Graphic design through process

The rise of WYSIWYG ‘what you see is what you get’ from the early 1980s has put the designer firmly in control. We can see what we are doing, tweak and tweak, then preview the final outcome before committing. Work is easier and quicker to produce and in general standards have improved but one could argue this technology makes things too perfect, too finished. Working within fixed print or production constraints, with a rule or system, but free to experiment through process can create a different type of design that doesn’t primarily rely on the visual to communicate. Images, typefaces, layout configurations, books and teaching assignments can all be generated with this approach.