Design in Art and Design

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The Design in Education SIG aims to expand and clarify our understanding of ‘Design’ and its fundamental role in contributing to the scope and purpose of art & design education.

The word ‘Design’ is made complex by the range of uses and multiple meanings it has in different contexts. Design is an area of study, a broad description of a creative and typically collaborative process, a way of thinking and behaving, an aspiration, a career title that ranges across the creative, media, design, engineering and manufacturing industries from film and architecture to aerospace. What is common to all these careers is a way of thinking and creative behaviour, common to both and complimentary with everything we also associate with Art.

In the 21st Century, there can be no Art without Design and no Design without Art. They are the flip sides of creative thinking and behaving, resulting in action and outcome. They utilise the same creative language but nuance the purpose across vastly diverse intentions. Works of art are also the outcome of ‘designerly’ thinking processes, and of course designed products will have an aesthetic, sharing creative values. In the creative language we have in common, the artistic elements are the foundations of visual creativity and design principles are our creative building blocks within this shared grammar of creativity. Consequently, both art and design creative processes are values driven, developing critical, flexible, imaginative, innovative, original and purposeful skills and outcomes.

The objectives of the Design SIG in 2024 onwards are:

To work across our partnerships with Design focused agencies, organisations and educators to ensure that ‘Design’ within Art & Design is both clearly understood and articulated to members, but also to policy makers and the wider educational community;
To define and build downloadable guidance and content for NSEAD members;
To create position statements which support NSEAD's policy work when making the case for broadening and deepening the focus on design in the art and design curriculum.

Membership:

The Design Special Interest Group in 2024 chairs are:

Ged Gast, Creativity Consultant and Past President of NSEAD; and Dan China, Art and Design Education Advisor

Members of the group are:

Michele Gregson, NSEAD General Secretary and CEO

Prof. Andy Ash, IOE and President of NSEAD

John Childs Past President of NSEAD and OCR Principal Moderator

Dr Gary Granville, Professor Emeritus, National College of Art and Design, Dublin

Sara Shafiei, Associate Professor, The Bartlett

Dr Iain Macdonald, NSEAD Vice President and Associate Professor head of Design Innovation, Maynooth University

Greg Hodgson, CEO, Edge Gain Ltd

Sara Shafiei, Associate Professor, The Bartlett

Dr Susan Scurlock MBE, Director Primary Engineering

Elysia Thorpe and Stella Fong, The Design Museum

If you need any information about the Design in Education SIG please contact  Sophie Leach (NSEAD Research and Policy Officer).

Dates:

This SIG was formed in 2017-2019, and reformed in January 2024. 