I’m old enough to remember when you could pick up any regional graphic design annual, open it, and know exactly which area you were looking at just from the work itself. Tennessee or Texas. Southern California or the Pacific Northwest. New York or Chicago. Each had clear stylistic tells. And as an aspiring designer myself, I loved the way concert posters, packaging, and logos all possessed the spirit of their place—and reflected the particular tastes of the people who lived there.

我年纪大了，想起了什么时候可以拿起任何区域平面设计作品，打开它，并仅从作品本身中确切地知道您正在寻找哪个区域。 田纳西州或德克萨斯州。 南加州或太平洋西北地区。 纽约或芝加哥。 每个人都有明确的风格诉说。 作为我自己一个有抱负的设计师，我喜欢音乐会海报，包装和徽标都拥有其所处位置的精神-并反映了居住在那里的人们的特殊品味。

Recently, there’s been a wave of this sort of everything-looks-the-same lament on Medium and elsewhere. When I published an essay about limitations back in 2018, I was surprised at how much interest I received around this idea of vernacular design. Like our forebears in the 1970s and ’80s, it seems we may be reacting to the homogeneity that flows from an international style.

最近，在Medium和其他地方掀起了一股类似的热潮。 当我在2018年发表一篇关于限制的文章时 ，我惊讶于我对这种本土设计理念的浓厚兴趣。 就像1970年代和80年代的前辈一样，似乎我们可能会对国际风格产生的同质性做出React。

Along with the designers at Journey Group, I’ve been exploring the practices that may lead—even in small ways—back toward a design aesthetic with local roots. We’ve been inspired by companies like True Hand in Philadelphia, who work to express the inspiration and influences of a unique subculture bound by place. The maestra of Manhattan Paula Scher was born in D.C. and studied in Philly, but spent the past thirty years developing a visual style that’s virtually synonymous with New York City at Pentagram’s downtown office.

我和Journey Group的设计师一起，一直在探索可能甚至导致小规模实践回到具有本地根源的设计美学的实践。 我们受到费城True Hand公司等公司的启发，这些公司致力于表达受地域限制的独特亚文化的灵感和影响。 曼哈顿保拉·谢尔的艺术大师出生于华盛顿特区，就读于费城，但在过去的30年中，他开发了一种视觉样式，实际上在五角星形市区办公室代表纽约市。

But what about the small places? In our case, what would a design sensibility of and for Charlottesville, Virginia (with fewer than 50k residents) even look like? How can photographers, typographers, illustrators, architects and designers come to care less about what’s happening in Tokyo or London and more about what’s happening just a few blocks away. I’ve got a few ideas.

但是小地方呢？ 在我们的情况下，你会的 和弗吉尼亚州夏洛茨维尔设计感性(少于5万个居民)，甚至是什么样子？ 摄影师，排版，插图画家，建筑师和设计师如何来关心较少发生的事情在东京或伦敦， 更多的是发生的事情只有几个街区之遥。 我有一些想法。

您关注的地理围栏。 (Geofence who you follow.)

Maybe not forever, but consider limiting your influences on platforms like Instagram and Pinterest to individuals and firms within your region. By primarily consuming visual work from your neighbors, you can begin to understand their point-of-view and respond.

也许不会永远如此，但请考虑将您对Instagram和Pinterest等平台的影响力限制在您所在地区的个人和公司。 通过主要从邻居那里消费视觉作品，您可以开始了解他们的观点并做出回应。

远离Dribbble。 (Stay off Dribbble.)

Similarly, avoid design critique from “the global design community.” Instead, set up a standing happy hour within your firm or with designers from nearby offices to review works in progress. Agree to cultivate a school of criticism that prioritizes local culture and fashion. Don’t ask, “How would they solve this?” Rather, “How would we?”

同样，请避免来自“全球设计界”的设计批评。 取而代之的是，在您的公司内或与附近办公室的设计师一起设立常设欢乐时光，以审查进行中的工作。 同意建立以当地文化和时尚为优先的批评学校 。 不要问“ 他们将如何解决这个问题？” 而是，“ 我们将如何？”

避免商业类型。 (Avoid commercial type.)

The explosion of cheap and ready fonts has certainly contributed to the samification of everything. Whenever feasible, collaborate with a local type designer or hire a custom letterer. When it isn’t feasible, draw your own! Source inspiration from old signs, bookstores, print shops, and found items in your neighborhood.

廉价字体和现成字体的激增无疑促进了一切事物的杀伤力 。 在可行的情况下，请与本地字体设计师合作或聘请自定义信笺。 如果不可行，请自己动手！ 从旧招牌，书店，印刷店和附近发现的物品中汲取灵感。

别动 (Stay put.)

Speaking of neighborhoods—pick one! Don’t move! And when you do move, ditch your ego and reinvent your portfolio to better reflect your place. I love looking at an established designer’s portfolio and detecting where they lived at the time the work was produced. Far from seeming inconsistent, it reflects a posture of service by prioritizing shared life over individual acclaim.

说到社区，请选择一个！ 别动！ 当你这样做的举动，沟你的自我和重塑你的投资组合，以更好地反映你的地方。 我喜欢看一个设计师建立的投资组合并检测他们居住在工作中产生的时间。 它不仅看起来很不一致，而且通过将共享生活放在个人赞誉之上来反映服务态度。

学习历史。 (Study history.)

Designers should all aspire to be amateur local historians. Archival photos, blueprints, maps, type specimens, and other ephemera should be our bread and butter. I think immediately of our friend, collaborator, and constant source of inspiration, Aaron Draplin, who obsessively collects the little pieces of human civilization scattered across the midwest. And here’s the thing: his work is so wonderfully situated within a place.

设计师都应该渴望成为当地的业余历史学家。 档案照片，蓝图，地图，类型标本和其他临时物品应作为我们的面包和黄油。 我立即想到我们的朋友，合作者和不断的灵感源泉， 亚伦·德拉普林 ( Aaron Draplin )痴迷于收集散布在中西部的人类文明的小片段。 就是这样：他的作品如此美妙地放置在一个地方。

随便走走。 (很多。) (Walk around. (A lot.))

And don’t always take the same routes. Bring a camera or a sketchbook or both. Find the moments and sections and flora that are only in your place. Use them. Platform them.

而且不要总是走相同的路线。 带上相机或素描本，或同时带上两者。 查找仅在您自己的地方的瞬间，部分和动植物。 使用它们。 平台他们。

跳过奖项。 (Skip the awards.)

Or better yet: launch a local competition with a stated bias toward your own place’s unique design vernacular. It would be amazing to see a statewide design exhibition in which D.C. Metro, The Beach, Richmond, Piedmont & Valley, Southwest, and Southside all vied for their own place within Virginia-grown design.

或更妙的是：发起一场本地比赛，并向您当地独特的设计偏见。 看到一个全州范围的设计展览真是太神奇了，DC地铁，海滩，里士满，皮埃蒙特和山谷，西南和南边都争相在弗吉尼亚州设计中占据一席之地。

What comes to mind for you? Now that we’re all working alone together, how can we use the opportunity to push back towards a vernacular design?

您想到的是什么？ 现在我们都在一起工作，我们如何利用这个机会来推向本土设计？