Thinking critically about design and criticism

As design continues to gain traction in business and culture, its utter lack of critical discourse becomes more and more glaring. We are adept at discussing the “how” of design, but our inability to discuss the “why” continues to hobble the profession’s further evolution. In this lively, down-to-earth talk, Adobe Principal Designer Khoi Vinh, a veteran of design’s transformation into a key element of modern business over the past two decades, looks at the gaps in how we discuss and think about design, explains why criticism is so important to the future of our craft, and proposes ways forward to correct the situation.