Artistic Journalism

Designalism is a program that explores, questions and interprets the interdisciplinary approach to design, art and journalism. The focus is on projects in which relevant social issues are investigated by combining journalistic analysis and artistic presentation.

In addition to the launch of an online knowledge platform, we will publish a biweekly podcast series with makers who represent the philosophy of Designalism with their work. A total of 18 talks will be published with makers about their working methods at the intersection of design, art and journalism. The series will be made available through Spotify, SoundCloud and iTunes. Next to that a public program will be organised in May 2021.

For Designalism ACED collaborates with PhD researcher Stijn Postema at the Media Studies faculty of the University of Amsterdamand Beeld en Geluid Den Haag.

More information about this grant can be found on the website of the Creative Industries Fund NL.

A new form of collaboration between design and journalism has been on the rise worldwide. The approach — combining journalistic analysis and artistic presentation on relevant social issues — results in exciting perspectives. We call this interdisciplinary movement Designalism and introduce it as a new domain.

Designalism aims to represent the forefront of intermediate design and journalism. To do so, we have formed an extensive database of 25 projects, featuring (inter)national creators from across the two merging disciplines.

The work of Alice Wong, Disarming Design, Chloé Galibert-Laîné & Kevin B. Lee, Coralie Vogelaar, Forensic Architecture, Foundland Collective, Irene Stracuzzi, Jasmijn Visser & Metahaven, Jim Brady & Vito Boeckx (Post Neon), Jonas Staal, Julia Janssen, Martina Huynh & Jonas Althaus (Cream on Chrome), Next Nature Network, Paolo Cirio, Robert Glas, Teatro di Nascosto, Ted Hyunhak Yoon, Yuri Veerman & Dimitri Tokmetzis are presented as part of the database.

• Alice Wong’s A Charged Dream is a serious, yet playful exploration of the history of the lithium battery, which might be more popular than ever, since the rise of the smartphone.
• Forensic Architecture presents 77sqm_9: 26min where journalistic and architectural methods are used to reveal the truth behind the murder of Halit Yozgat in Kassel.
• Failed Futures and Extended Borders is an installation by the Foundland Collective, which analyzes the situation in the Middle East from the perspective of a Syrian refugee.
• Dit zijn onze helden from designer Yuri Veerman shows how much incomes in vital professions differ from the remuneration of top managers.

The database is accompanied by a podcast with creators and experts navigating the disciplinary spectrum of design and journalism. Host IJsbrand van Veelen leads the interviews and goes into the values, principles and habits of each guest. From April 12, weekly a new episode will be published on Spotify, Google Podcasts and Apple Podcasts.

Additionally, we are organising a public online event on June 9 2021 in collaboration with Beeld en Geluid Den Haag. More news on that will follow soon!

Stijn Postema and Mark Deuze have published an excellent paper entitled "Artistic Journalism: Confluences in values, forms and practices" on the confluence of art and journalism. Both scientists are involved in our mission to map the convergence of art and journalism. The paper has been published in the authoritative scientific journal Journalism Studies.

Designalism is an initiative i.c.w. PhD researcher Stijn Postema (Media Studies, University of Amsterdam), VondelCS, Beeld en Geluid Den Haag. Designalism is supported by Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie.