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is a platform for parametric design in graphic design. It documents the work of students and teachers at the Department of Design at Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW), who are investigating the significance of the system as a conceptual model and design method under the title “Parametric Design in Graphic Design.”

Design is less about intuitive, even ingenious “strokes of genius” and more about a holistic and rule-based (systemic and systematic) process of gaining knowledge and shaping form. It is becoming increasingly important to be able to design dynamic systems that both guide and inspire the design process.

Parametric design refers to this design in and of systems—with rules, their modes of operation, and systematic manipulability. The research project, led by Prof. Heike Grebin, is an integral part of teaching and aims to raise awareness of design as a performative process.

Play the System brings together selected study projects in which the system plays an important role as a design method – whether analog or digital. The works are created in a fruitful symbiosis of theory, design, and technology. Socially relevant issues and positions from philosophy, art, and avant-garde design from around 1900 to the present day are repeatedly discussed.

Play the System is an invitation to become aware of the systemic competence of graphic design and to gain the maturity to use the tools of digital design critically.

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c19 Moving Poster

It seems almost miraculous, and yet also so obvious: the poster is coming to life! The poster has had its heyday as the pinnacle of graphic design—at least in Germany’s public spaces. Only in Switzerland does its status seem unassailable. Perhaps this is why Swiss designers such as Felix Pfäffli and Josh Schaub are leading the charge to develop the poster in the digital space. Although the moving poster is inspired by film, it clearly stands in the tradition of classic graphic design. When designing animated posters, the composition of surface, color, font, and image plays an essential role. But finally, the dynamic forces of design can be unleashed! To develop animated posters, we must first familiarize ourselves with the basics of poster design. Step by step, we expand the design space, exploring the dynamic properties of key design elements in analog exercises in order to consciously incorporate them into the digital design process.