Dagna Salwa
What does a typical working day involve for you?
To put it positively, I would describe my working day as very dynamic – apart from my role as a teaching assistant, I am also completing a Master’s programme at Bern University of the Arts (HKB), I co-run «Studio Diadem», a studio for visual communication, and occasionally work in the catering trade. Once in a while, it can be a challenge to change focus and engage in very different tasks and areas, but I enjoy how they all influence and enrich each other.
Which topics are you focussing on at the moment?
As part of my Master’s degree in Design Research I currently deal with the topic of «Fear in Visual Communication». Which graphical means trigger fear and how are they used, for example, for political manipulation? A vague kind of fear, such as that of the foreign, and how it is exploited, is something that I am very preoccupied with personally.
Who would you like to work with one day?
There are quite a few, as the idea of new collaborations really appeals to me. In the same way that I would like to take part in a design research project with different people from social and cultural sciences, I would also like to design the graphics for an exhibition project one day. I am very interested in the delivery of the arts and the work of curators. The projects of Matylda Krzykowski are particularly fascinating to me, and it really would be something to learn how she perceives and curates spaces.
Where do you see the Department of Design in 2050?
I hope that the new Major/Minor structure will make better use of the inter- and transdisciplinary potential of the Toni-Areal site. I believe that different people and design disciplines need to engage with each other in creative processes to bring about changes and also to open up art schools. Design education still has a lot to do with privilege. Looking at the future, it would be desirable to have more fluid structures in place in design education, so we will then have an even more diverse body of students at the Toni in 2050.
