ARTD1170 (2027-28)
Contexts and Cultures of Product Design
This module explores the histories and cultures of product design, encouraging critical reflection on everyday life and global contexts. It examines meaning in design by drawing on historical context, visual culture theory, and semiotics. Through lectures, seminars, and research tasks, you will develop the ability to situate your design practice within broader cultural and theoretical frameworks and communicate ideas effectively through a variety of visual formats.
The module introduces you to the historical, cultural, and theoretical foundations that shape contemporary product design practice. The weekly context starts with introduction of histories into critical theories such as visual culture and semiotics, helping you understand how products communicate meaning and participate in a global cultural systems.
You will start by exploring definitions of product design and examining everyday objects as cultural artefacts. Early weeks trace the evolution of design from craft traditions through industrialisation, post-war consumerism, and into globalised digital culture. Emphasis is placed on how materials, manufacturing, branding, and consumption have shifted over time.
The module then transitions into visual culture theory, where you will learn to interpret images, objects, and media, and consider how design reflects and constructs ideas around identity, power, and representation. Semiotics deepens this analytical framework, enabling you to read products as systems of signs that communicate through form, materiality, symbolism, and brand narratives. Later weeks start to look at design futures to consider the future world we will live in, drawing on trend mapping and global trends.
