Who is the community?
Locals of Greenside, particularly students and lecturers in Greenside Design Center.
What was the problem?
Being “lost in communication” – There are ‘invisible barriers’ to understanding that exist in the way we communicate with one another, both linguistically and visually.
How did GDC get involved?
The aim of the project was to problematize design language through lateral thinking and conceptual exercises in order to develop more socially responsible deign thinkers. Once students had been ‘de-conditioned’, they created and carried through an intervention that created awareness in others about the barriers inherent in communication. One intervention involved students redesigning newspaper headings to inspire and humour people stuck in traffic, whiles another involved students asked to design a positive message in the format of a Hullets sugar packet and place it in a site specific situation and motivate its relevance.
What the students said about the project:
“[Students] invented design solutions to make other people around them aware of the world in a different and perhaps more exciting way”
What the community said about the project:
“I think the neighbourhood was a bit shocked with the projects and was taken a bit of the comfort, which people need to experience once in a while.”