The role of visual communication designers in the design process for cities and their communities.

In this year's edition of the Arting project, the organizers encourage you to focus on broadly understood design for cities. The article describes how visual communication designers can participate in shaping the identity of a place in the context of city space, urban culture and in the social aspect. There is a common stereotype that designers, by introducing new elements into the urban landscape, primarily influence the visual and aesthetic quality of a given space. A broader view of design activity and the changing role of a designer allows us to conclude that this profession significantly influences social and cultural changes.

Shaping the identity of a place is a complex process in which, apart from historical, sociological, economic and technological factors, designers play a huge role. Starting with the activity of urban planners, architects and decision-makers who have the greatest influence on introducing significant changes in the area of ​​spatial, functional and service solutions, a number of activities that build the image and, at a later stage, the identity of the place, have an intentional, design nature.
When designing for public spaces, issues related to accessibility, functionality, safety and aesthetics should be taken into account, but by defining the goals appropriately, through the prism of current socio-economic challenges, the designer has much broader possibilities allowing him to propose solutions that, in addition to the basic functions, will, for example, support integration, intellectual activity, counteracting exclusion, protecting local values ​​and natural resources.

The activity of designers does not end with adding and transforming physical elements of the environment, but also has a huge impact on shaping intangible aspects, which are an important element in building the identity of a place in the socio-cultural layer.

Interfering with the urban fabric, even if it only concerns a narrow section of urban design such as visual communication design, requires a special attitude from the designer, manifested by a sense of social responsibility, activity aimed at improving and streamlining the surroundings, respect for people and the natural environment, and curiosity world, openness and knowledge of a number of contexts and current challenges allowing for responsible participation in the process of shaping a new identity.

This type of multi-aspect approach to design, also in the context of urban challenges, and preparation for the changing role of a designer is part of the education of students of the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice. During the course of teaching, students, in addition to workshop skills, deepen their knowledge of the principles of sustainable design and universal design, and emphasis is also placed on developing responsible, proactive attitudes. More about education at the Design Faculty, they can discreetly interfere with the urban fabric, emphasizing the unique architectural or natural values ​​of a given place, but they can also bring a new quality to the urban landscape through more original forms or strong color accents, becoming a new recognizable landmark (landmark). (2)

An example of a student project illustrating the studio's approach is the information system for the Pszczyna Historic Park by Zuzanna Sekta (Fig. 1). The author proposed a solution inspired by archival materials, which, through the graphic means used, refers to the castle heritage and thus emphasizes the character of the place. The proposed colors support the readability of messages, while not visually competing with the park space. The form of the carrier is light, simple and elegant, and thanks to the well-selected size and optimal quantity, the carriers do not obscure the greenery. The solution, through its modernized form, can reach a new group of recipients, e.g. young people, who are more willing to learn about local heritage or spend time actively in the park.

In this solution, the designer respects cultural heritage and the natural environment, shaping identity in a sustainable way, although using a modern language.

The second significant group of messages in the urban landscape are commercial signage elements, i.e. all kinds of signboards, neon signs, spatial identification media, advertisements, citylights and static and dynamic displays. Their primary function is not pure information, as in previous projects, but to change the recipient's attitude, usually aimed at encouraging various forms of consumption, and less often other activities. When designing this type of messages, it is important to influence the emotions of passers-by, residents and tourists, to distinguish and identify the place, which is why so many of them dazzle with aggressive colors or strong contrasts.

Identification media, although sometimes less durable and changeable, also strongly determine the perception of a given part of the city. Unlimited production possibilities mean that exactly the same media, made of the same materials, appear in many places around the world, depreciating the unique character of the place and destroying local values. However, the lack of rules regarding the use of identification and advertising elements often contributes to the creation of visual chaos and is not conducive to building the desired image of the place.

A counterproposal to this type of approach are classes at the Design for Identity Studio, where activities are undertaken to make students aware of the potential inherent in the native culture, and its manifestations are often treated as inspiration for designs of visual identity carriers of events or social actions taking place in urban spaces. The aim of education is to provide knowledge on how to use contemporary visual language to communicate content and values ​​identified in the process of discovering the identity of a given place in the social, cultural and spatial context (Fig. 2, 3). The curriculum also emphasizes aspects of sustainable design: respect for local communities and the environment.

One of the exercises in which students used local heritage resources as a starting point for designing identification media was the design of signs and spatial elements inspired by the details and architecture of 11 Listopada Street in Bielsko-Biała (illustration on the title page of the article). The solutions presented to the city authorities were perceived as elegant, economical, designed with respect for the place, i.e. in opposition to most current media. Even simple elements of identification can, apart from their basic function, strengthen the sense of attachment to a given place or constitute an impulse for other activities.

