Viewpoints represents the different perspectives, values and beliefs about design artworks. Viewpoints are Structural, Subjective, Cultural and Contemporary and they function as the means for generating alternative interpretations of the world.

In Designing and making, students use different Viewpoints to help shape their intentions and guide decisions in their design artworks. Viewpoints can orient choices and strategies when selecting design forms, materials, techniques and contexts, enabling them to shape meaning, communicate intent and respond to different audiences, needs and situations in design practice.

In Critical and historical studies, students use Viewpoints to orient their investigations of design practices using the Artworld concepts and their relationships. They enable students to consider different meanings in design artworks and provide ways of framing their own points of view in their written, oral and multimodal explanations.

Structural

The Structural viewpoint is a creative and interpretative tool that guides students when designing or interpreting design artworks as forms of multisensory language.

Through the Structural viewpoint, design artworks may be thought of as:

systematic representations by designers using a system of coded relationships between signs and symbols, which can be multisensory
symbols and elements that may be visual, auditory or tactile, and represent an idea, object or relationship
symbolic objects within the conventions of multisensory language, including forms and motifs that represent ideas and communicate meaning
the representation of ideas, lived experiences and functional needs through the interplay of form, function and established design conventions
a mode of communication between designers, users, clients and audiences.

In Designing and making, students learn to construct visual and motion design artworks that communicate their ideas and interests about the world through the organisation of codes, symbols, signs, conventions and multisensory languages. This may involve students exploring conventions within design practice, such as aesthetics, colour and compositional devices in graphic design, spatial relationships in architecture and the use of significant cultural symbols or motifs to represent meaning in an animation.

In Critical and historical studies, students learn about the formal organisation and the symbolic qualities of design forms and design artworks. They learn to interpret design artworks as structured forms of communication, decoding how material, digital, physical or virtual properties are used by designers to represent ideas. Students learn how design practices and conventions evolve over time, gaining insights into how they convey meaning. They learn how the symbolic language of design artworks can be read and understood during specific periods and over time, or in different cultures.

Subjective

The Subjective viewpoint is a creative and interpretative tool that guides students when designing or interpreting design artworks as expressions of, or connections to, deeply personal and emotive perspectives, experiences, associations and user needs.

Through the Subjective viewpoint, design artworks may be thought of as:

being expressed by designers whose intentions are shaped by their imagination, personal or group experiences or an understanding of individual needs
emotional, intuitive, nostalgic expressions that connect to personal memories, experiences or the subconscious
representations of aspects of the world through storytelling, using feeling, emotion, imagination and sensory experience
interpretations in relation to audience associations connecting sensory, imaginative, expressive, felt or perceived experiences.

In Designing and making, students learn to explore their own experiences and responses to the world around them. They explore ways to represent and communicate ideas, designing objects, spaces or narrative experiences that evoke emotional responses and address personal needs or desires.

In Critical and historical studies, students investigate how history, traditions and contemporary design practices reflect the personal and emotional connections of designers and audiences. They examine how designers across time use narrative, materials, forms and experiences to express personal meanings and create design artworks that resonate with audience memories, feelings and needs.

Cultural

The Cultural viewpoint is a creative and interpretative tool that guides students when designing or interpreting how design artworks reflect and respond to social ideologies, beliefs, values, conditions and shared understandings within specific communities or societies.

Through the Cultural viewpoint, design artworks may be thought of as:

created by designers who are influenced by social, economic, political and technological conditions, contributing to meaningful, ethically responsible and sustainable change through their design artworks
reflections and representations of social, community and cultural interests that promote understanding, inclusion, shared values and ethical practices
interpreted and valued as tools for fostering community connection, cultural appreciation, innovation and positive social and environmental impacts for audiences.

In Designing and making, students learn to investigate ideas of social, cultural, technological and environmental significance. This may involve designing artworks that represent and communicate ideas related to identity, ethnicity, cultural heritage and diversity in an inclusive, sustainable and ethical way.

In Critical and historical studies, students learn how notions of cultural identity, human interaction, technological advancements and sustainability inform ethical design practice, authorship and audience response.

Students may study differing cultural attitudes about design artworks and the effects of scientific and technological innovation, politics and economics in particular places during specific periods and over time.

Contemporary

The Contemporary viewpoint is a creative and interpretative tool that encompasses current and emerging design artworks, design theories, techniques, processes and innovative practices to shape design practice.

Through the Contemporary viewpoint, design artworks may be thought of as:

created by designers, companies or facilitators who interrogate existing conventions, explore ambiguities and reassess assumptions about design practice
an evaluation and reconstruction of relationships between designers and users, and traditional assumptions about form and function, exploring how interdisciplinary practices and emerging forms influence the production and reception of design
using design artworks as texts that draw on and reinterpret existing design artworks, styles and design conventions, to challenge traditional ideas, explore innovative solutions and integrate practices that respond to user needs, meet audience expectations and redefine the roles of designers, producers and audiences
a way to reimagine accepted ideas and assumptions by exploring the possibilities of emerging practices, emerging technologies and interdisciplinary techniques and processes, creating design artworks that address future challenges, support sustainable development and enhance the wellbeing of individuals, communities and the environment
interpreted and experienced through active participation in physical, hybrid, interactive, immersive or virtual environments.

In a world constantly redefined by shifts in culture, technology and ideology, designers use current and emerging theories to challenge conventions, develop inclusive and ethical practices, and create purposeful, adaptive design artworks that respond to audience needs and experiences.

In Designing and making, students learn to modify, reimagine and adapt ideas from various sources, including historical practices and popular culture, to create design solutions. They may collaborate to create design artworks in which the audience is an active participant in the creation of meaning. They investigate traditional, interdisciplinary, emerging and inclusive techniques and processes, focusing on user engagement and interaction.

In Critical and historical studies, students examine how traditional roles, materials, techniques, processes, interactions and contexts are questioned and redefined through innovative design practices. Using theories from the Contemporary viewpoint, and by exploring emerging technologies and sustainable solutions, students consider how designers create design artworks that respond to evolving societal needs, shaping a more inclusive and adaptive world.

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7–10Visual and Motion Design 7–10 Syllabus (2025)

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