Design: what margin are we in? Reflecting about design praxis after the Letras que Flutuam project

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DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51358/id.v21i1.1142

Abstract

This article reports the evolution of the Letras que Flutuam project, started in 2004, which involves design-researchers and popular artists involved with painting names on boats in the Amazon region, to then address issues that arise from the designers’ praxis and its consequences. The reflection on its consequences and the impacts caused on those involved in the project, and on society, is fundamental to the discussion on the positionality of the designer, immersed in a cultural context and his responsibilities. As these are recent events, difficult to analyze with due impartiality, it relies on authors such as Paulo Freire (2011, 2013, 2017), Rafael Cardoso (2013), Ahmet Ansari (2015), Felipe Kaizer (2023) to collaborate in the problematization, and therefore, does not present paths or solutions.

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Author Biography

Fernanda de Oliveira Martins, Instituto Letras que Flutuam

Fernanda Martins is a designer and researcher in the areas of Typography and Design History, especially in the Amazon. PhD in Design History at ESDI/UERJ. She studied Masters in Graphic Design and Typography at the Basel School of Design, Switzerland, and specialized in Semiotics and Visual Culture at ICA / UFPA. She has a degree in Fine Arts from ECA / USP. She currently works between São Paulo and Belém, where she is a partner in the company Mapinguari Design, through which she develops design projects for sustainability and participatory design and also cultural projects such as MapinLab, aimed at strengthening the culture of design, including Letras que Float: mapping of letter openers from boats in the Amazon that received, in 2018, the Rodrigo de Melo Franco de Andrade Award, from Iphan, in the Intangible Heritage Category, and a mention at the Ibero-American Design Biennial (BID), in Madrid. She holds lectures, exhibitions and workshops in partnership with the openers, in addition to directing two documentaries: Letras que Flutuam (2013) and Marajó das Letras (2018) as a result of the Rumos Itaú Cultural award in 2016.

Published

2024-04-29

How to Cite

de Oliveira Martins, F. (2024). Design: what margin are we in? Reflecting about design praxis after the Letras que Flutuam project. InfoDesign - Brazilian Journal of Information Design, 21(1). https://doi.org/10.51358/id.v21i1.1142

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