Abstract
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. Acknowledging such hurdles, this article discusses an experimental study that used dramaturgy as a defamiliarising method for uncovering professional graphic designers’ perceptions of stakeholders. The study collected graphic designer narratives from online forums as well as dramaturgically informed interviews with professional practitioners. The graphic designers’ narratives were converted into a script and used to motivate a troupe of trained actors, who re-performed the narratives during a series of performance workshops. The article argues that this use of trained actors as ‘proxy designers’ created a refractive form of defamiliarisation, allowing previously obfuscated narratives about graphic designers’ perceptions of stakeholders to emerge. Presenting the study as a prototype to inform future research into graphic design and other elusive creative practices, the article also cautions that the amount of defamiliarisation used must be evaluated against the desired outcomes.
Highlights
In the design studio of a creative agency at which I once worked, the lead designer, Mike, was notoriously reticent about discussing his work
Graphic design is at an acute stage in its ongoing evolution, as it faces challenges from automation and the democratisation of design, leading to changing workplace practices
Leveraging and adapting methods from other design disciplines, dramaturgy and ethnography this study contributes to a growing understanding of the under-researched professional practice of graphic design
Summary
In the design studio of a creative agency at which I once worked, the lead designer, Mike (not his real name), was notoriously reticent about discussing his work. This article emerged from a wider, multi-stage study of graphic design practitioners’ professional relationships with stakeholders, which uncovered a series of often obfuscated themes embedded within practitioners’ perceptions of their professional practice (Meron, 2019). Taking advantage of the interdisciplinary intersection of dramaturgy, ethnography and design research, this article informs graphic design and offers a contribution to creative disciplines and professions, whose practices can appear obfuscated or elusive to study.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
