By looking to ancient and hands-on methods of creating, ‘Out with the new, in with the old’ explores how breaking down barriers between art, craft and design can work to decolonise design. By highlighting the restrictive nature of our Westernised approach to design and providing spaces that facilitate learning, this project encourages designers to question and expand their usual processes and practices.
This publication that documents my process when working with traditional Egyptian craft methods to form contemporary communication design outcomes. My publication has been designed with the intention of being read back to front, from the right page to the left. This, alongside the right-aligned text, makes reference to the way Arabic script is read.
While the main pages of the book follow my own process and autoethnography, the smaller brown rectangles will be insert pages that host my observations of our current communication design environment. The observations highlight the common principles we follow as communication designers, paraphrases and quotes from designers we idolise and commentary on the common understanding of what communication design should be.
The publication uses two different design styles – a more formal and simple layout against a scrapbook layout – to highlight the two different working components of this book. My exploration of Ancient Egyptian craft (scrapbook style) is allowing me to provide an educated commentary on alternative approaches to communication design (formal design style).
Please press the full screen button on the issuu banner below to view the full publication.
'Metaliq fi el wasat' woven tapestry
Hand-crafted 'Soraya' Typeface
'Papyrus Patterns'
'Fabric Poster' hand-stitched appliqué artefact
This space is a public studio for designers that is dedicated to decolonising design. The space mirrors the publication's exploration by facilitating week-long workshops that teach designers how they can traditional arts and craft bring into their design thinking, outcomes and processes. The workshops will not be specific to Egyptian culture but will take a more general approach to hands-on methods of creating to ensure tokenism and cultural appropriation is avoided.
A fluid indoor/outdoor space provides designers with the flexibility
to move between workstations as they wish.
Standing circular desks encourage designers to move
around and collaborate with one another.
A mural using the digital variation of my 'Soraya' typeface, a typeface created as part of
my publication, has been added to the space to tie this outcome in with the print and digital outcomes.
Close-up of outdoor seating arrangement.
Close-up of the mural with a designer working at a sewing workstation in front.
Workshop from the street looking in. A large window at the front of the building allows
passersby to view what is happening within, hopefully encouraging interest in the workshops.
To further celebrate hands-on methods of creating, my primary touch-point is printed promotional material. Because this workshop is not-for-profit I want to avoid the digital space to remove any assumptions of commercial ambitions that are commonly associated with social media campaigns and ads. The printed postcards display the outcomes from my own exploration on the front side and a workshop sign-up call-to-action on the back. These postcards will be placed in design-related venues (galleries, book stores, co-working spaces and more) where the audience usually frequents.
'Thinking inside the box' highlights the restrictive nature of our approach to communication design. With traditional art and craft often comes individualistic expression, imperfections and ornamentation. The audio for this video, taken from 1950s footage of design ideals and layout rules, outlines the restrictive 'rules' of design that often restrict expression and creative freedom. My accompanying visuals support this narrative by exemplifying how these rules can transform a unique design into one that lacks individualism.
'Thinking Inside the Box' as a public projection in the neighbourhood surrounding the workshop.
