An International Design Conference
2021.10.13 at 10:00pm KST
Online & Zoom Meeting
Online
Zoom Meeting
Welcome to the 10th United Designs 2021.
For the first time, we hold this celebration virtually, with 69 designers from 15 nations.
2021 finds us at an uncertain point in history. Over the past year, humankind has been challenged and impacted on a vast scale, in ways that our generation has never before faced. But we have persevered, and have looked towards hope.
The theme of the 10th United Designs, Messages to Humanity, is an especially timely and fitting call to designers to visualize our emotions, our experiences, our beliefs, our struggles, and our strengths. This event—and this organization—is one that unifies us. As graphic design students, educators, and practitioners we are empowered to represent, inform, and persuade through visual and conceptual tools. Through the United Designs Alliance (UDA) we do so through hope and connection, as integral parts of a global community of citizen designers.
Our cooperative group of unique individuals—speaking different languages and practicing different customs—embraces the richness of our diversity while celebrating our common humanity. UDA is committed to continuing to foster cooperation, inclusion, development, celebration, success, and collaboration across borders. We will continue to initiate and share opportunities in design education and practice with you, and we hope you will further circulate them in your communities.
Thank you for your contributions to this dynamic community of peers.
May we meet again in person in 2022.
A Message from the President of UDA
Prof. Kelly Salchow MacArthur
We have survived many disasters and difficulties. We have done so much, and we did so little to prevent or redefine its consequences. And, when we had pain, we always wanted to find a cure for it with our instinct. Finally, we will find the answer.
My heart hurt when seeing my friends suffering during the pandemic, which I will never forget. I wanted to protect my family. As a friend, I tried to nurture neighbors. I wanted to teach students effectively utilizing technology. As a designer, I tried to answer my presence, and as a United Designer, I tried to secure this organization. Therefore, after two years of stillness, we had to continue our United Designs Biennial this year to share our presence with fellow designers and educators worldwide.
I humbly thank 69 designers from 15 countries for sharing their hearts to express the messages to humanity by designing beautiful posters. Each poster says love and forgiveness in the designer’s unique language and culture.
We all belong to each other. You will discover our identity in this online exhibition. I hope I can see you again next United Designs Biennial. Until then, take care of yourself and others.
Welcoming Remarks from the Director of United Designs Biennial
Dr. Albert Young Choi
Chief Director: Dr. Albert Young Choi
Co-Directors: Robert Hower, Zhao Zhiyoung, and Astrid Kensinger
Online exhibition opening_Wednesday, October 13 at 10:00 pm KOREA
Messages to Humanity Poster Exhibition
Participants: 69 Participants from 15 Nations
Our world is in crisis because we are losing ‘Love and Forgiveness’ over our desires. Greed leads us not to trust and care for our neighbors and livings in the world. This exhibition is a collection of the messages — Love and Forgiveness — to realize our coexistence in this fragile world. Each nation and culture have positive quotations about ‘Love and Forgiveness’ designed to better understand themselves as responsible citizens in society. These unique posters represent those cultural quotations around the world. Each designer expresses the message through the typography of their writing system.
Most importantly, all participants share their kindness with a good heart. All visitors will realize our existence in the world from the exhibition of the designers’ personal experiences. Furthermore, we hope that both designers and visitors will practice ‘Love and Forgiveness’ to make this world a safe and harmonious place for us and our next generation.
Online SYMPOSIUM_Wednesday, October 13 at 11:30 pm KOREA
6th GVC 2021
Global Visual Culture Symposium
Mediator: Robert Hower (USA)
Kelly Salchow MacArthur (USA)
Linh Dao (USA)
Albert Young Choi (Korea)
“The Visuals distinguish a Culture from the Cultures.” (Albert Young Choi, c. 2009)
We are connected as human beings in many different ways, but the essential connection among people is communication-based visuals. Over our human history, we have created visuals to share the similarity and to differentiate the dissimilarity. Those historical artifacts become cultural icons for the particular culture, nation, and race. We as humans have created visuals to decorate these artifacts; the artifacts are the visuals. Even in today’s complicated network of people, fundamental communication never will change the visuals that we understand. The Global Visual Culture Symposium (GVC Symposium) gathers educators, practitioners, researchers, thinkers, and students in the visual communication design disciplines. We share our thoughts and find our communication for our generation and beyond.
