ave. NE, Suite 500 Contact: 612-872-7060 Website: arcrelief.org Year founded: 1981 The American Refugee Committee (ARC) has been helping refugees regain control of their lives for 35 years. While the conflicts change from year

This is a current news article about the readings for this week, ARC and IDEO’s Asili project. It is interesting to see the positive human centered design in action as something that works. the Asili project will be a lasting, stable presence in one of the world’s most war-torn regions and create a healthy business foundation for the long-term, not just a temporary charity.

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Australian researchers say a global tracker monitoring energy use per person points to 2C warming by 2030. Massive increases in energy consumption would be necessary to alleviate poverty for the nearly 50% of the world’s population who live on less than $2.50 a day

This reading goes with the latest reading response. The world is on track to reach dangerous levels of global warming much sooner than expected. Massive increases in energy consumption would be necessary to alleviate poverty for the nearly 50% of the world’s population who live on less than $2.50 a day. This is why it is hard to believe that we can make a change.

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I think its safe to say that these massive changes in climate are going to cause major natural disasters, whether it is drought, flooding of coastal towns, fires, etc. and it is going to deeply affect the poor. In developed countries assistance will be given to people in need, but in underdeveloped countries this will be a huge problem because they don’t have the infrastructure or resources to help. This is especially fucked up to think about because developed countries are the ones that caused it in the first place, but the underdeveloped countries will be the ones to feel the impact more.

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Though it is safe to say that this may occur, it shouldn’t be a reason to give up now and continue the way we are living. This is a perfect example as to why we should change our current ways of production and pollution. Personally, I will never fully believe that the damage we have caused is irreversible. We must think back to simpler times, and remember how we got to where we are now. If we listen to the earth and take action in union with all of society, we can make a dramatic change in our current situation and extend the life span of our planets timeline.

This piece on sustainable design written by Peter Maxwell focuses on a crucial flaw of “sustainability”, this problem being that sustainability is falling under another form of marketing. The current form of what we know as sustainable, is only feeding the problem at hand instead of excluding it all together. A good analogy for this is, right now the earth is on a sustainable diet. Practices of what we know as sustainable, like recycling, is fed through consumerism. Also, not to mention it takes additional resources to transform objects back into raw material and then back again. The solution to the problem, is stated very well in this concluding paragraph by Maxwell.

”For designers the concept of the use cycle is a challenge that could define a generation beset by the effects of climate change, if not yet motivated by them. No longer can sustainable design remain a case of creating the same products while making more conscientious material and production choices. Form shouldn’t follow function but functions, primary, secondary…even tertiary. This is a practical plurality, one that brings the utilitarian and the postmodern (a notion hardly alien to visual hybrids) into more fruitful dialogue. If the emphasis in design is placed on pre-defining multiple uses, sustainability might finally shift from parameter to paradigm.”

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Q: My teacher hates everything I make, even though I spend all this time working on it, and gets mad even when I follow …

An interesting article our graphic design teacher showed us exploring the importance of critiques in relation to design.

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Critiques are important. Like the article says, critiques help us see different perspectives or possible solutions to what we’re doing and making. We can’t figure everything out on our own. If we limit ourselves to our own opinions and methods, we narrow our understanding to a tunnel and end up missing a point or direction that could help us solve what it is we’re doing. We can’t grow or expand that way. It’s difficult to take criticism and to maintain an open mind, but it is what will guarantee our improvement.

– Leona

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Thanks for posting this. It is nice to get the point of view of other designers because I feel like it gives us more humanitarian perspective on our profession.

WIth the notion of critique, I feel that the reason we are in school is to learn from people that think differently, to gain even better perspective about what we are designing. What we get from school is the experience itself. This collaborative experience where we our learning with many others is one that we will not get at a job. It is important to cherish this opportunity while we have it, however stressful it can be.

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Taking criticism is hard, but tough shit. Never take it personally and if you do you will only hurt yourself. Although, I think criticism should be taken with a grain of salt sometimes; when you always listen and make those changes, your work becomes someone else’s than your own. I think that is why “your job as a student is to practice figuring out which ten percent is useful, how to mine it, and how to use it” holds so important– we need to learn how to differentiate the useful criticism.

-Eve

Q: I graduated from school this year and I’ve been looking for my first job. After interviewing around, I finally got a …

“You might have been the greatest design student at your school, and you still have no idea how to be a designer.”

Honestly, this advice is “take it or leave it” to me... Moneterio claims that as graduated students, we don’t know how to do shit– but isn’t being exposed to it for the first time how we learn? Isn’t making mistakes how we learn? If not now then when?

I suppose his best advice for this is putting yourself in a position where you can learn them and put your toes in the water first before diving in. Wouldn’t you regret your decision that you didn’t take up that daring job? Wouldn’t you always look back and think “what if”?

He also talks about things like competition, mentorship, staying broad, the risk of startups, and how startups focus on first-world problems.

“As a newly-minted designer, I want you to consider using your skills for the betterment of society. Go find some real problems to solve. We have enough of them.”

Monterio also holds the golden rule to treat others equally (that Lucienne Roberts mentions in “Being Good”) and help the future designers that were once in your shoes.

-Eve

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