Gomes, Luiz Antonio Vidal de Negreiros; (1991) An examination of design education in Brazil; and the value of a design language structural model as a basis for teaching. Doctoral thesis , Institute of Education, University of London.

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Abstract

The past decade has been most promising for the development of a philosophical basis for Design Education in Brazil. The first meeting of directors of Brazilian Industrial Design high schools took place in 1984 in Rio de Janeiro. In 1986 in Brasilia a team of professional designers met, with the aim of evaluating almost 25 years of industrial design education in Brazil. In 1987 the Brazilian ministry of education and culture outlined the domains and approved the content of a new industrial design education curriculum. In 1988 representatives from all the Brazilian design schools met in Florian6polis to discuss, identify and determine guidelines for teaching design and in that same year the new national design curriculum was enforced in all high level Brazilian design courses. However, analyses of the documents published following these events show that design in Brazil is conceived as an educational practice relating only to the tertiary level and a professional activity restricted to the fields of Graphic and Industrial Design. The reason why Design in Brazil is often elitist, vocational, and restrictive appears to be related to design educators not realising the full potential of the Portuguese word desenho; and therefore, not conceptualising Design as an area of human experience, skill and knowledge that reflects man's concern with the appreciation and adaptation of his surroundings in the light of his material and spiritual needs. In particular, relating to the configuration, composition, meaning, value and purpose of man-made phenomena. Consequently, Brazilian design educators are decharacterising the Portuguese language when, treating matters related to Design, they use English terms and expressions unnecessarily. Thus, this dissertation examines design language in Brazil; and the importance of an agreed language to develop design education in the country. Chapter I is concerned with the denotations given to the words design, dessin, disegno, designo, diseno, deseno, and desenho in their respective languages; and the connotations which the human ability design has acquired within certain European cultural contexts. In Chapter II texts were investigated in order to examine concepts of Design in Brazil, and how Brazilian design educators have understood, discussed and disseminated ideas using written language. Chapter III is based on interviews with Brazilian design educators, and it focuses on the spoken language used by them to express and discuss problems of education in the country. The contribution of this dissertation to Brazilian design education, can be found in Chapters IV and V, where an attempt is made to: (i) reinforce the meanings and usage of the Portuguese word desenho; (ii) create a design terminology genuinely based on Portuguese words; and (iii) build a structural model for a design language, which can be used to reconstruct and evaluate the present curriculum of Brazilian design courses.

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