Graphic Design for me has always offered ways to visually express different kinds of communication. It is all encompassing, ubiquitous. It has been about typography, photography, illustration, text, image, layout, composition, placement, impact, communication, visual communication, process, research, concept, thought, direction. I could play with these elements and more endlessly. I have never found it limiting and have always felt that one can use Graphic Design anywhere and everywhere, its principles can be applied whether it is for web design, or something as seemingly far removed as exhibition design, environmental design etc…and not just print. The inclusion, now for many years, of design software and computers has changed the way in which we have been working and the way Graphic Design is perceived both by designers themselves as well as people in general. Clients and a lot of people not directly connected with design use terms like ‘type’, ‘font’, ‘CMYK’, ‘layout’ etc and specify certain typefaces to be used or work with Graphic Designers like they are DTP operators. The easy accessibility to computers and design software has contributed to the rise of DIY design which again has its pros and cons. However, I personally believe that Graphic Design is not just about being in the know of its terms and terminologies and neither can conceptual, empathetical approach be replicated. I always believe that there will always be a place for original, conceptual ideas which can be worked out with Graphic Design. The flip side of the surge in accessibility to computers and design software has been that people are more aware of the design component and its importance in everything around them.

However, the term ‘Graphic Design’ per say, may have outlived its time and may today denote anyone and everyone seemingly dabbling with design just because they have access to a computer and design software like Photoshop and Illustrator. ‘Creative Practitioner’, a more all encompassing term, may perhaps be a more apt to describe where we as designers are collectively headed towards as we take on more collaborative projects across different disciplines, spread out over different mediums with goals like sustainability, outreach and empathy in design.