From Design Culture to Design Activism

Guy Julier

In this article, Julier examines the relationships between design activism, and mainstream
commercial design culture as a facet of neoliberalism, and the way in which these opposing
movements co-opt from and influence each other.

The relationship of design culture and design activism to neoliberalism must be understood. This
means attempting to grasp how design works within, and takes advantage of, neoliberalisms
structures, institutions, and resources.

He notes that design academic study up til this point has been relatively free of considerations of
economy; most politicised discourse focuses on sustainability, social issues etc. However, commercial
design culture is so intertwined with notions of consumerism and capitalism that it is necessary to
view and critique it through an economy-based lens.

Design culture refers to mainstream commercial design culture, and the relationships between
designers, producers, and consumers within it. A part of neoliberalism.

Design activism refers to a movement that critiques design culture and the economic practices and
ideologies surrounding it.

In terms of the form of this activism, he focuses on the development of processes or artifacts that
have both a social/political/activist use and a functional use.

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WHAT IS NEOLIBERALISM?

A theory of political economic practices, elements of which are often co-opted across a range of
political frameworks, e.g. Thatcherism, Reaganomics. Common features include:

Deregulation of markets and the encouragement of free trade

Privatization of state-owned enterprises

Financial/economic interests over others e.g. civic, social, environmental

Critiques of it include its focus on economic efficiency, its class-based value system, and its resulting
negative impact on the environment. Sociologists have also argued that a rise in neoliberalism has
led to increased gentrification, mass incarceration of the poor, and the rise of underpaid mass labor,
in contrast to a leniency in dealing with the rich or privileged.

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DESIGN CULTURE & NEOLIBERALISM

These economic developments as a result of neoliberalism have impacted design culture; more
media products and consumer goods, more branding and repackaging, more intellectual property
rights, including design patents. The latter in particular has led to a creative class being formed,
around the notion of entrepreneurialism resting on design and innovation. Even the notion of
aesthetics within commercial design i.e. how a product is presented to the consumer, has risen as a
result of this development in design culture.

The relationships between designers and producers have also been impacted. By neoliberalisms
practices, the focus is on better faster cheaper, with a focus on consumer demand and
engagement, which in turn has shaped production and manufacturing within design culture. This
focus towards the consumer is how most design is valued; how well it is known, how much is it used,
what loyalty does it command. This is also a neoliberal practice; people and groups of people are
seen as a resource or an asset in the market. Social practices that these assets undertake become a
part of the economy, beyond just labor.

Consumers arent the only asset in commercial design culture; creative workers have become typical
of the labor conditions of neoliberalism. A typical junior designer position involves long working
hours, unsteady employment, and a willingness to network; engaging beyond the nine-to-five day. In
the same way as consumers, their social practices within work, as a result of the lack of professional
norms within the design workforce, also become a part of design culture and the economy.

Under the umbrella of Neoliberalism is also the competition of monopolies. Competitiveness

emerges between brands, underpinned by intellectual property rights. Products that are the same
but from different brands will still have the same general design so the design focus is on corporate
identity, brand, or license manual.

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DESIGN ACTIVISM

Basically, designers are unsatisfied with their working conditions: fewer opportunities for
development and learning, more frequent use of unpaid interns, and too much work for too little
reward. Reasons for this are varied; beyond just realizing that they are being exploited, political and
economic circumstances within the world today have made activism and politicized thinking more
mainstream and common. Global concerns have become everyday concerns particularly in terms of
environmental or social issues, etc.

In the 1970s, geopolitical changes led to a rise in radical thinking and the formation of groups like
Superstudio and Archizoom, all of whom were looking at alternative structures for consumer culture,
and different ways of working/producing within environmental and social fields. Today, however,
design activism goes beyond manifestos or academic studies, and aims to embed activism into
everyday life through its intervention with real people in real places. It develops in keeping with
pre-existing circumstances, while also attempting to reframe these. Furthermore, it exploits
conditions of neoliberalism in order to manipulate and reassemble them.

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CASE STUDIES:

Apple v. Samsung (2012)

Apple received $1 billion from Samsung following a lawsuit where claims were made that Samsung
had copied designs of the iPhone and iPad.

This is what Samsung had to say:

Todays verdict should not be viewed as a win for Apple, but as a loss for the American consumer. It
will lead to fewer choices, less innovation, and potentially higher prices. It is unfortunate that patent
law can be manipulated to give one company a monopoly over rectangles with rounded corners, or
technology that is being improved every day by Samsung and other companies. Consumers have the
right to choices, and they know what they are buying when they purchase Samsung products.
(Samsung cited by Arthur 2012).

Use of intellectual property rights to maintain monopoly through design patent. Design has power,
and can affect the mental and physical engagement with material, and thus becomes a way of
transforming outlooks.

Grassing of Leeds

Heads Together grassing residential street in the city of Leeds in the UK

Recreating the neighbourhood to have a focus on people rather than cars. Encourages imagination
but also discussion on what a street is and what it could be.

Santiago Cirugedas Skips

Gets a permit to place skips in the streets but recreates them into play equipment or a living space,
challenging ideas of public space and the street through the use of the skips.

Both apply above and below the line design. They materially engage both product users and
policymakers. The designer works with and alongside the user rather than being commissioned.