Forlizzi, Jodi and Cherie Lebbon. “From Formalism to Social Significance in Communication Design."

Forlizzi, Jodi and Cherie Lebbon. “From Formalism to Social Significance in Communication Design." Design Issues 18.4 (2002): 3- 13. The MIT Press. JSTOR. Web. 05 Oct. 2009.

Despite being an older article, many key modern day issues are presented in the text. By using two case studies, Forlizzi and Lebbon examine the future of visual design and the way it differs from methods used in the past. Today, not only are consumers repeatedly inundated with an expansive variety of images, they [the consumers] are increasingly, exceedingly diverse in a many aspects – age, gender, income, education, and socio-economics. No longer can visual designers of any medium – especially web designers – rely on intuition or consumer studies. Now they must attempt to connect to the consumer by creating empathy and dialogue. In particular, one quote summarizes the entire article. Forlizzi and Lebbon state, “Designers can no longer only be concerned about the interaction of word and image; they also must be concerned about the interaction between the audience, the content of the communication, and the outcomes of the design. In order to create dialogues that effectively persuade the viewer to adopt a new belief or change behavior, the communication designer can no longer rely solely on intuition” (5). The web designer should be able to engage the viewer, the audience visually and socially.

This article is significant because it illuminates visual design, in various mediums, from a traditional perspective and pertinent modern-day concerns. For the most part, it methodical and well researched. The article gives two case studies that are allow for a varied yet comprehensive approach in assessing visual design. However, there is one major critique to the article. With a Black feminist perspective, the article does not address the disproportionate amount of heterosexual African-American women with HIV and AIDS; however, it concentrates on gay men and IV drug users. By not mentioning that key fact or acknowledging that the elements of visual design would be different for each group, the author’s ethos and research methods are questioned. I hope to fill this gap in my own research.