Design Documentation in Education:
AUK Student Projects Preserving Regional Visual Culture and Beyond
Globalization, urban development, and the rapid spread of digital media have intensified the erosion of regional visual cultures, particularly in the Middle East where vernacular crafts, signage, and folklore risk being displaced by imported design aesthetics. Within this context, educators are rethinking the role of design schools, not only as spaces for creative experimentation but as institutions capable of safeguarding local identity. Design documentation, the process of recording, archiving, and contextualizing cultural artifacts through visual means, has emerged as a vital strategy for cultural preservation. It transforms the act of design from a purely aesthetic pursuit into a form of research and cultural stewardship.
Across the Gulf, universities have begun embedding heritage-oriented projects into their design curricula. The American University of Sharjah (AUS) integrates cultural research into design studios, where students document architectural and typographic artifacts as part of their coursework (Sosa & Ahmad, 2021). Similarly, Zayed University students in the UAE have mapped vernacular architecture, creating visual records that preserve narratives absent from official archives. These regional precedents underscore a broader pedagogical shift, one that recognizes student designers as contributors to living archives of cultural memory.
The American University of Kuwait (AUK) provides a compelling case study of this movement. For nearly two decades, AUK’s Graphic Design program has encouraged students to engage with Kuwait’s visual and material heritage through documentation-based projects. These capstone works range from illustrated books and magazines to interactive games and speculative design pieces. Beyond serving as educational exercises, these projects act as cultural repositories, capturing aspects of Gulf identity that might otherwise fade from collective awareness. In doing so, students assume the dual roles of designer and documentarian, linking personal creativity with communal preservation.
This study focuses on seven exemplary student projects developed at AUK: Sharbaka, Soriana, SafArt, Mowajaha, Ghamanda, Mythical Revival, and Aysha Publishing House (Budreah). Each engages with a distinct cultural domain, music, play, folklore, architecture, or myth, and collectively they illustrate the pedagogical and cultural potential of design documentation.
The research question guiding this paper is:
How can student-led documentation projects in design education foster the preservation and reinterpretation of regional visual culture?
By addressing this question, the paper contributes to ongoing discussions about design’s role in heritage studies and pedagogy. It argues that design classrooms can function as micro-archives, spaces where creative practice and cultural documentation converge. The study also situates AUK’s experience within the global discourse on intangible cultural heritage, echoing UNESCO’s (2003) definition of heritage as “living expressions inherited from our ancestors and passed on to our descendants.”
The paper proceeds as follows: first, it reviews relevant literature on design education, documentation, and cultural preservation; second, it outlines the methodological approach used to analyze the AUK projects; third, it presents seven case studies demonstrating how design students translated heritage into visual form; and finally, it discusses broader pedagogical implications, ethical considerations, and the long-term impact of such initiatives on both students and their communities.