For instance, let's say we are trying to decide upon the structure of an education. Scientists would say it's science that matters for the future so we need a good science education, mathematicians say it's math, writers say it's great communication skill that matters etc. In such situation, artists/designers should join the discussion and be able to argue the importance of art/design education. We need to be able to justify ourselves in a way, so that art/design could remain in the education in a good form.
I don't think it's necessary for all designer to be political and chatty, but some should be. Luckily, there are some designers that are great writers.
The place where I started thinking about this was during TSI (Typography Interest Group). Catherine was talking about how she (a designer) sees books differently from historians. She might see a historic book and she could be thinking about aesthetics of the layout, which historian will definitely not going to notice. As I write this, I'm thinking this is extremely obvious that we all think differently, but I still find such differences in perception interesting.
To be more specific, I am always jealous of the way architects think. Many are amazing writers.
Leaving that aside, Duarte and I have been working on a magazine brief that is due on Monday. We are in the final stage of the project and we've been quite busy for past few days. We've been thinking about the significance of delivering news and information on paper in this digital age.
