Can Yang is a designer, art director and academic whose research explores the intersections of visual communication, language and cultural identity. Her work spans publishing, image-making and experimental communication models, with a particular focus on underrepresented knowledge systems, cross-cultural dialogue and critical image theory.
Can teaches on postgraduate design programmes at the Royal College of Art and the University of the Arts London, and has delivered guest lectures and workshops internationally at institutions such as Pratt Institute, Hochschule Düsseldorf, Kingston University, Winchester School of Art and Bournemouth University. Can holds an Associate Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) through UAL’s PG Cert in Academic Practice in Art, Design and Communication.
Can’s research explores the intersection of new media practices, image theory and visual communication, with a focus on how visual language can challenge dominant frameworks and facilitate cross-cultural dialogue. Her work engages with underrepresented knowledge systems and alternative modes of communication that respond to shifting cultural, linguistic and geopolitical contexts.
Informed by her background in East Asian philosophy, visual cultures and critical design pedagogy, Can investigates how image-making and publishing can operate as tools for both inquiry and resistance. She is particularly interested in interdisciplinary approaches that bridge graphic design with cultural theory, experimental methodologies and collective practices.
Can’s pedagogical approach reflects this research, encouraging students to approach design not only as a technical tool, but as a critical, situated and socially responsive practice. Her teaching foregrounds the role of individual agency and collective discourse in shaping more inclusive, speculative and context-aware design futures
Alongside teaching and research, Can maintains an independent design practice focused on art direction, publishing and visual identity. She is the art director of te magazine, a bilingual publication that explores contemporary art and cultural anthropology through themes of cultural fluidity, language and migration.
Her visual language draws from experimental typography, image construction and non-linear narrative structures. Can’s work has been commissioned by cultural organisations, festivals and artists internationally, and profiled in global design media. She has been a long-term collaborator within Sino underground electronic music scenes, and has worked with art institutions such as Tai Kwun Contemporary, Para Site Art Space and DE SINGEL, developing visual strategies that respond to curatorial frameworks and spatial narratives. Her practice frequently engages with diasporic and subcultural aesthetics, exploring alternative modes of communication and identity through design
