‘Design in the service of control and influence’: Is that so?..what about communication?
Found this site www.labna.org while browsing around looking for some interesting Malaysian graphic design work. Am I that naive? It’s like waiting for the moon to fall on your lab (direct translation from Malay proverb) ‘Umpama menanti bulan jatuh ke riba’, which mean, almost nearly 99% it will not happen. But it does not mean that 1% just sit still. So yes, my 1% hope on Malaysian graphic design movements finally comes true. May be it was there for a long time, it’s just I have not been looking far or deep enough (cari dengan mata lutut! is what my mother from time to time said to me when I cannot find things around the kitchen, which does have a deep personal connotation behind it, and we’re don’t want to go there).
It appeared to me that this new emerging of Malaysian graphic design have a new strong vigorous voices of being Malaysian through their graphic work. It makes me wonder when was this turning point began. Definately the internet and new media have played a significant roles in opening doors for Malaysian graphic designer. Internet allows most Malaysian graphic designer aware of social, economy, and politics issues. Also realising that this medium that people called idea holds a strong magical power behind it, and that as a graphic designer they are able not only to express their personal opinion toward the community and political issues, but also to convey and communicate the ideas to community.