ASSIGNMENT FIVE

WHY DESIGN?

The Project:
For this project you will be designing a poster that presents an argument for why design matters. For this poster you will have to develop a reason or series of reasons why design matters and use the vehicle of the poster to persuade a public viewership. You should consider various forms of text, images and visual development. You are not just creating a written argument, but are designing a visually persuasive case. You may take any of a broad range of approaches: personal, historical, social, political, cultural, others or a combination of several. The major concerns of this project are for you to elaborate your position and develop a design which visually reinforces/expands the ideas you are presenting. You should also use this as a point of departure for considering/developing your own ideas about design and your reasons for wanting to be a designer..

Due Date:
This project will be due on Tuesday, February 20.

ASSIGNMENT FOUR

MAP YOUR SELF

The Project:
For this project you will be designing a map of your Self [please note that the traditional yourself has been broken up into two words]. To do this you are going to need to consider two distinct components: what are maps for and what is the self.
As far as maps go, a map is an abstract representation of a place or information which can be interpreted relative to a given purpose or set of purposes. There is no perfect form of mapping; different forms of maps give access to information in different ways. There are always selections and omissions that are made in maps relative to a communicative/navigational purpose or goal.
With regard to your Self, you will both need to make decisions about how you think of yourself and what you consider the Self to be: what is the relation of who you are and what the Self is? This sets up a wide range of possibilities from the entirely personal to the purely philosophical. Do you want to go about this personally, through family history, culturally, philosophically, medically, anatomically, etc, etc.?

What you will need to do is develop a mapping system and visualization which is both engaging and appropriate to the mode of self you select. Also, keep a close eye on your type decisions: bad type sucks.

Due Date:
This project will be due on Tuesday, February 13.