Kathy Pham
Author
In their own words
For graphic designers to succeed in an ever-changing landscape, we need to treat graphic design as a liberal art instead of a trade.
If the purpose of college is for students to maximise their hiring points (i.e. hiremaxxing), then higher ed is ... just another boot camp for the corporate world.
Articles & interviews3
- How Szilveszter Makó Turned Auteur Style Into Commercial Demand
Elizabeth Goodspeed examines the growing commercial demand for Hungarian photographer Szilveszter Makó’s recognisable surreal fashion portraits. Addressing criticism of the repeated visual style and Makó’s high-profile celebrity commissions, she argues that a photographer’s distinct point of view is precisely what clients commission, while subjects such as Olivia Rodrigo actively shape the meaning of the resulting images.
- Bandit redesigns Peaches with bold boutique fitness brand overhaul
Andrew Shea argues that AI poses a distinct challenge to design because it automates ideation as well as execution, making human judgement and creative instinct more important than technical production alone. Drawing on the history of letterpress typesetting and desktop publishing, he advocates treating AI as an augmentative collaborator rather than an oracle or replacement. The article also warns that removing junior-level production tasks may weaken the experiential route through which designers develop taste and critical judgement.
- Graphic design schools are teaching tech, but are they teaching taste?
In this POV essay, Kathy Pham critiques the current state of graphic design education, arguing that universities have turned design programs into trade schools focused on technical skills rather than cultivating taste, critical thinking, and interdisciplinary learning. Drawing on historical and theoretical perspectives from figures like John Dewey, Walter Gropius, and Richard Buchanan, Pham calls for a return to liberal arts principles in design education to foster broader intellectual and creative development.