Graphic design through a sustainability lens
As the language, methods, and practice of sustainable graphic design evolve, what constitutes sustainable graphic design becomes less clear. Looking at graphic design through the various lenses of sustainability can help guide what this might mean in practice.
A single-focused approach
Contemporary understanding of sustainability has deep roots in environmentalism (Edwards, ch. 1). A prime example is Rachel Carson’s 1962 book Silent Spring, which first brought to light the devastating effects of man-made chemicals on the environment. Not surprisingly, then, environmental impacts, such as printing and paper waste, are the first thing to come to mind when trying to apply sustainability concepts to the graphic design process. Some commonly applied solutions to these environmental impacts include the use of recycled paper and vegetable-based inks, and creating digital PDFs instead of printed materials.
Design focused on environmental impacts is commonly referred to as eco-design. The practice of “eco-design” is often seen as a starting place for graphic designers as it is easy to understand, tangible, and within their control. The
Limitation of this design approach is that it often does not consider larger, system-wide impacts. For example, a graphic designer may focus efforts on “greening” a client’s packaging by switching from a petroleum-based plastic to bamboo. The designer can now claim the package is made from a renewable
If we examine our existence through a dichotomous lens of internal and external experiences, it is easier to understand the importance of graphic design. Everyone, to some extent, is trapped within themselves. There is me in here, and you in there—a separation exists. We find common ground in the external world where there are certain rules that most of us have agreed to play by. Graphic design functions as a catalyst for either strengthening or disintegrating these rules. It screams, “Continue! Begin! Stop!” The graphic designer must work through the external world, understand its rules, and journey through their internal world in search of a project’s solution. If the solution is successful,
This manifesto proposes an approach to sustainable design that I am interested in exploring during my time studying architecture. The idea of sustainability is a complex one, not without apparent contradictions. This makes it difficult to define in a wholly satisfactory manner. For the purposes of this manifesto I will advert to the definition proposed by Jason McLennan who asserts that sustainable design: “seeks to maximize the quality of the built environment, while minimizing or eliminating negative impact to the natural environment.” I find this definition particularly useful in the emphasis which it places on quality. By quality, in this
According to the author of “Taking the Lead” Felice Silverman, “the introduction of LEED v4 represents the next step in the evolution of sustainable design, but it’s interesting to note that as we learn more about creating green spaces, new concerns continue appear”. The example she gives deals with encouraging people as designers to see products earn third-party certifications, and designers should remember to look at more than just the single-attribute benefits of products. Designers need to be able to arm themselves with the best information on sustainability there is, and continue to review process, systems and products that could potentially cause harm to the environment and the people
"Sustainable Architecture" - this phrase in recent years is mentioned a lot. The concept of "sustainable architecture" is associated, even identified with the concept of green architecture, ecological architecture, environmentally friendly, energy efficient ... to reach a stable value for the environment human life, reduce negative impacts on the environment in the present and future. However, although this interpretation is correct, but only one aspect, because that's what people are missing and need to achieve. Try to reach and understanding of sustainable architecture in general and more simple ...
Sustainability is the foundation upon which resilient and adaptive design was built. It “is based on a simple and long-recognized factual premise: Everything that humans require for their survival and well-being depends, directly or indirectly, on the natural environment” (Sustainability and the US EPA). Concern for the environment grew in the 1960’s, and after the creation of the EPA in 1970 the term sustainability came into use. “Sustainable development emerged as a result of significant concerns about the unintended social, environmental, and economic consequences of rapid population growth, economic growth, and consumption of natural resources.” (Sustainability and the US EPA). In the U.S., the history of sustainability is rooted in American
Designing and using sustainable products is the important topic which all human should seriously consider about. The technological development in recent decades significantly improved the average standard of living world widely while that destroyed natural environments on the earth. The speaker John P. O’Grady in TED Talk pointed out that how unsustainable products have terribly contributed to the devastation of the environment. For instance, Mr. O’Grady showed the audience that the study of marine pollution and metaphorically expressed the situation as the toilet which has not been flushed for a long time. Besides that, there are many other problems causing negative impacts. These environmental destructions harm not only nature but also the
One of the most heavily discussed topics, in this last decade, is the environmental decay of our planet. Diverse concepts have materialized in order to find solutions for the problem. Ecology and sustainable growth have been confirmed to be the main solutions currently. Innovations for sustainable growth include: creation of hybrid cars, recycling and minor discharge of carbon dioxide in factories among others (Christ 23). Environmental awareness was also introduced to the world of fashion, unfortunately, it wasn’t very successful; lately there has been a change of situation and that is what we are going to attempt to understand.
1. Explain the environmental impact that your designs will have. E.g., pesticides, dyes, chemicals, reduction of resources, waste, etc.
Learning the fundamentals of Digital Media is essential to laying a solid foundation to allow for a sturdy backing in digital design. Digital design theories, practices, and technologies can provide designers a stable of skills to build core competencies and over time wisdom. Mastering digital design fundamentals will provide opportunity for career growth. Depending on the industry, an entry-level designer can rise from senior designer, to art director, and then creative director. As digital media continues to mature, categorical design disciplines will continue to evolve, shape, and style the visual culture. From magazines to web pages, the spectrum of visual design will continue to move people everywhere on an emotional level.
The Environment: This part argues that who is responsible for the environmental damages, how much concern the designer has for our environment.
During the past years, graphic design has been changing all over the world, especially regarding the use of certain techniques of designing. Traditional principles and techniques of design allow designers to be more creative, but more and more designers are using computers. So, is new technology good or bad? It may seem strange to consider the different aspects of graphic design because most people only know the technological side. Though most people think graphic design is more about the digital media, it is actually a complicated process that requires creativity that computers cannot supply.
We are all part of an interlinking system, a system that needs balance with humanity and nature at the forefront. As Designers it is important that we take self interest out of design and instead collaborate within our physical environment and make sure that from the get go, our designs should work around a collaborative system that has a wide breadth of professional fields and influence from existing infrastructures found within our world. Victor Papernak writes “eighty percent of the environmental impact of the products,services, infastructures around us is determined at the design stage.” I have chosen to explore collaborations within the natural world, our industrial ecology and social design as examples of how important working together with other professionals and the environment we live in are for the bigger picture. In Victor Papernak’s book Design for the real world, Papernak uses an anecdote to stress the importance of collaboration for successful design.
Sustainability is a topic that has become very important in recent years. Sustainability is defined as, “the ability to continue a defined behavior indefinitely.” ("Finding and Resolving the Root Causes of the Sustainability Problem", 2014)
Which eventually discourage designer put in effort to considerate the social aspect during design thinking, the word “social sustainability” were being treated as ideological thought in design until recent years, the attention of social consideration in several industry has become mainstream.
Meredith Davis’s book “Graphic Design Theory” was published in September 2012 by Thames & Hudson. This book blends a study of historical thinking of design with contemporary / modern approach to it. It also suggests students to critically analyse their work and asks them to adopt the design theories to embellish their practical design work as it will help them construct better work. This book also helps in understanding the consumers and the history of Graphic Design and also talks about a range of theories and introduces a collection of concepts and sources for future use and reference. In this book, Meredith Davis talks about the relationship of visual representation to the contexts of design. It talks about focusing on the broad and long term aftereffects of design and not to design only for the moment and responding to prompt needs.