Design for Community Imagination in a Multimodal View
Abstract
Current community construction practices are mainly based on service design, creating touchpoints for interaction, while the sociological knowledge about how community forms is inadequate, especially when the topics come into a scale of society. This article aims to provide a summary about the theories of community formation and a methodologic framework to scientifically apply design in community construction. The article is based on reviews on the sociological research about community formation, and integrates semiotic methodologies into design study. The functionality of language for creating community imagination is highlighted, and the existence of such functionality in designs is proven with inference under a multimodal view. For further scientific research and rational application, some semiotic approaches are adapted to help us deconstruct and manipulate designs as we do to language. Three traits of qualified community formation design are sorted out as guidance, and an agenda is shown in the end about research practical application for the next step. Limitations arise from the literature review itself, as the sociological viewpoints may not be as comprehensive as expected. The methodologies newly introduced in this article can work as guidance for practitioners who are working on design for community construction or urban space vitalization, and the whole research may provide a new thinking direction for designers and urban planners.
Keywords
Community imagination, design, community construction, semiotics, communication, multimodal
Citation
Gu, R.(2019) Design for Community Imagination in a Multimodal View, in Börekçi, N., Koçyıldırım, D., Korkut, F. and Jones, D. (eds.), Insider Knowledge, DRS Learn X Design Conference 2019, 9-12 July, Ankara, Turkey. https://dl.designresearchsociety.org/learnxdesign/learnxdesign2019/researchpapers/22
Creative Commons License
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Design for Community Imagination in a Multimodal View
Current community construction practices are mainly based on service design, creating touchpoints for interaction, while the sociological knowledge about how community forms is inadequate, especially when the topics come into a scale of society. This article aims to provide a summary about the theories of community formation and a methodologic framework to scientifically apply design in community construction. The article is based on reviews on the sociological research about community formation, and integrates semiotic methodologies into design study. The functionality of language for creating community imagination is highlighted, and the existence of such functionality in designs is proven with inference under a multimodal view. For further scientific research and rational application, some semiotic approaches are adapted to help us deconstruct and manipulate designs as we do to language. Three traits of qualified community formation design are sorted out as guidance, and an agenda is shown in the end about research practical application for the next step. Limitations arise from the literature review itself, as the sociological viewpoints may not be as comprehensive as expected. The methodologies newly introduced in this article can work as guidance for practitioners who are working on design for community construction or urban space vitalization, and the whole research may provide a new thinking direction for designers and urban planners.