Editorial Column

The 30th issue of Neshan provided us with the opportunity to review the publication process of the last 29 issues during the past nine years and to predict the future publication process.  We asked ourselves: Where did we begin and where are we standing now? What ideas did we base our work on? How did we proceed with and develop those ideas? How did we coordinate the quality of writing and design? Did we succeed in creating an acceptable balance between presenting graphic design works of today and our heritage? Did we give enough coverage to graphic design in Iran and an equal coverage of the past and present graphic design in the world? What about the readership of Neshan? Have they increased or decreased and why? Were we able to encourage writing about our profession and inspire our colleagues to write? How did we or did we not help those colleagues who want to study, search, read and write on and about graphic design?
When we decided to publish Neshan, we discussed different subjects in our meetings with the founding members, advisors and the editorial team. At last, we agreed that:
– Our aim in publishing Neshan is to introduce Iranian graphic design to our community and to the graphic designers in other countries and cultures. At the same time, we decided that we want to cover both contemporary graphic art and the past graphic art in Iran and the world. We decided to introduce the great masters of the twentieth century which had not been done before in such a scale in Iran.
– For each issue, we chose a special subject to look at from domestic and international perspectives. As a result, each issue follows a specific theme. We covered areas such as poster, book, logo, visual identity, stamp, education, Olympics and so on. We also wanted to discuss and challenge subjects which are less known to the public and are not among the routine graphic design works. Handmade design (issue 25) and design process (the present issue) are among these subjects.
 – We make the best use of all facilities and to receive original writings without paying – due to extreme financial restrictions- for authorship. Therefore, we solicited cooperation of a large number of our colleagues inside and outside Iran. Fortunately, the number of cooperating colleagues increased by day and the journal gained national and international recognition and reputation as a result of the works published by these writers. Neshan has also generously benefitted from the works of renowned international contributors.  I should add that the seat of deceased Morteza Momayez among us is still unoccupied.
– As we were unable to publish monthly – for financial reasons- we publish quarterly knowing that quarterly publication has its own disadvantages. With only four issues a year a quarterly journal is never up to date. Due to numerous difficulties, we have sometimes failed to publish on time and some of Neshan issues have been published with up to six months interval. If we had been able to publish as planned, we would have published our 38th issue by now. 
 – Finally, we decided to observe copyright laws and do not use any writing, translation or artwork without copyright owner’s permission and we adhered to this principle. Although Iran is not a member of international copyright and copyright is not taken seriously, Neshan is and has always been fully committed and considers it a professional duty.
Unprecedented inflation rates, economic crisis and soaring prices of paper, print and other relevant services in Iran is seriously threatening the life of Neshan in the beginning of its tenth year in print. Physical publication of books, newspapers and magazines in Iran and elsewhere is facing numerous problems today. In the conditions that Newsweek claims inability to continue in paper print, independent journals like Neshan cannot expect much. Inflation and economic crisis on the one hand and the development of electronic publication, easy access to digital copies for websites, CDs and DVDs, smartphones as well as the significance of updating and speedy publication are all transforming the publishing industry.  The emotional attachment to printed matter may be the last reason preventing the disappearance of print media altogether. 
We publish the 30th Issue of Neshan in the same format as the previous issues and based on its usual writing structure. We have various parts around the theme of “Design Process”. 

For the first time after nearly a decade of publishing Neshan, we decided to invite a guest editor. Michael Renner, the director of Visual Communication Institute/The Basel School of Design is the guest editor of this issue on the subject of “Design Process”.
In this issue, the significance of design process is discussed as an academic task. The outcome of design process and the unknown creative paths are among the key skills for recreating the visual effect. While challenging the graphic designers, this process includes theoretical and practical methodology which enhances visual literacy and knowledge. An automatic creation of contemporary work is not feasible in this process. The work is created in a process governed by control and logic.  For example, when a graphic designer consults a visual archive for creating a new work – a practice common with many designers - method of use becomes very important. 
A today visual archive is in fact a collection of older resources which – though reminiscent of the past - may limit the designer to a special frame and render him unable to go beyond that limit.  At this stage, desisgn process comes to rescue and the archival image can be reproduced in an unpredictable creative process.