June 21, 2011

 

The Chicago chapter of AIGA, the nation’s largest and oldest professional association for design, would like to respond to the June 13 piece, "CDOT is looking for a new logo."

 

As a general rule, AIGA Chicago discourages the practice of speculative design work. In our experience, spec work based on a perfunctory problem statement does not produce the best design, and can leave a client with a sub-par solution.

 

We believe that successful design is the result of deep, collaborative relationships between clients and designers. Among many criteria, the best design takes into account a client's objectives, requirements, competitive situation and stakeholders, and strong designers help their clients to understand the balance among these dynamics while working through the design process. Because there is rarely a deep relationship at the heart of a spec project, it often results in a superficial assessment of the opportunity at hand and is not grounded in a client’s business dynamics.

 

The real value of design comes from the strategic, thoughtful approach in which experienced designers are trained and practiced. This process is what designers do. And it is through this process that the solution we commonly call a “design” is created. 

 

We acknowledge that it is not always easy to define what is and is not spec work, and sometimes doing work for free is appropriate. A few examples where we have witnessed positive results for the both the client and the designer include:

 

Competitions: work done to win a prize or to build community  

Volunteer work: work done as a favor or for the experience, without the 

expectation of being paid

Pro bono work: volunteer work done for public good 

Internships: a form of volunteer work that involves educational gain

 

Last week, the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) announced that they are in need of a new logo. They published a short article in the Chicago Tribune, asking the public to submit designs by the end of this month. It's unclear why CDOT chose to re-design their logo through an open competition. Perhaps they see it as an opportunity to engage Chicagoans in the inner workings of the city. Or perhaps they do not have the necessary funding to do this work properly. Whatever their reasons, it's unlikely CDOT will receive any logo concepts that successfully meet their needs.

 

No designer could, in good conscience, make a responsible recommendation for a new logo without doing thorough research and more fully understanding the challenges faced by the public department. The technical nature of the project, and its implications for the communications strategy of the department, require a formal relationship between client and a seasoned designer. It is for these reasons that AIGA Chicago is expressing its discomfort with the way CDOT is approaching the design of its new logo.

 

The gray area that is spec work will likely inspire debate for years to come. Until we reach a collective understanding of the parameters of the issue, and its ramifications on design, business and society, AIGA Chicago will continue to actively take part in the conversation.

 

 

Claire Williams Martinez

President, AIGA Chicago