Jarrett Fuller

The Designer as Podcaster, Eye #98

05/29/2019

Scratching the Surface featured in Eye Magazine

I’m honored to be included in the latest issue of Eye as part of a feature on the rise of design podcasts. The essay, Designer as Podcaster by Gabriela Matuszyk and Kate Evans, looks at Scratching the Surface and TypeRadio, as part of an emerging medium to talk about graphic design. They write:

Current design practice can be so demanding for studio employees and freelancers, that taking a moment to press pause and engage in critical discourse can seem like a luxury. For many designers, attending a costly international conference is out of the question. Design podcasts are filling this gap, providing a low-cost space for reflection and debate; a testing ground for ideas; and an escape from creative isolation.

I spoke with Gabriela and Kate, two recent graduates of London College of Art, earlier this year by phone about the origins and goals of Scratching the Surface. It was a lovely conversation — that as all good interviews do, helped me clarify my own thinking too — and it was fun to see how they shaped it into the essay I think they captured what Scratching the Surface is all about:

Questioning and thinking aloud remind us that design is a social act that requires engagement and collaboration. Scratching the Surface builds allies and a community of critical designers.

It’s surreal to see my name printed in Eye. I’ve loved this magazine for as long as I’ve been interested in design and always considered it the pinnacle of design writing. This is truly a dream come true. Thanks Kate and Gabriela!

They essay isn’t online yet but if you subscribe to the print issue, I hope you give it a read in issue 98!