Dear all,
Fil asked:
>And on Ken's notion (which I share) of the difference between art &
>design: has anyone considered some kind of survey of artists and
>designers, to find out if/how this difference plays out in 'real
>life'? I should think that would make a fascinating grad thesis.
I'm conducting a practical survey of graphic designers in a small
city in the Netherlands. An initial list of graphic design agencies
in Breda (size 140.000 inhabitants) indicates that there are around
200 companies (registered, VAT-number) who describe themselves as
'graphic designers'. [This excludes web-designers, illustrators,
advertising-agencies, marketing communication agencies etc.] This
means that 1 in 700 people in Breda owns a graphic design agency ...
Each agency can employ one or more designers, and graphic designers
who work for 'non-graphic design' companies are not included.
Only this number provokes a host of questions and assumptions:
- do they work for local, national, international clients?
- how do they combine activities, or are they specialised graphic designers?
- how do they judge the quality of their work?
- which methods do they use, and do these methods differ per project?
- what are their professional expectations?
- what are the relations between commissioners and graphic designers?
I'm not looking for the 'top-designers with international standing',
but try to map 'common practice' of designers who create an income
through graphic design.
The combination of 'graphic design activities' and 'other activities'
is part of the survey. Combinations of graphic design and
illustration or photography or fine arts are fairly common. Until
now, I did not get the impression that graphic designers 'move
between these modes'. They are all part of the 'activities' that
support eachother, both commercially as well as in personal
development.
[Research method: semi-structured interviews and observations of discussions.]
Does anyone know of a similar study?
Kind regards,
Karel.
[log in to unmask]
>>>
Cheers.
>Fil
>
>Ken Friedman wrote:
>>Dear Chris,
>>
>>The blurring lines of different practices are a genuine sign of
>>UNISCIPLINED practices. The kinds of artistic practices that
>>obtained before the 1800s and since the 1960s do have much in
>>common with design practices.
>>
>>This is different to the claims in the article cited, however,
>>since the common point is group practice rather than solitary
>>creation.
>>
>>But there is a second issue, and this is a crucial distinction
>>between art and design. In art, one sets out to solve artistic
>>problems that the artist sets for himself, herself, or their group.
>>In design, we set out to understand and solve a problem for a
>>legitimate problem owner. The problem owner may be an individual,
>>an organization, or a constellation of stakeholders. The nature of
>>our success as designers depends in great part on how well we meet
>>the needs of those who bring us problems to solve.
>>
>>That's a simple way to put it, of course, since we may sometimes be
>>called on to find, restate, or redefine the problem -- perhaps to
>>ask the legitimate problem holder to reconsider or reframe the
>>desired outcome.
>>
>>Altogether, though, design always includes multiple participants on
>>the creative side of the enterprise. This is a contrast with art,
>>that may or may not do so. An artist can say, "I succeeded" at will
>>-- much like Alfred Jarry placing a toothpick between his thumbnail
>>and the flesh of his finger, holding it up with a satisfied
>>exclamation as his last gesture. For a designer to succeed, the
>>process must serve the needs of all relevant stakeholders.
>>
>>Yours,
>>
>>Ken
>>
>>p.s. This post involved no cheap plugs. This is not an
>>advertisement for the 2008 DRS Conference, UNDISCIPLINED. If I
>>intended to advertise the conference that will take place from July
>>16 to 19 in Sheffield, I would suggest that people visit the
>>conference web site at
>>
>>http://drs2008.designinquiry.wikispaces.net/
>>
>>But I would never do anything like that.
>>
>>--
>>
>>Chris Rust wrote:
>>
>>So I see no distinction and that's one of the reasons why I am
>>interested in exploring the confusion of disciplines in this
>>summer's DRS conference. (cheap plug)
>>
>
>--
>Prof. Filippo A. Salustri, Ph.D., P.Eng.
>Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
>Ryerson University Tel: 416/979-5000 x7749
>350 Victoria St. Fax: 416/979-5265
>Toronto, ON email: [log in to unmask]
>M5B 2K3 Canada http://deseng.ryerson.ca/~fil/
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