Push harder.

In thinking about revolving doors, countless images, places and experiences come to mind: weathered hotels, sterile hospital entrances, glass and steel, airport good-byes, flows of office workers, and awkward, shuffling steps. A seemingly mundane object, the revolving door’s ubiquity and diverse role in the cultural imaginary makes it an evocative entrance to a conversation about design studies—a discourse in which the stuff of the everyday is understood to be not only compelling, but impactful. Each piece in Plot(s) aims to articulate how forms of design practice shape and transform the human experience.

The articles in the journal peel apart and critically examine different facets of design — from design practice as one of intentional social change, to the histories and politics latent in our built environment. The objective of this issue of Plot(s) moves beyond illustrating the transdisciplinary nature of our discourse, to illustrating a field in dynamic flux: the works selected do not attempt to paint an exhaustive picture of design studies, but rather expand its boundaries.

Design is neither neat nor easily defined. Given this, as practitioners of design studies we are forced to not only push harder, but also question what else design has the potential to be and do.

View the PDF version of Vol. 1 in its entirety on ISSUU.