design = culture ?

While TASCHEN focuses on “making” books (read my post of 27 April) on design, art, architecture, photography, pop culture, lifestyle, even erotica, design professionals and academicians across the world are debating the role - and even the contribution - of design in art, in communication, and in our culture.

Although I can’t be sure that the debate is over - or ever will be - at least one point of view has me thinking even today. It was a presentation I discovered on the Internet - made in October 2003 by William Drenttel and Jessica Helfand at an AIGA (American Institute of Graphic Arts) conference on the theme “the power of design”.

The presentation, specifically titled, “Culture is not always popular”, actually offered several points of view, including one that questioned the idea that design can be considered a body of knowledge. The mainstay of the presentation was, of course, the impact design has on our culture. It’s a critical perspective, but definitely worth a look.