The Designer as Author: Reading the City of Signs—Istanbul: Revealed or Mystified?

Abstract

Fellow in Typography at the London College of Communication (formerly the London College of Printing). For a discussion of the graphic designer as reader: Bruce Mau, G?rard Mermoz: In Conversation, Baseline 43 (Winter 2003): 33-36. 3 Rudy Vander Lans, Introduction, Em/orr? 64 (Winter 2003): 9. 4 The concept of critical design, central to the City of Signs project, argues for the development of a critical atti tude?in the face of economic and other constraints?as an intrinsic part of the design process. My concern in this project is to emphasize that designers should not just be critical when defining their socio-cultural or political objec tives, but also about the languages ano methodologies we resort to, and consider the epistemol?gica! implications of specific design choices and communica tion strategies. Ultimately, my concerns are about the relations between graphic design and knowledge; treating graphic design not just as a communication tool, but as an instrument for the production and communication of knowledge. This presupposes evolving new forms of collaboration between graphic design and other disciplines: the arts, architec ture, music, literature, and the human sciences.... The preoccupations of the Your gaze scans the street as if they were written pages: the city says every thing you must think, makes you repeat her discourse, and while you believe you are visiting [Istanbul] you are only recording the names with which she defines herself and all her parts. ?Cities and Signs 1