Redefining the plural domains of graphic design and orientating the subject towards a model that links practice, education and research

This paper outlines work in progress about the development of a diagrammatic model for graphic design that attempts to bridge the ‘intellectual chasm’ between practice and research in the subject. Historically, practice is acknowledged as having led the way. This research places education at the centre of the challenge to face a unified future, and examine the intricate relationships that have developed within and without the subject. It considers traditional definitions of the subject and reviews these in a contemporary context, interweaving the critical dimensions of graphic design as a ‘thinking’ and ‘doing’ activity in diagrammatic form. The paper confirms that these dimensions are interdependent, and vulnerable to individual and collective actions.The research attempts to build theory about graphic design.