Illustration by Vincent Plisson / Cityscapes
Context is king
Thiresh Govender says architects and designers have been complacent to the systemic entrenchment of inequality. But, he argues, signals on how they can change their practice are all around them in cities like Johannesburg, where he’s based
13 Aug, 2020 | Updated 27 Jun, 2021
Design should be responding to the complexities of the world now. We are living through a time with so much urgency, necessity and trauma. As designers, we don’t have the luxury of being self-indulgent and self-centred. Our work needs to serve in some way, and more specifically in relation to the urgent pressures of our time. But, the first problem is in the way we trained.