This research asks: How can graphic design redefine meaningful attention in museums and cultural institutions? To answer it, the study combines a literature and practice review with a practical test case, Zārban, a speculative campaign for the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Research question
Information was gathered along four axes, so that the state of the art covers more than design alone:
Artistic: exhibition paradigms and museum communication (ACMI, Fondazione Prada, V&A, Mori Art Museum, Jewish Museum Berlin)
Technical and experimental: phygital interfaces, interactive and immersive tools (hand tracking, 360° viewers, AI-assisted access)
Sociological: Generation Z's cultural and digital behaviours, museum exclusion and participation (Bourdieu, Falk & Dierking, recent Gen Z museum studies)
Regulatory: legal and ethical frameworks for cultural communication (ICOM definition, UK GDPR, WCAG 2.2, ASA advertising codes)
Monitoring axes
The findings were tested through Zārban, using the V&A's 2024–25 annual report and its collection data (5,441 Iranian objects against about 2 contemporary creatives based in Iran). The visual identity was developed through iterative prototyping. Four versions were made, and each rejected version was judged on relevance, feasibility and interest, until the final system and the name Zārban were chosen. Legal limits were treated as design material, for example in the installation that covers restricted works. The thesis itself is published as a website, reflecting the "phygital" quality it studies. Zarban's campaign was also phygital in nature, reflecting the "phygital" quality it studies.
From research to design
Zārban is a speculative brief, not a commissioned or tested campaign, so its effect on visitors is proposed rather than measured. A next step would be user testing with Generation Z visitors and tracking engagement on the platform.
Limits
Museum practices were compared on three criteria: interactivity, accessibility and audience reach. This comparison exposed the gap Zārban responds to: no institution combined contemporary Iranian work with real interaction. Contemporary Iranian creatives were then organised in a database by field, base (Iran or diaspora), main achievements and partnership status.
Analysis of practices and creatives
Classification and ranking
Each source was sorted by type and priority, then assigned to one of the three themes:
The themes are Participation (Chapter 2), Contextualisation (Chapter 3) and Experience (Chapter 4).
METHODOLOGY
This research asks: How can graphic design redefine meaningful attention in museums and cultural institutions? To answer it, the study combines a literature and practice review with a practical test case, Zārban, a speculative campaign for the Victoria and Albert Museum, completed as my EYP for my master 2.
Research question
Information was gathered along four axes, so that the state of the art covers more than design alone:
Artistic: exhibition paradigms and museum communication (ACMI, Fondazione Prada, V&A, Mori Art Museum, Jewish Museum Berlin)
Technical and experimental: phygital interfaces, interactive and immersive tools (hand tracking, 360° viewers, AI-assisted access, interactive website building)
Sociological: Generation Z's cultural and digital behaviours, museum exclusion and participation (Bourdieu, Falk & Dierking, recent Gen Z museum studies)
Regulatory: legal and ethical frameworks for cultural communication (ICOM definition, UK GDPR, WCAG 2.2, ASA advertising codes)
Monitoring axes
The findings were tested through Zārban, using the V&A's 2024–25 annual report and its collection data (5,441 Iranian objects against about 2 contemporary creatives based in Iran). The visual identity was developed through iterative prototyping. Four versions were made, and each rejected version was judged on relevance, feasibility and interest, until the final system and the name Zārban were chosen. Legal limits were treated as design material, for example in the installation that covers restricted works. The thesis itself is published as a website, reflecting the "phygital" quality it studies.
From research to design
Zārban is a speculative brief, not a commissioned or tested campaign, so its effect on visitors is proposed rather than measured. A next step would be user testing with Generation Z visitors and tracking engagement on the platform.
Limits
Museum practices were compared on three criteria: interactivity, accessibility and audience reach. This comparison exposed the gap Zārban responds to: no institution combined contemporary Iranian work with real interaction. Contemporary Iranian creatives were then organised in a database by field, base (Iran or diaspora), main achievements and partnership status.
Analysis of practices and creatives
Classification and ranking
Each source was sorted by type and priority, then assigned to one of the three themes:
The themes are Participation (Chapter 2), Contextualisation (Chapter 3) and Experience (Chapter 4).