Scripts in Dialogue: Reinterpreting Visible Language Covers through Bilingual Design Workshops in Kuwait

Scripts in Dialogue: Reinterpreting Visible Language Covers through Bilingual Design Workshops in Kuwait

Muwaffaq Abdulmajid and Faisal Alamhouj

The Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET), Kuwait (prof.muwaffaq[at]gmail.com)

Abstract: This study investigates how postmodern graphic design strategies can be critically reimagined — reframed through the lens of bilingual design pedagogy to engage issues of cultural identity, script interaction, and typographic experimentation — within Arabic–English bilingual contexts. Using the Visible Language journal (late 1960s–2025) as a foundational reference, the research was conducted over three academic semesters with 90 undergraduate design students in Kuwait. Through a structured practice-led research methodology, participants analyzed historical cover designs and developed original bilingual compositions inspired by postmodern aesthetics. The project addressed typographic challenges, including directionality, visual hierarchy, and the interplay between Arabic calligraphic and Latin modular forms. Design strategies — including layering, fragmentation, and grid disruption — were systematically explored to facilitate visual integration across scripts. Outcomes ranged from cohesive bilingual compositions to instances of double monolingualism reflecting varied levels of synthesis. Cultural motifs and script-specific conventions emerged as influential factors shaping design decisions. The study concludes that adapting postmodern design principles to bilingual contexts requires more than stylistic translation; it entails critical negotiation of cultural identity, linguistic equity, and the visual dynamics of multilingual communication.

Keywords: Arabic–English visual communication; bilingual typography; cultural semiotics; design
pedagogy; postmodern graphic design

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Author

Muwaffaq Abdulmajid is an Associate Professor of Graphic Arts in the Department of Art Education at the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET), Kuwait. His research focuses on bilingual typography, visual culture, and the integration of emerging technologies — particularly AI-assisted creative practices — within art and design education. He has published widely in international journals and continues to develop research at the intersection of cultural heritage, pedagogical innovation, and contemporary design practice.

Faisal Alamhouj is a lecturer and graduate student in the Department of Art Education at the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET), Kuwait. His work centers on Arabic–English bilingual design, typographic experimentation, and pedagogical approaches that foster culturally responsive visual communication. He contributes to collaborative research projects in typography and design education, with a focus on Gulf cultural contexts.

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Cite this article:
Abdulmajid, M., & Alamhouj, F. (2025). Scripts in dialogue:
reinterpreting Visible Language covers through bilingual design workshops in Kuwait. Visible Language, 59(3), 295–325. https://www.visible-language.org/journal/issue-59-3-bilingual-cover-design/

First published online May 22, 2025. © 2025 Visible Language — this article is open access, published under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license.

https://www.visible-language.org/journal

Visible Language Consortium:
University of Leeds (UK)
University of Cincinnati (USA)
North Carolina State University (USA)