An example of such an activity was the project carried out by a group of students: K. Pilarczyk, M. Giertuga, M. Milej, J. Piwowarska, M. Fica and W. Karska of a spatial medium for Fabryka Pełna Życia, the entity responsible for the revitalization of the center of Dąbrowa Górnicza. Information about ongoing initiatives was supplemented with educational content about the city's flora and fauna and took the form of a mini-garden, becoming a meeting place for residents (Fig. 5, 6). The designers, looking at the issue more broadly and recognizing the possibilities, used their actions as an excuse to educate and strengthen the bonds of the local community.

The third group of messages are some of the media that appear temporarily in the city and have an action nature. These are posters, banners, facility markings, and spatial identification media. Such messages accompany various events in cities, festivals, outdoor exhibitions, but also campaigns
social, protests.

In this type of projects, the aspect of adapting to the space becomes less important, and the role of the designer shifts more to the sphere of designing experiences rather than shaping the environment. A challenge for the designer, but also for the organizer, is the issue of sustainable production of materials, which takes into account the use of cheap materials, templates, materials originating from/recyclable or the production of elements to be used in the next edition of the event, thus reducing the amount of waste produced during production. garbage, and gadgets are replaced with useful and durable items.
In this aspect, the role of the designer is also changing, as he becomes an educator responsible for shaping conscious attitudes in both designers and recipients, as well as coordinating the most sustainable processes possible.(3)

The Design for Identity Studio often cooperates with representatives of local governments with the goal of presenting the possibilities related to the use of the design approach in activities for urban communities.

The topic implemented in cooperation with representatives of the city of Bielsko-Biała and the Arting Foundation was a scenario of events that would draw the attention of residents to 11 Listopada Street in Bielsko-Biała. The concept of the Blask Bajek festival referred to the cultural heritage of the city, resurrecting cartoon characters from the Bielsko-Biała film studio on the building facades (using shadows). The authors of the project - Natalia Lach and Michał Pasierb - skillfully used new technology to engage young audiences, discreetly intervening
into the urban tissue (Fig. 7, 8). An alternative solution, also drawing on the city's traditions, this time in textiles, was the design of an exhibition stand for the Bielski Bazar event, in which the author Elwira Schabikowska proposed a stand unfolding mechanism inspired by a traditional sewing machine (Fig. 9, 10).

The starting point in both projects was the skillful reading of values ​​characteristic of a given community and place, finding the appropriate language, form, material, sound to communicate selected content to recipients, and adapting the projects to a specific space.

Designing for a city is, above all, designing for its residents and communities. The processes of creating and managing public space have been changing significantly in recent years. More and more activities are community and grassroots in nature, and participation plays a special role.

The Social Design Studio is a place where future designers learn how to coordinate complex processes involving various stakeholder groups, using visual communication tools. The workshop's activities are aimed at sensitizing students to the needs of various social groups, including excluded people or people with disabilities, and the emerging new challenges of the reality surrounding us. The projects created in the studio focus primarily on introducing social innovations and services that improve the quality of life.

An example of an activity created as a diploma thesis was the project of tools supporting occupational therapy for seniors by Julianna Zych. The designer noticed the need to create a place for outdoor therapeutic activities dedicated to seniors. The role of the designer in this project
consisted in proposing activities that would encourage recipients to take new actions, designing the materials necessary to carry them out and the space in which they would take place, as well as coordinating the entire process. The project was implemented in the form of a community garden in the center of Dąbrowa Górnicza. In this way, the local community gained a place with which they could identify and which allowed for active recreation (Fig. 11).

Projects in the area of ​​visual communication, although they seem to be a part of the complex process of shaping the urban environment, can significantly influence the quality of life of its inhabitants. Designers, with their unique skills in visualizing content, empathy and sensitivity, are an important element of interdisciplinary teams designing for cities, and thanks to their activities they can bring people together, support community and integration of various ethnic and social groups and counteract exclusion. In this context, the profession of a designer has primarily a social dimension.

1) These values ​​are taken from the teaching program of Andrzej Pawłowski (1925-1986), cf. Pawłowski, A. (2001). Initiations. Kraków: ASP Kraków.
2) cf. Lynch, K. (2011). Image of the city of Krakow: Wydawnictwo Archivolta Michał Stępień.
3 cf. Manzini, E. (2015), Design, When Everyone Designs: An Introduction to Design for Social Innovation. MIT Press.

Dr. Anna Pohl
– Designer, head of the Department of Visual Communication Design at the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice. He runs the Design for Identity Studio. Author of projects in the field of visual identification, visual information systems and
arrangement of exhibitions. In her research work, she addresses the issue of shaping the identity of a place in a sustainable way, taking into account social participation. Since 2015, co-curator of the international design conference AGRAFA, organized by the Design Faculty of the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice.