Between the initial profession and the academic profession: the dilemma of the graphic designers of the UASLP

Abstract

This article explores the place that graphic designers assign to their initial and academic professions in the construction of their identities. Through biographical interviews, the research collects the experiences of three full-time graphic-design professors at the Autonomous University of San Luis Potosi. Using symbolic interactionism, the study analyses the stage in which the designers must negotiate an academic culture based on knowledge production. This stage poses risks to the graphic designers´ identity and the plurality which the university ostensible embraces.