Abstract

Despite the significant demand for graphic designers with web design skills, introducing and developing related technical skills in a design curriculum is problematic. The growing consensus is that such technological topics are best approached through practiced crafting, however, integrating these topics in a studio course may be stymied by two overgeneralized views: that web technology is constantly changing and that web design is distinguished from graphic design by virtue of interactivity. If these views are accepted, a learning objective like "develop working knowledge" may seem too transient or divergent for a graphic design studio. But while web technologies include a collection of passing technologies, they also include a set of stable and material-like constraints. Furthermore, these technologies are rooted in a concern for layout, a core graphic design topic. As such, the topic is appropriate for focused investigation in a graphic design studio. This article proposes an outline for a working knowledge of web design based on a brief overview of historical and existential contingencies and an argument about the minimal relevance of interactivity to the topic. It concludes with an outline of a studio project for developing this knowledge and examples.