Rethinking Design Education for the 21st Century: Theoretical, Methodological, and Ethical Discussion

A New Worldview? Even most cursory look at recent literature and production in design would be sufficient to reach conclusion that general landscape is safe, quiet, and serene. It is, therefore, not really original to claim that we are in a period of necessary change, be it in design education, practice, or research. Although reasons invoked in support of this diagnosis may vary considerably, they generally are considered to reside within field of design itself. For instance, Hugues Boekraad and Joost Smiers mention the disturbing effect of product engineering and marketing on design and visual as main issue to be addressed currently.' This problem is, without doubt, a central concern today, but it can be considered as a symptom of a wider issue to which all other professions also are confronted: engineering, medicine, education, social work, law, etc., as if in its very foundations, contemporary practical philosophy were in crisis. In other words, one is bound to conclude that reasons for current situation in design are to be found mainly outside of field of design. This explains very wide-and, to some extend quite ambitious and pretentiousscope of this essay. I do not think it necessary to dwell too long on diagnosis of our current situation. Let me just say that I tend to agree with idea that we are in a paradigm shift, although I don't necessary share all analyses and reports which have been made on this quite controversial topic. Our current paradigm; by that I mean shared beliefs according to which our educational, political, technological, scientific, legal, and social systems function without these beliefs ever being questioned, or discussed, or even explicitated, this paradigm may be-and indeed has been-characterized in various ways. For my part, I retain following main characteristics: its materialistic underlying metaphysics; its positivistic methods of inquiry; and its agnosticist, dualistic worldview. There is no reason why disciplines of design would escape influence of this general framework. Indeed, all drifts one is witnessing today in design can be attributed to one or all of H. Boekraad and J. Smiers, academy, European Joumal of Arts Education 11: 1 (Nov. '98): 60-65. This text actually is a manifesto calling for foundation of a new academy of arts and design. The manifesto was launched as a working paper at European League of Institutes of Arts (ELIA)