Design Inc.
Issue 01
Hostile Architecture
105mm x 297mm
35 pages printed onto 6 sheets of 60gsm A3 layout paper
This is the first chapter of my dissertation, reworked into a standalone publication. It explores how hostile architecture (anti-homeless spikes, armrests on benches, etc.) is used to incorporate and normalise ideologies and inequalities that benefit dominant groups in society. It then briefly discusses the role of agonistic design practitioners as a resistance to this incorporation.
The format and design of the publication restrict how the reader interacts with it. The text is mirrored, only readable through a phone’s selfie camera or a mirror. The imagery is printed the correct way but hidden within folds on each spread. This forces the reader to constantly adjust the way they engage with the text, creating an uncomfortable and inconvenient experience. The aim of communicating the negative effects of hostile architecture isn’t relying on the whole text being read, as it’s through the interaction that the reader is subjected to the discomfort that hostile architecture imposes on society.