Abstract
The ontological aspect of designing is commonly defined as a feedforward loop between the world and the designer, as if the world designed us as much as we design it. In this definition, derived from the “everyone is a designer” motto, “everyone” means “we,” but also “no one”. Thus, design philosophy avoids scrutinizing worldly agents interested in designing the designer, understanding the world as a homogeneous force reacting to the designer. A world where many worlds fit isn’t a homogeneous one; therefore, answering “who designs the designer?” from an anticolonial stance requires considering the social production of design(ed) bodies and their historical inequalities in world-making. This paper builds upon Vieira Pinto's question "who produces the producer", and recent research on userism that asks “who gets to design/to be designed”. Thus, this research unveils the worldly dispute for sustaining and dismantling the coloniality of making, including the production of design philosophy.
Keywords
design ontology, design philosophy, pluriversal, design education
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.2410
Citation
Souza, E.A., Saito, C., van Amstel, F., and Freese Gonzatto, R. (2026) Who designs the designer? An anticolonial response to the world that design us back, in Simeone, L., Gray, C. M., Verhoeven, A., de Götzen, A., Bakırlıoğlu, Y., Zohar, H., Stead, M., and Buwert, P. (eds.), DRS2026: Edinburgh, 8–12 June, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.2410
Creative Commons License
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Included in
Who designs the designer? An anticolonial response to the world that design us back
The ontological aspect of designing is commonly defined as a feedforward loop between the world and the designer, as if the world designed us as much as we design it. In this definition, derived from the “everyone is a designer” motto, “everyone” means “we,” but also “no one”. Thus, design philosophy avoids scrutinizing worldly agents interested in designing the designer, understanding the world as a homogeneous force reacting to the designer. A world where many worlds fit isn’t a homogeneous one; therefore, answering “who designs the designer?” from an anticolonial stance requires considering the social production of design(ed) bodies and their historical inequalities in world-making. This paper builds upon Vieira Pinto's question "who produces the producer", and recent research on userism that asks “who gets to design/to be designed”. Thus, this research unveils the worldly dispute for sustaining and dismantling the coloniality of making, including the production of design philosophy.