Chomoi Picho-Owiny

Future typographic and graphic designers will need to be able to design for a range of media, both to secure their role and to provide the necessary design expertise in technological environments. This paper proposes an approach to teaching which introduces theoretical issues within a practical design project to encourage the development of general concepts that can be transferred to different technologies. A specific project on designing for the screen is described, which is taught as part of… Show more

Future typographic and graphic designers will need to be able to design for a range of media, both to secure their role and to provide the necessary design expertise in technological environments. This paper proposes an approach to teaching which introduces theoretical issues within a practical design project to encourage the development of general concepts that can be transferred to different technologies. A specific project on designing for the screen is described, which is taught as part of a BA degree in Typography & Graphic Communication. In the context of this project, reasons for introducing theory are proposed, examples of the nature of the theory are given, and the methods used to introduce material are illustrated. A detailed account of one student's implementation of this project is used to demonstrate how theoretical issues can provide direction in a design task. However, careful consideration needs to be given to how theory and practice are integrated to encourage students to look beyond the short-term benefits of specific training to the development of more general knowledge. Show less