Book design/Graphic design

The discipline of graphic design is in constant flux, continuously shaped by technological, cultural, and societal developments. Whereas visual communication was once embedded in clearly divided processes and roles, today many aspects – from concept development to technical implementation – are often handled by a single individual. Designers now combine various areas of expertise and operate in a space between specialized craft and complex, often self-directed, production.

The roles of designers today are diverse – ranging from authors, consultants, curators, organizers, editors, to mediators – with growing responsibilities for the complex interconnections between such roles. What is required today is not only a confident command of visual tools, but also the ability to act within dynamic social contexts, to reflect on one's own practice and role, and to continually redefine them.

The Book Art/Graphic Design program at the HGB combines this contemporary openness with a rich design tradition. Design heritage and traditional (as well as timeless) techniques are regarded as living knowledge – not as museum artifacts, but as resources for developing new formats and forms of expression.

At its core, the program emphasizes artistic engagement with design and production – in terms of content, form and technique. Graphic design at the HGB is understood as an open, research-driven program that thinks and works across disciplines. The diploma program offers students the time and space to develop and grow their own practice – both independently and collaboratively.