Summary of the article titled ‘What a funny looking video’

Using allegorical representations of technological change to reflect on future digital communication and design challenges

This paper presents a reflective examination of challenges to design and communication from the current digital revolution, using the prism of a 1980s television advertisement for the Yellow Pages.
[continues here…]

Article about using ChatGPT as a virtual colleague for post-graduate course development

Summary of an article about exploring the use of ChatGPT as a virtual colleague within design education course development

This article presents an exploration of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly ChatGPT, within design education course development. It begins by acknowledging the distinct nature of design as an educational discipline and the challenges it has faced from the digital revolution, including the democratisation of design and the rise of in-house design teams. [continues here…]

Article about re-thinking Design Thinking pedagogy within higher education

Abstract from Responsible Design Thinking: Informing future models of cross-disciplinary design education

This article provides a critical commentary of Design Thinking education and proposes a new model for incorporating responsibility within these teaching and learning practices. [continues here…]

Paper about graphic designers, artificial intelligence & automation

Abstract from Graphic Design and Artificial Intelligence: interdisciplinary challenges for designers in the search for research collaboration

The introduction of electronic publishing, multimedia, the web and social media have influenced and presented challenges for graphic design. Now the implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) features within graphic design software enables practitioners to automate many design processes. [continues here…]

Communication & Graphic Design Research blog

Academic discussions about graphic and communication design

An ocassional blog and chat about communication and graphic design research issues. Academic issues and discussion topics that have come out of research, but in a more informal manner; as well as some thoughts, as well as to reviews of articles, papers and suchlike… [continues here…]

Recently published article about the graphic design brief

Abstract from ‘What’s the brief?’ building a discourse around the graphic design brief

“What’s the brief?” is an everyday question within the graphic design process. Moreover, the concept and importance of a design brief is overtly understood well beyond design practice itself – especially among stakeholders who work with designers, as well as clients who commission their services. As will be shown in this article, a design brief is often an assumed and expected physical or metaphoric artefact for guiding the creative process. [continues here…]

Recently published article about graphic designers resistance toward the term ‘graphic design’

Abstract from Terminology and Design Capital; Examining the Pedagogic Status of Graphic Design through Its Practitioners’ Perceptions of Their Job Titles

Graphic design has long been hampered by its indeterminate educational disciplinary status, resulting in it being subsumed within wider visual arts studies. Arguing that this permeates into professional practice, this article explores the ambivalence of professional graphic designers towards the term ‘graphic design’ itself. [continues here…]

Recently published article about researching graphic designers using performative methods

Abstract for Re-performing Design: using dramaturgy to uncover graphic designers’ perceptions of stakeholders

Graphic design, as a specific research discipline, has been largely underrepresented in academia, with the literature suggesting this is partially due to difficulties in researching its professional practitioners. [continues here…]

Article about defamiliarisation, design and photography

Abstract for Photographic (In)authenticity: making strange as a creative practice response

Debates around authenticity within photographic discourse are persistent. Some have revolved around documentary photography, while other discussions focus on the ethical validity of digitally edited news photographs and indeed the photographic medium itself. [continues here…]