Author: Paulina Tipantasig

From the reading named Course in General Linguistics by Ferdinand de Saussure. I learned two new words, one is Linguistics and the other one Semiology, which have many different functions in the human’s life and communication. Linguistics is the scientific way to study the human language by observing an interplay between sound and meaning. Semiology corresponds to the sign process and the communication of it. Linguistics deals with speaking in which one person communicates with another. Linguistics is part of semiology and it is considered a tool of design which helps to describe and therefore understand what the reading is trying to say. These two terms show an extension that goes deeper into words or visuals and both shows its importance in the communication field.  

We use signs and symbols in everyday language such as the ways to go to the right or the left. Signs these days have become major communication in human lives that guaranteed directions and a correct way to go which communicates a specific idea. Society is capable of understanding signs that are easy to catch at the present moment. I have seen many signs such as the signs for the bathroom, the traffic signs, hand signs or even the traffic lights which portrays a message. 

Semiology can be broken into parts such as signifiers, signified, and signs which are able to put together communication. Signifier and signified is a combination that portrays a particular idea. Signifier (sound, printed word, or image) is the form which the sign takes and signified is the meaning that the sign gives.  The sign contains the combination of the signifier and signified which form an important unity in communication. 

Language and graphic communication and visual arts are related because language is like a storehouse of sound or images and writing them produces an illustration of them which conduct to graphic. Language gives a way to communicate with others via concepts. Graphic communication projects an image or forms of what the language is trying to say and visual arts helps to convey the message that the graphic is trying to make in society that can be easily understandable. For example a sign must be good and understandable so the viewers will be pleased but if it doesn’t work, society will not comprehend what the sign is trying to say and therefore the sign will not have communication. 

 

By reading both texts, one made by Armstrong and the other by Ellen Lupton & J. Abbott Miller, I was able to comprehend more about communication design and what comes before that, which is theory. Theory is based on why this or that? And the process of becoming a designer is based on how? Since the process is bigger and it is required to learn new things such as technological software, methods and more in order to really understand what is communication design and how to become a designer. Reading theory helps designers to grow and change their own work.

Rudimentary communication methods are relevant for contemporary information systems because they are the basis of communication with its principles and without it, communication would not be able to be understandable. They are the foundation of communication that comes from years ago when many artists started to implement it on their artworks. That’s why in this time, in this moment, in 2020, there are still traces from the past artists and past methods which make design today not completely original. Without knowing the theory from old times to create what’s today communication design, designers would not be able to comprehend what they are actually doing. Each one of the designers have a different idea of how to design their work which eventually goes back and takes a minimal piece of an older artwork and makes it different as how different is the movement of modernism and the bauhaus school time or how different is the work of Paul Rand and Lissitzky.

Contemporary designers should concern themselves with archaic writing, counting, or printing techniques because they are the guidance of the modern time of how communication design should be handled. They are the builders and fundamentals of what communication design is. With all these theories and designs which are models for designers, they will be able to implement new techniques on their works and evolutionate the future of communication design. Interpretation and perception should be on any design made because there will always be a meaning on why the designer did this or that, the artwork should tell what’s behind and capture the senses used to put information together and create a social impact. There is also what is behind the typography used to make artworks such as what the book by Lupton & Miller says about counting Sheep, Period Styles, Language of Dreams and Language of Vision from Design Writing. This reading talks about the past languages such as roman, greek which are in capital letters and therefore hard to read, and more languages, this book gives a description of many languages and different ways to communicate. It also talks about how primitive icons were used in order to communicate with others. This makes people think about the linguistics and type used in design. I also learn that the whole body can become a set of symbols for representing numbers. Abacus was used for counting and computing in ancient Greece and Rome and more.

New ideas come from objectivity and subjectivity and it also comes from the little small creation to the more expressive one. The subjectivity of design decisions are based on the customer needs, own ideas, concerns with social realities that are driven by human preference. With this, viewers are able to perceive the artwork and express themselves inside it. Objectivity describes art’s role and what’s behind it. It represents the physical aspect of the piece of artwork. New ideas come when you see other designers artworks, then you start to think what can you do to make a change? What can you do to make it different? What is the meaning of it?. In the text, “Artists had to detach emotionally from their work in favor of a more rational and universal approach” this quote enhances designers to progress more and more to get away from their emotions and go away to gain the universe.