Economies of Design
Guy Julier’s fantastic book on the relationship between economies and design contributes to the intellectual forces that pull these two scholarly worlds closer…Unlike many culturalist accounts of economies, however, Julier mobilizes a convincing and effective material political economic explanation that also takes into account discursive and creative interventions, theoretically reminiscent of the recent path breaking work of (Donald) MacKenzie on the material political economic foundations of algorithmic trading … (it) introduces a productive and innovative discussion that is founded in critique and thick description.
Koray Caliskan in City 23 (4–5): 673–675
Pretty much everyone knows author Guy Julier’s credentials as a pioneering academic and solid commentator on design. In his latest book, he extends his portfolio, collecting rich, diverse and voluminous source material that he puts to work on yet another best-selling academic publication.
A solidly crafted piece of writing, the author’s skills in demystifying complexity are universally recognized by pretty much anyone who has skimmed through it and particularly from the design community.
Let us not underestimate Julier’s gift; this is a book that every academic, practitioner and maybe economist must read.
John Knight (2019): Economies of Design by Guy Julier, The Design Journal, DOI: 10.1080/14606925.2019.1562776
Economies of Design (2017) cogently argues for a new way of thinking about design, its validity and global role in contemporary capitalist culture…This is essential reading for scholars within the design and the cre- ative industries who are interested in the interrelationships of economics and design, contributing significantly to knowledge and triggering further debate in this area. It is a valuable theoretical resource for scholars in visual commu- nication where academic texts are sparse.
Carol Meache (2019) Visual Communication, 18(1), 159–161. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470357218809234
The book exudes thoroughness, and yet it comes with a personal touch. Julier’s is a rare perspective that has had an effect on me…I can recommend this book not only to design students, design practitioners, and design academics but to a much wider audience of those interested in a multi-disciplinary perspective on how mankind shapes the world. …[it] is very well written. It uncovers deeper insights that add to our understanding of design.
Cees de Bont, School of Design, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China in She Ji: The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation. Volume 2, Issue 3, Autumn 2016, Pages 269-270
This important book takes what could have been a dry subject and turns it into a compelling and accessible narrative. By laying bare the entanglement of design with economics, Julier allows us to reconsider how designers might best engage their practices with the wider forces and effects of neoliberalism, or else help develop alternative models.
In this provocative and accessible book, Guy Julier asks and answers a number of questions: Is there such a thing as a neoliberal object? Why are design and neoliberalism so good together? Through a discussion that takes in design as work, as process, as object and as activism, Julier spotlights the changing culture of design since the 1980s and its intimate and sometimes surprising relationships with neoliberalization. A compelling analysis.
Assitant Professor, Department of Industrial Design
Faculty of Architecture
Middle East Technical University
Sue Ball
Media And Arts Partnership, Leeds
I have been using your Culture of Design and Economies of Design books in writing my PhD and wanted to say thank you! They are very useful for a design history/studies project that questions design history models, authorship in design, economic contexts for globally designed and made products, and more.
Elise Hodson
George Brown College, Toronto