From AIGA Insight ~ Topics: Icograda, international
What is AIGA’s role in Icograda?
For the past two years I have served on the board of Icograda, the International Council of Graphic Design Associations. The opportunity has been extremely valuable toward reinforcing our members’ interest in being part of a global community of designers, particularly as the global economy becomes the design arena of the future.
Most recently, I traveled to Cuba to participate in the World Design Congress, held in Havana on October 19–26. This weeklong experience included an education conference, an international design conference, a general assembly of member associations and an Icograda board meeting—the last one I would be attending.
Joining me at these conferences were a number of American designers, educators and social scientists, as well as others from around the world. The activities surrounding the conferences included the “Shared Dreams” exhibition of posters from U.S. and Cuban designers—which had also exhibited at “Next: AIGA Design Conference” in Denver—and other exhibitions that included AIGA members’ work alongside the work of designers from around the world.
The general assembly included AIGA delegates David Gibson and Kenna Kay, former and current AIGA board members, respectively. At the general assembly, SEGD, GAG and the University and College Designers Association (UCDA) were admitted to the organization, joining AIGA in representing U.S. designers. AIGA’s involvement is still a very strong presence, as the largest and oldest of the member associations worldwide. The value of our membership is that it allows us to build bridges to designers in other countries, develop links to our designers rather than just their work and share what we have learned with other associations so that they, too, can advance designing as a professional craft, strategic tool and vital cultural force.
The entire experience helps to strengthen the leadership perception of AIGA abroad, which, in turn, strengthens the credibility of our voice and standards in the United States. The benefits to our members are not easily measured; however, our participation in Icograda offers AIGA a chance to advance issues important to its members in other international venues, as well as opens up the potential for collaborative projects between AIGA designers and designers from other countries.
There are few certainties amongst the challenges to design’s relevance in the future, yet one is clear. Designers will be working in a global design economy where clients, collaborators and competition are all more likely to come from outside the United States. It is important for AIGA and its members to be seen as a progressive, supportive part of this future if we are to have open access, respect for our unique capabilities and increased opportunities. Although my term on the 10-member Icograda board has ended, current AIGA members from Qatar, Italy and Denmark remain involved and will continue to promote our principles.
The next world design congress will occur in Beijing in 2009; we anticipate that AIGA China will have a role in its program. Look for a forthcoming Insight column that will expand on the activities of AIGA China and why our involvement there matters to all of our members here.
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Having attended the Icograda World Design Congress in Havana, another point of AIGA's participation is to learn what other nations are doing that is in advance of the American design community.
As Ric mentions, there are many areas in which the American design community is advanced of the global design community: professionalism and innovation. Yet through the exposure of what others are doing, I learned how we lag behind Europe in dealing with issues of sustainability or Latin America when dealing with issues of cultural diversity. To be exposed to one's shortcomings is at once humbling, but also provides an equal basis to share ideas and mutual solutions.
So I applaud AIGA's global efforts as we promote our principles and also learn to adopt/adapt the best principles of the rest of the global design community. -
As the President of the AIGA Center for Cross Cultural Design (AIGA XCD), AIGA's Chapter that focuses on the role of design in the global arena, I freely admit to a certain bias when I heartily applaud any initiative that encourages AIGA's participation in the global dialogue on Design.
As a matter of fact, AIGA XCD lobbied strongly for AIGA's inclusion into Icograda, and our hosting of the Icograda Design Week in Seattle (www.seattle.icograda.org) was a source of great pride. This is the first US-based Icograda Design Week and the first time AIGA has partnered in an international conference: we are proud to have contributed to AIGA history.
Various members of AIGA XCD leadership have been staunch advocates for sensitizing the Design community to the evolution of the global economy: these include Shelly Langton, Christopher Liechty, Patricia Boman, Aaron Marcus, Henry Steiner and Bennett Peji. Sharing Dreams, a US-Cuba collaboration initiated by Toni O'Bryan, is entering its fifth year, a worthy manifestation of Design's ability to transcend global politics.
AIGA XCD deeply appreciates the support Ric Grefé has given us over the years.
In 2008, our goal is to reach out more actively to AIGA membership. Accordingly, I invite you to visit us at www.xcd.aiga.org. Our webpages are currently being revamped to better reflect our vision and consolidate our various partnerships and activities. We hope that by participating in our activities, you will appreciate AIGA's role in Icograda -- and in the global economy, for that matter.
We also hope to fulfill what AIGA XCD was ultimately designed for: your indispensable resource for thoughts and questions pertaining to diversity and cross-cultural issues, within as well as outside the United States. -
Having been involved with ICOGRADA since 1971, I would like to add my thanks for AIGA's support of and participation in ICOGRADA events. In an increasingly small world connected by global communication, AIGA members have an opportunity to learn much from and exchange valuable experiences through ICOGRADA events, publications, and contacts.
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Yet through the exposure of what others are doing, I learned how we lag behind Europe in dealing with issues of sustainability or Latin America when dealing with issues of cultural diversity.
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