Desi is a proposal for a future design college based in India, that's not confined by western, modernistic principles and looks at "design in the Indian context". Certain principles of design might be universal but the way they are realized can be highly specific to a region and culture. Desi is the first four letters of Desi(gn) and it means Indian or local. Hence, the name is appropriate for a school based on Indian values and traditions. Another aim of Desi is to involve rural artisans and people from poor backgrounds as part of the student body, which has not been possible in Indian d-schools which tend to exclude these groups with their high fees. The 'desi' wordmark is used as a 'vessel' for various Indian symbols such as patterns, vernacular imagery and type — symbolic for all the various disciplines of design.
*Published in Asian Graphics Now! (Taschen, 2010)
