CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS
Journal: Artifact
Special Issue: Canonical writings on design

Artifact, an international peer-reviewed academic journal dealing with
design, plans a
special issue for mid-2009 dedicated to canonical writings on design.
Any search of the
literature on design reveals a burgeoning field of writing that
recurrently reformulates
itself according to processes of economic, social and technological
change. Within this
flux of ideas, however, there are certain books that warrant
acknowledgement as anchor
points for any investigation into their respective area of design. The
Artifact special issue
on canonical writings in design welcomes articles on single books or
groups of books that
you consider have a significant and enduring place in the literature of design.

Where some view canon formation as an expression of ideological
control, the special
issue seeks to stimulate debate concerning design's essential readings
by exploring the
authority of highly valued texts. Artifact encourages
cross-fertilization, interconnections,
and crossbreeding among different scientific disciplines, the design
industry, and the arts.
We seek reviews that reflect the broad field of design and show how a
canonical design
literature is open and expanding, as new issues and influences impact
on the activity of
design.

The goal of the issue is to add to the design field's intellectual
robustness, to establish
principles for the ongoing critical evaluation of key texts and to
ensure that important
works are not neglected as a result of the ongoing cycle of
publication. Alternatively, we
recognize that the scope of a single journal issue means any attempt at canon-
identification will be neither all-embracing nor definitive. The
proposed books will thus
shed light on the interplay of current and enduring concerns in design.

Review essays should be no more than 3,500 words in length and are due
1 February
2009.

We already have a number of books proposed for review, so please check
to see whether
your intended book is free for review by contacting the special issue editor:

Carolyn Barnes, PhD
Senior Lecturer, Senior Research Fellow
Swinburne Design
Swinburne University of Technology
Melbourne, Australia

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For information on Artifact please visit: http://www.informaworld.com/artifact