Design after Capitalism: Transforming Design Today for an Equitable Tomorrow

“An information economy may not be compatible with a market economy—or at least not one dominated and regulated by market forces primarily” because a system “based on markets, property ownership and exchange . . . cannot capture the ‘value’ generated by the new technology.” In other words, “it is increasingly evident that information goods conflict

Capitalism can exist only with constant growth, so it constantly creates needs.

In sociological terms, a society reaches the “postindustrial” stage when the economy shifts from predominantly producing goods in the form of objects and physical products to primarily providing services.

It is worth considering the “middle” role that designers play in this structure. Designers sell their labor power to others—their “clients.” However, designers also direct the capital of their clients to bring their own efforts into production. It is this liminal position that offers designers unique opportunities to direct or redirect—to varying e

anti-design collectives such as Superstudio, Archizoom Associati, Gruppo Strum, and Gruppo 9999 shared a critical approach

Material goods become valuable and desirable not for their use value. Rather, they become symbolic of status. Spending money on such goods is an end, not a means. This process creates its own positive feedback loop, and the purpose of consumption is reoriented while satisfaction from consumption becomes elusive.

“[The] Adbusters [Foundation] is a global collective of poets, punks and philosophers implementing radical design

Two powerful and unpredictable forces are shaping where we go next: climate change and technology.

The industrial economy has given way, partially but not fully, to a postindustrial economy in which information, knowledge, and services are fundamental economic drivers.