Publishing as the Critical Practice of Graphic Design

This paper argues for the importance of historical and contemporary examples of what has come to be called 'critical practice' in graphic design. A critical practice is similar to, but distinct from, both traditional fine art and graphic design — especially when graphic design is defined narrowly, as limited to a service industry for organizational and business interests.

Having made a historical argument, and provided contemporary examples, this paper proceeds to describe our own attempt to develop a critical design practice in the form of Are Not Books & Publications, an instance of what has been called 'micro-publishing.' The publishing taken up by this critical, small-scale venture is entirely controlled by the designer, along with a small group of collaborators. Writing, editing, design, production, and distribution roles are restricted so as to be minimally influenced by outside concerns. As a result, the form and content of the books and pamphlets published by Are Not Books & Publications can be critically and self-reflexively about the practice of design and publishing.