CALL FOR PAPERS
Special Issue, MEI 41
http://www.mei-info.com/en/
*DESIGN & COMMUNICATION*
*Under the direction of Bernard Darras (Sorbonne Paris 1) & Stéphane Vial
(University of Nîmes)*
If the 20th century was the century that saw the emergence of communication
theories, it also saw the emergence of design, seen both as a profession
and a discipline. Such simultaneity cannot be a coincidence and invites
questioning.
By presenting itself to sponsors as a ‘weapon of mass communication’ (Vial,
2014), design has indeed profoundly changed and influenced communication
practices during the last fifty years. In Anglo-Saxon countries, one can
also refer to communication design to designate the branch of design
specialising in conceiving and developing messages and devices dedicated to
communication. In France, since Roger Tallon, one has outlined three major
domains within design: the ‘domain of spatial planning’ (architecture,
urban planning), the ‘domain of production’ (objects, products) and the
‘domain of communication’ (signs, messages).
In addition, the project or act of design can be considered in itself as
‘an act of communication’: a well-designed artefact is an artefact that
‘speaks for itself’ to the user (Norman, 2002). The semiotics of objects
(Darras & Belkhamsa, MEI 30-31, 2009; Beyaert-Geslin, PUF, 2012) and the
semiotics of the project thus provide designers with analytical and
systemic tools. This is confirmed by the international study into the
relationship between semioticians and designers (Darras, SIGNATA Vol. 3,
2012), insofar as ‘the semiotician accompanies the designer’s work in
organising the meaning (of the concept) and in ensuring the effectiveness
of its communication” (Deni, 2009). Not only must design products be
comprehensible to their users, but for Krippendorff (2006), one can even
say that “design is making sense of things.”
Finally, over the last fifteen years, designers from all sectors have been
faced with the need to integrate the dimension of communication into their
work. Now, “the project is not complete until it is communicated” to the
point where “the objective is often no longer to sell a particular product,
but rather to sell yourself” (Colin, 2003). How is design communicated to
the public, whether in the media, galleries or museums? How does design
exhibit itself? What cultural mediation is there for design?
This issue of MEI intends to question the diversity of the points of
contact between communication and design on one hand, and design and
communication on the other. How do communication theories and practices
relate to the challenges of design? To what extent and in what ways is
design a subject for information and communication science? How does this
sector accommodate design and address its issues? Does design work as a
medium which materializes thought? And conversely, how do design theories
and practices address the challenges of communication? To what extent is
communication a design object? How does design culture relate to the
challenges of information and communication science?
To this end, all forms of design are discussed and not only those, such as
interactive design and digital design, that are directly related to
information and communication technology or those, such as graphic design
or information design, that are an integral part of communication design.
Product design, architectural design, landscape design, urban design,
eco-design, textile design, fashion design, design management, strategic
design and social design, etc. are also concerned with the challenges of
communication.
*Abstracts of 300 words should be sent to the following addresses:*
*bernard.darras [at] gmail.com <http://gmail.com> and hello [at]
stephane-vial.net <http://stephane-vial.net>.*
*Abstracts will be submitted to peer review.*
*Extended Deadline: May 15, 2015*
--
-----------------------------------------------------------------
PhD-Design mailing list <[log in to unmask]>
Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design
Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|