1A) I started interning for a non-profit organization on February 6th and I’ve learned a lot about design and ethical guidelines throughout the semester and when working with the company. So far I have been using images in almost every assignment that was given. The very first assignment that I think needed imagery was for the February Magazine assignment they had given me. It was an article about seven black individuals who are making history today. They wanted to include seven people in the article and told me to design it however I wanted. I tried looking for copyright free photos of some of the famous people they mentioned in the article but there were none. I then asked my supervisor how I should go about getting images for this article they wanted me to design. I didn’t want to use any images from google as they could get the company sued because they infringed on someone else’s copyright. After discussing with my supervisor she stated that I can use photos from online but I must source them. I needed to credit the photographers and people who got the photos. It was a simple solution but one that completely slipped my mind.
When reading A Client’s Guide to Design: How to get the most out of the process I learned a lot about how important it is for designers to respect and understand ethical guidelines. For example it states that, “A professional designer shall treat all work in progress prior to the completion of a project and all knowledge of a client’s intentions, production methods and business organization as confidential and shall not divulge such information in any manner whatsoever without the consent of the client. It is the designer’s responsibility to ensure that all staff members act accordingly”. After reading this it is clear that designers have far more responsibility than just designing something pretty for the company. Designers have to make sure the staff act accordingly so that certain design ideas that are a work in progress don’t get outed. It mentions that you must get the consent of the client before divulging any sort of information to anyone. This information should remain confidential for the time being because if this information were to be leaked then it’s possible that someone could steal the design whether that be a logo, a magazine spread or packaging. It’s important that everyone understands and respects this rule and follows it accordingly otherwise it could end someone’s career.
Ethics in design is important but also important to maintain them in your own personal life. For example it further states that a designer who, “accepts instructions from a client or employer that involve violation of the designer’s ethical standards should be corrected by the designer, or the designer should refuse the assignment”. You shouldn’t accept an assignment if it goes against your own ethics and morals. Understanding what you are willing to do is important. You shouldn’t have to compromise on your values in order to be making money, because at the end of the day it isn’t worth it. I’ve had something happen to me where I had the opportunity to intern for a non-profit organization as a designer but turned it down because they supported NFTs. If you are unaware NFTs are incredibly bad for the environment as they take a mass amount of energy to store and sometimes that energy is more than small countries can produce thus, affecting climate change. I had to turn down this internship because ethically I couldn’t intern for a company that supported NFTs. Of course many companies are not aware that NFTs are bad for the environment so I’m not blaming them for not knowing but I couldn’t work for them even if it was just for a short time.
In regards to the company’s logo, there have not been any specific ways on how you should or shouldn’t use the logo. The company did provide the colors and fonts that they used in the logo and when designing I make sure to use the colors and typefaces listed in order to keep the brand identity cohesive with all the other designers. It’s important to understand when and how to use someone’s logo.
In the AIGA book Guide to Copyright it states that, “Registration allows the artist to make a record of the design and have that record held by a neutral party, the Copyright Office. Since registration is so significant if a lawsuit is necessary, the deposit materials that accompany the application are especially important”. It’s important to register your work to the copyright office. In my advanced strategies in illustration course my professor at the time stressed the importance of registering your work for copyright when becoming a professional illustrator. This way no one can take advantage of you during the process. It is also important, as an illustrator, to know if they want to take full copyright ownership away from you. If that happens you either say no or have them offer you a lot more money than you usually charge since you are giving away the rights of your illustration to that company. But you mostly want to avoid selling the rights.
Source 1: https://dpageek.wordpress.com/2011/09/07/ethical-issues-in-the-graphic-design-business/
