Figma Turns Every App Into a Design Agent With MCP Expansion
Figma expanded its MCP (Model Context Protocol) server this week to cover Figma Slides, FigJam, Figma Make, and the new Figma Agent — meaning you can now create or update presentation decks, whiteboard sessions, and prototypes from a single text prompt. New additions include uploaded local font support so your type renders correctly in AI-generated layouts, and a `download_assets` tool that exports finished files as JPG, SVG, or PDF directly from the server.
Adobe's "Concept to Vector" Arrives — And Makes Live Trace Look Ancient
Adobe's June 2026 Creative Cloud drop (rolling out from June 15) includes a standout Illustrator feature: Concept to Vector, which turns rough sketches, bitmap art, or typed descriptions directly into clean, editable vector graphics. Photoshop also gains Reflection Removal — it detects window and glass reflections automatically, isolates them on a separate layer, and lets you dial their visibility up or down.
Are Design Schools Teaching the Wrong Thing?
It's Nice That published a pointed opinion piece this week asking whether graphic design education has become so focused on tools and software that it has neglected the harder things to teach — visual judgment, cultural awareness, and knowing when something actually works. The piece argues software fluency is an entry requirement, not a design education.
Taiwan International Student Design Competition — Deadline July 6, No Entry Fee
The Taiwan International Student Design Competition (TISDC) 2026 is accepting entries from senior high school and university students worldwide until July 6, 2026. This year's theme is "Resilience" — the ability to adapt, recover, and grow stronger under pressure. The competition accepts work across graphic, product, digital, and spatial design categories and charges zero entry fees.
Koto Revived a 1940s Wordmark for the Norton Museum — And It Beat Every Redesign Pitch
Studio Koto's rebrand of the Norton Museum of Art, covered by It's Nice That this week, is built around a wordmark recovered from the museum's 1940s archive — restored rather than redesigned from scratch. The approach reflects a growing conviction among senior brand studios: identity starts with cultural excavation, not stylistic trend-chasing. Dig until you find something worth restoring, then do that.
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