The Debate
(Wim Crouwel, Jan Van Torn, 2015)
Design as ideology, not just aesthetics.
The Debate captures one of the most important conversations in design history.
It is a clash between order and expression, neutrality and engagement.
Wim Crouwel stood for the grid, structure, and clarity; Jan van Toorn for subjectivity, politics, and social responsibility. Their dialogue exposes design not as a stylistic practice but as an ideological one.
Reading it today feels surprisingly current. The questions they raised — about ethics, authorship, and the designer’s role in shaping society — echo in every project we create. It’s not about who was right, but about how both perspectives sharpen our understanding of what design can and should do.
The Debate is short but potent — a reminder that every layout, every type choice, every silence in design carries a point of view.
Designers should not be neutral.
They should be conscious, critical, and committed.
