more than meets the eye.

in "Design: A Very Short Introduction" John Heskett begins by declaring that rather than design being "banal and inconsequential...if considered seriously and used responsibly, design should be the crucial anvil on which the human environment, in all its detail, is shaped and constructed for the betterment and delight of all."  his general thesis in the beginning is that "design is one of the basic characteristics of what it is to be human, and an essential determinant of the quality of human life."

he later begins to explore the history of design, ranging from artisans and guilds in the distant past, converting to people who were concerned with the ability to mass produce objects, on to the thoughtful process of aesthetic and function. Heskett opines that design is essentially a human characteristic, as we bend away from the precedent found in nature and move to create enhanced extensions of ourselves.  "objects, communications, environments, systems, and identities," are the buckets for his focus of design as not merely a questions of how to make something, but of the meaning created and interplay aroused between objects and their users.  

the general feel of his discussion is that design is less a focused discipline (which it is) and more an approach to life.  i've mentioned my roommate and product design graduate before, and he commented the same.  in his experience he simply approaches life like this already, and "sees" in this way naturally.  of course he was aided in the process through school, but in comparison with other students, he can see where education helps to an extent,  but natural ability is not transferrable.  one can be taught technique, but not vision.

 

would you pay me if I did this?!

my primary interest in this class was to increase my capacity for seeing and thinking through a customer's perspective as business has been and will be a part of my life.  what I am encountering is much more than I bargained for and i'm very excited, and a bit unsettled, to see what changed take place as I learn how to see and approach problems as a designer.  as a custom painter who learned from a lineage of very successful teachers, i am already hyper-aware of how finishes are applied in every space i visit.  i can only image what the similar gifting and curse will create in the study of design.  

 

...or, if I did this?

i'm already evaluating how i communicate and how it is perceived.  i'm weighing what route i want to pursue for livelihood and the possibility of some sort of business/logistics interplay with design as a focus.  amongst the millions of phenomenal business ideas and creative products in the marketplace, it is not for lack of good ideas that success evades people.  i am beginning to see that presentation and an adherence to a thought-out process of creation and evaluation have much more to do with success than simply coincidence.  

this article is about a computer company who reflects that theory--that successful design is worked hard for, not tripped over luckily.