In my daily life, I often receive the definition of graphic designers as artisans. “Artisan” – a group of people who use software to visualise other people’s ideas. In this era of AI govern, machines can also produce high-quality and beautiful products. So, what is the meaning of the existence of graphic designers? The aim of this project is to explore the identity of contemporary graphic designers, present this issue through design, and try to let design act as an intermediary of information and understanding. I hope to help graduating graphic design students become what they want to be and not be influenced by other societal factors.
In the cultural study of identity, ‘identity’ is divided into the internal ‘cultural identity’ and the ‘social identity’ of a person in a social group. The establishment of identity is a process of identification. By exploring the relationship between authorship and design, the project explores and redefines the theory of authorship based on Michael Rock’s ‘Designer as Author’, which also represents the social identity of graphic designers. This identity is constantly changing, and it is hoped that in this identification process, the dominant holders and receivers will unconsciously accept and redefine the social identity of the designer.
By examining the concern between Authorship and graphic design and redefining its characteristics. The keywords of these characteristics are used to develop the visualisation, and the element of water is used to visualise these characteristics.