The provocative and chaotic visual language of young designers may appear to be a random phenomenon of our times. However, looking back to the 1970s and 1980s, we find pioneers such as April Greiman (*1948), who confidently experimented with emerging digital technologies and challenged both social and aesthetic conventions. For Greiman, the anti-authoritarian New Wave movement of that era felt “very feminine” in its visual language. The computer, she noted, represented “a new paradigm—a magic slate for design that ushers in an era of new possibilities for graphic designers.” (Rick Poyner)
In this course, we trace a line from the postmodernism of the 1970s to the present, connecting contemporary feminist and techno-critical discourses with key moments in design history. How do social contexts and design tools shape visual language? Is deconstruction as a method of critique merely experiencing a formal revival, or can we systematically appropriate its processes for our own political and creative positioning? Can graphic design still rebel? And if so, how?
Combining lab-based practical work, design, and theory, the course examines design processes through a technological and gender-critical lens. Our collaboration with the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, which was founded in 1874 to build up collections of samples for use as teaching aids in schools of arts and crafts, provides us with insights into a historical understanding of design precedents.