Design Alchemy

Episode IX: RIP Design Thinking (?)

In this episode of Design Alchemy, hosts Billy and Dimi discuss the topic of design thinking and its place in the design industry. Dimi expresses his skepticism towards design thinking, calling it a vague framework that falls under the category of secular religions. Billy, on the other hand, defends design thinking and explains its five-stage process of empathizing, defining, ideating, prototyping, and testing. The hosts also touch on the role of top-down design in industries such as fashion and...

Episode VIII: Generative Rising

On the next exhilarating episode of the Design Alchemy Podcast, prepare to dive into the captivating world of generative AI with our passionate hosts, Billy and Dimi. They’ll explore the cutting-edge AI tools transforming the design landscape, such as ChatGPT, DALL-E, and MidJourney, and how they’re revolutionizing their own creative processes. Join Billy and Dimi as they debunk common misconceptions and fill in the knowledge gaps surrounding generative AI, often perpetuated by the mainstream me...

Episode VII: Designing for the Metaverse

Are we doomed to live and die inside the Zuckerberg-sponsored Matrix of the Metaverse? Is there any reason to get hyped about this? How will the metaverse change the way we design and produce our work? What does this mean for students and young professionals? Billy and Dimi are getting in the grim vision of the future, but manage to end on a positive note.

Episode VI: Designfluencers and the End of Skill

"Does design matter at all? What is Postmodernism, and how has it affected the design discipline? Is the idea of the Beautiful and the Sublime forever lost? What is Attentionalism? Is our culture really collapsing?" Billy Boman and Dimi Lazarou return to the Design Alchemy podcast with a bang, making as many enemies as they possibly can..

Episode V – The Multiple Meanings of Melodies (with Sam George)

"What does an audio brief look like? What is a Sonic Logo? How do expression, leitmotifs and different scales influence the mood and symbolism of a music piece? What are some common grounds between musical composition and visual design?" We ask Sam George, from PickupGoliath and @theproducertutor, to help us with these, and more, questions, in the fifth episode of Design Alchemy.

Episode IV: The Blanding Paradox

”What is happening to fashion brands all over the world? What are we sacrificing with the current trends in Brand Identity Design? What is Blanding, really? Is the cultural stagnation temporary? Where can we find more meaning?“ Join us to discuss these, and more, in the fourth episode of the Design Alchemy Podcast.

Episode III : The rise of the Design Proletariat

”What is the role of project-bidding platforms like Upwork or Fiverr in developing masses of underpaid designers? Is there such a thing as cheap clients? Can we use technology to influence the balance between the design proletariat and the bourgeoisie? Do we, as a community, shame designers that focus in craft? Who profits from the Great Design Emancipation? Are the solutions going to come from within the design community?“ Join us to discuss these, and more, in the third episode of the Design A...

Episode II : Design School or Designer School?

What are the most valuable things you got in design school? Are we being taught to ”design” or to become ”designers”? Is there a difference, and if so, why? What challenges are facing the conventional design education system and what’s brewing on the horizon? What are the intellectual and academic expectations that we have from the design space? This and a whole lot more is deconstructed & discussed in the second episode of the Design Alchemy Podcast.

Episode I: The Great Design Emancipation

”How has the widespread democratization and affordability of design software impacted the industry globally? Where does design stop and is there a class of ‘design-adjacent’ and rote workers? Is there such a thing as The Design Proletariate? What is ”The Great Design Emancipation”? Is this divide creating a larger gap between '“Getting paid to design” and “Getting paid to think”? This and much more is discussed in the very first episode of the Design Alchemy Podcast”.

[Decipher Strategy Series] Stratagem 2: Besiege Wèi to rescue Zhào