Overview
Themed 'Convergence', Kyoorius Designyatra 2008 will be held at the Kala Academy Campal, Panjim, Goa from September 13-15 this year.
Kyoorius Designyatra is an initiative to provide a communications platform for the design & creative fraternity of India – a platform ‘where creatives meet’ to exchange ideas, share knowledge and exciting new innovations together.
An annual design event and conference organized by Kyoorius Exchange and initiated by Transasia Fine Papers, Designyatra is a Visual Communications event guided by top designers and creative heads from various creative fields. It implements programmes to stimulate the minds of professionals and students alike, encouraging them to explore beyond the commonly perceived boundaries of design, adding value towards its role in society and business. The conference content celebrates design excellence, provides insights into the future of design while simultaneously reinforcing the sense of community among India’s creatives.
Kyoorius Designyatra 2008 will feature:
DESIGN CONFERENCE: Presentations by prominent international practitioners in the fields of design, web, branding and marketing.
WORKSHOP AND PANEL DISCUSSIONS: Breakout sessions that will provide insight into specific areas of interest.
Theme
The theme for Kyoorius Designyatra 2008 is ‘Convergence’
Visual Communications is a changing landscape. The future of this business points towards a multidisciplinary approach to design — the leaders will be those who are able to communicate across several media to best achieve predefined objectives.
Some call this 360degrees marketing. Others, total branding. What is clear is that ‘convergence’ is not a far-fetched ideal, at least for designers who embrace the challenges of discovery and the rewards of helping clients, both old and new, communicate in the brave new world of cross-media. This is a world that includes design for websites, video and television, as well as tradeshows, products and print. Increasingly, design firms are creating integrated campaigns that blur the boundaries between traditional and new media.
Now then what is the relevance of convergence to India? India is very much still a specialist market. A graphic designer designs for print, a photographer photographs, an illustrator illustrates. When it involves the web, an interactive team is then hauled in to complete the task. When a brochure is required, a designer is called to take up the task. It is possible for creatives to survive working in isolation within the context of their individual skill tasks and specialization.
Is it then a wonder why we don’t see much collaborations happening? Could it be that the climate is still protective and inward looking while studios are still suspicious and skeptical about each other? Communication solutions are limited to the area of specialization of the design agency. A print-oriented studio will take up a web project as part-and-parcel of a branding project, without a clue of how the web really works, resulting in a complex and beautifully designed website that yet somehow fails to engage the users. An ad agency would take up a tradeshow exhibition design without an understanding of how spatial and experience design really works.
What we hope to see from this year’s Designyatra is open sharing between studios, not just in the same areas of specialization, but also across disciplines. Think interior designers, architects, product designers, programmers, film directors, or even fine artists and sculptors collaborating on projects. We want to see ‘traditional’ studios exploring other methods to better meet communications needs. No studios are too small or budget too little for collaboration. All it takes is for the parties/studios involved to share the same vision of working hand-in-hand and fusing their expertise to deliver a seamless end result.
At its heart, there’s a new playing field. Whether one experiments, collaborates with others, or decides to stay put in one’s comfort zone, will dictate where this individual will be in the next few years.
