Fundamentals for graphic design criticism

Abstract

Unlike other disciplines, Graphic Design lacks criticism, which is reduced only to the description of the work, without an explanation of the relationships between the products and society. A critique model built is proposed in six stages: 1. Stage of functional judgment: indicates if the project accomplishes the objective of communication. 2. Stage of formal description: based on six variables: composition, illustration, geometric shapes, typography, color, and photography. 3. Stage of conceptual description: revision and valorization of three variables: aesthetics, innovation, and abstraction. 4. Stage of analysis of the relations between the product and society, and connections between each other. Determined by the mental structures from the critic. 5. Redaction process. 6. Diffusion process. If Graphic Design criticism is finalized, we may take another step in the creation of the Designer-scholar, who could take the position of an organic intellectual in the disciplines of Design. This proposal covers a need since there is no criticism of Graphic Design as such. It also enriches the designer's exegesis capacity, in addition to opening new lines of research in Design criticism.