PREPARING DESIGN’S POTENTIAL Literally, the Latin word ‘editor’ means ‘producer’: ‘edo’ (edere) means 'to bring forth', 'bring out in the open', 'make known', 'publish', 'present', 'deliver', 'reveal', 'cause'. All these associated words suggest that Editorial Design is concerned with preparing structure, form and accessibility of publications. Traditionally, the term 'editorial (graphic) design' is associated with publication media such as newspapers and magazines (recently supplemented by the Web), which are characterized by complex information structures and short production cycles. In such media, transparency of editorial structure, clear formal hierarchies and ease of use are central values in giving form to, not only the end result, but to the process of lay-out and production as a whole. Principally, editorial design means to prepare design's potential. From the vantage point of editorial design, structuring the design and production process is more important than giving form to the definitive outcome of that process. Editorial designers perform a key function in today's complex information environments, by providing structure and overview, and by translating abstract data into meaningful forms. By visualizing editorial hierarchies, editorial designers make visible the content driven choices made by them and their natural partners: (text) editors, authors, and publishers. In doings so, they also prepare the way for colleagues they are collaborating with: photographers, illustrators, information architects, screen designers, database constructors, etceteras. In addition to this process-oriented core of the profession, editorial designers act as mediators between the contents of the material they work with and the cultural contexts of which their products are part. They are 'cultural catalysts'. They balance content with context; they design the processes that organize the 'traffic' between various layers of information and meaning; they mix media _and_ contexts, even from very diverse sources, thereby enhancing the notion of connectedness of information.

Programme All Editorial Names Intro