#TypographyAsProtest

[gravekilla69]

WOII Compulsory: In Summary

I didn’t anticipate how profoundly World of Ideas and Imagination would fuse my twin passions for philosophy and design. This module became a revelation, transforming my concept of design from a service into a vital language for interrogating reality itself. Through poststructuralism, I found academic rigor for my instinctive questioning, with Derrida’s différance (Of Grammatology 23) and Foucault’s power/knowledge (Discipline and Punish 135) giving form to my skepticism about “objective” design. As Victor Papanek insists in Design for the Real World, designers bear “a social and moral responsibility” to challenge harmful systems rather than serve them (Papanek 15), a mandate this module embodied.

The module crystallized why I've always resisted rigid design rules. As Gilles Deleuze argues, "Thinking is always experiencing, experimenting with what exceeds our grasp" (What Is Philosophy? 111). WOII showed me that good design isn't about answers, but about asking better questions. Whether through pixelated slogans or collaged explosions.  This aligns with Ellen Lupton’s claim that “design is a form of storytelling that shapes reality” (Design Is Storytelling 7), proving theoretical rigor is the bedrock of impactful work. 

My journey finds its visual counterpart in Jenny Holzer’s work. Her works show how text can punch through complacency. Where words flicker between poetry and protest, digital and concrete, resonating with the insightful takeaways I've had in WOII.

Total Word Count: 219 Words

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Works Cited

Deleuze, Gilles and Félix Guattari. What Is Philosophy? Columbia UP, 1994.

Derrida, Jacques. Of Grammatology. Johns Hopkins UP, 1997.

Foucault, Michel. Discipline and Punish. Vintage, 1995.

Lupton, Ellen. Design Is Storytelling. Cooper Hewitt, 2017.

Papanek, Victor. Design for the Real World. 2nd ed., Chicago Review Press, 2005.

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"Truisms" (1977-79)

"Inflammatory Essays" (1979-82)

"Projections" (1986-present)