Graphic design is a creative and visual communication discipline that involves the use of visual elements to convey messages, ideas, or information to an audience. Graphic design serves various purposes and plays several roles in different fields. Here's what graphic design does:

1. Visual Communication: Graphic design is primarily about communicating messages visually. It uses a combination of images, typography, color, and layout to convey information, ideas, or emotions effectively.
2. Branding: Graphic designers create visual identities for businesses, organizations, or individuals. This includes designing logos, color schemes, and other brand elements that help create a unique and recognizable brand image.
3. Marketing and Advertising: Graphic design plays a crucial role in marketing and advertising by creating visually appealing and persuasive materials. This includes designing advertisements, brochures, flyers, posters, and digital banners.
4. Web Design: Web designers use graphic design principles to create visually engaging and user-friendly websites. This involves designing layouts, navigation elements, icons, and other graphical elements that enhance the user experience.
5. Print Design: Graphic designers work on various print materials such as business cards, magazines, newspapers, packaging, signage, and more. They ensure that these materials are visually appealing and effectively convey the intended message.
6. Typography: Graphic designers choose and manipulate fonts (typography) to enhance readability and convey the desired tone or mood. Typography plays a crucial role in branding and design consistency.
7. Illustration: Graphic designers often create custom illustrations and artwork for various projects. This can include drawings, icons, infographics, and other visual elements that enhance the overall design.
8. User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX) Design: In digital product design, graphic designers focus on creating intuitive and visually pleasing user interfaces. They also consider user experience to ensure that interactions with the product are smooth and enjoyable.
9. Information Design: Graphic designers help organize and present complex information in a clear and understandable way. This is often seen in the design of charts, graphs, diagrams, and data visualizations.
10. Environmental Design: Graphic designers may work on environmental graphics for physical spaces, such as retail stores, museums, and exhibitions. This involves creating signage, wayfinding systems, and decorative elements that enhance the environment.
11. Social Media Graphics: Graphic designers create graphics for social media platforms, helping businesses and individuals maintain a consistent and visually appealing online presence.
12. Entertainment and Multimedia: In the entertainment industry, graphic design is used in the creation of movie posters, video game graphics, album covers, and other promotional materials.
13. Education and Informational Design: Graphic design is used in educational materials such as textbooks, e-learning modules, and educational websites to make learning visually engaging and effective.