DANIELA HERNÁNDEZ ROSALES GRAPHIC BRANDING & IDENTITY As designers we tend to focus on being rational, problem solvers or following the latest trends, I have been subject to this behaviour myself. These past months, I have been able to take a step outside of my comfort zone and work on projects with a holistic purpose. Throughout my experience, I came across aspects of our behaviour and attitudes that made me question our actions as designers. During my internship, I worked on the rebranding for Senlima, a clothing brand that advocates for equality, inclusion, and diversity for disabled people. It was the first time I felt my work had the power of change. My boss and I underwent a process of creative brainstorming, trying to give a twist to their slogan. Along the way, I came to understand first-hand the power of language. We are told to be the disruptors, to create change, and this is what my boss intended to do. A philosophy of being bold and aggressive to stand out from the crowd, is this the correct way of being political? Nowadays, words are more powerful than they have ever been. With the use of social media, being offensive is an easy mistake that we can all make. I came to question how we as designers should disrupt. Tibor Kalman's work was a point of reference during my whole internship. He is the perfect example of the disruptor attitude. His blunt work as editor-in-chief at Colors magazine left a mark on the fight for diversity, it was, “viewed with polite amusement or outraged horror”, such as his portrayal of Queen Elizabeth with black skin. This same issue was banned in New Zealand. His provocative work had its repercussions, with many communities feeling offended. However, I believe it’s essential to have work that shouts. It opened the audience's eyes to what it stood for. In the end, as Kalman points out, “Design is just language, and the real issue is what you use that language to do”. Many could consider that Colors language has become mainstream, losing the shock value. The normalisation of this language could lead to harsher outcomes. On the other hand, the current sensitisation of the public makes graphic designers stand on a thin line regarding the language they use. Should we as designers have to find the balance or find new ways to disrupt beyond the shock value? There are passive ways of being disruptors. Applied Design a creative studio known for its awarded type design for the Braille Institute, is a clear example of the power design has on change. With the collaboration of Braille Institute, an organisation for people who suffer from visual impairment. They were able to create a typeface which disrupts the norm. “The result is a typeface that “breaks the traditional typographic approach of uniformity”, and instead “focuses on letterform distinction” to make the characters more legible.” This was an element I felt was missing during the creation of the slogan for Senlima. It is essential to have an outsider perspective from someone who is the intended audience, for the language to be powerful, non-offensive and effective. Being passive doesn’t mean that it has less value on the effect it has on the world. There are many ways of being political. We must be the disruptors to create change. The sensitisation of society compromises the powerfulness of the disruptors. We could approach political design as George Lois states for advertising, “I think advertising should be like poison gas. It should grip you by the throat, it should bowl you over, it should knock you on your ass.” Or to work passively as Applied Design. We set our moral limits when it comes to being disruptors. It is in our own hands how we use language; we can take good things from both being fearless and fighting for what we wish to advocate but inform ourselves of what we want to say. As designers, our behaviour as disruptors is a pillar for progress in the continuously changing society, and we should stand by that.
Bibliography Pater, R. (2016) The Politics of Design: A (Not So) Global Manual for Visual Communication. London: Laurence King Publishing. United Colors Benetton. (ed.) (1993) 'Race', Colors, Issue 4, Spring/Summer https://www.eyemagazine.com/feature/article/reputations-tibor-kalman https://www.theguardian.com/media/2002/may/27/mondaymediasection4 https://shop-colorsmagazine.com/pages/about-us https://www.itsnicethat.com/news/applied-design-braille-institute-atkinson-hyperlegible-graphic-design-050821 https://designobserver.com/feature/the-passion-of-george-lois/6767
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