The American Institute for Graphic Arts (AIGA) was founded in 1914. This makes it the oldest and largest organization for design professionals. It has become so prominent over the years that it is now simply known as “AIGA, the professional association for design.” With 69 chapters across the US and over 25,000 members, AIGA has for a century showcased graphic design, shedding light on the influence it casts on society. By orchestrating local and global events, AIGA strives to bring design professionals and enthusiasts together to educate and inspire practitioners, as well as celebrate the value of design. And AIGA is now present in the Middle East. But will it flourish in the region or will it fail? Here's the story so far.
On June 25 th, 2013, on the cozy rooftop of Coop D’Etat, Beirut, Lebanon, AIGA Middle East's launch party took place, marking the first affiliated international AIGA chapter. Ever since then, New York based Lebanese graphic designers Mo Saad and Leen Sader joined forces to create the operations team which has been working on establishing the roots for the AIGA spirit to grow across the region.
Watch the Teaser for the Launching Event:
Anyone who’s been around the Middle East knows that one of the most effective ways of communicating to a large public is by using sarcasm and the AIGA ME team used this regional preference to their advantage. For the launching event, the team presented a copy driven campaign inspired from the community’s perception and misconception about graphic design. Among the lines they used for the campaign were "Of course I’ll design it for free, Tikram Aynak", "Redesign it in 5 minutes, no problem", "Your budget is only $50? Quick! Where do I sign?", "Your 5-year old likes to draw too, we have so much in common!"
Even though memberships are not yet available, the team is working on building up momentum by prompting graphic design conversations and building a network while spreading the word about AIGA ME. To serve that purpose, Morning Toast, a breakfast think tank series was launched back in March 2014. Every two months, seven to eight designers meet up on a Saturday over coffee for two hours to discuss different topics about the profession and the field's obstacles and challenges. Each Morning Toast is hosted by a different designer who picks the topic of discussion and moderates the conversation.
Watch the following snippets from Morning Toast Vol.1:
To take the Morning Toast gatherings to a new level, and spread the word even further, the AIGA ME team are considering releasing these meaningful discussions as a podcast so a wider audience can benefit from these specialized design chats.
In celebration of AIGA ME’s first anniversary, and in honor of the Beirut Design week 2014, the team went back to where it all started on the rooftop of Coop D’Etat, and organized yet another event worth remembering. Attendees of the event (called Dak Warak ), were in for a quite amusing version of speed-networking based on a deck of cards. The gamification of networking added a fun vibe to the event and forced people out of their comfort zones to really mingle.
Watch AIGA ME's Dak Warak event recap video:
In spite of the team’s efforts to bring AIGA to the Middle East, it is rather questionable how far the community will actually grow in the region. “I’m not really sure how successful they will be, but I would personally rather sign up for one of the US chapters since they are much more established,” expressed a 23-year old Egyptian graphic designer. It seems like the team had better hurry up and launch the membership programs before Arab designers turn their attention away.