Design & Sustainability

"A Question of Design"
This article discusses the Industrial Revolution, how it came about, the effects it had on society, and its relation to design.  My favorite statement from "A Question of Design" is the following: "You may be referred to as a consumer, but there is very little that you actually consume--some food, some liquids.  Everything else is designed for you to throw away when you are finished with it.  But where is 'away'?" This statement happens to be my favorite because it brings up such valid points--ones I have never thought about myself.  Why are we called 'consumers'?  What are we 'consuming'?  When we throw something away, where does it go exactly?

The Industrial Revolution, provided society with a much needed positive change.  This included new work opportunities and better standards of living.

Another statement that caught my attention is, "The waste, pollution, crude products, and other negative effects that we have described are not the result of corporations doing something morally wrong.  They are the consequence of outdated and unintelligent design."  I found this point particularly interesting because we are, in fact, quick to blame a corporation for being careless and lazy when it comes to issues such as pollution.  However, in reality, these corporations have not yet caught up with technological advances, nor have they acquired proper design knowledge of the machines they put to use.

Key points in the article:

• "The Industrial Revolution as a whole was not really designed.  It took shape gradually, as industrialists, engineers, and designers tried to solve problems and to take immediate advantage of what they considered to be opportunities in an unprecedented period of massive and rapid change."
• "Cheaper products, public transportation, water distribution and sanitation, waste collection, laundries, safe housing, and other conveniences gave people, both rich and poor, what appeared to be a more equitable standard of living."
• "Ford's innovation was to bring 'the materials to the man,' instead of 'the man to the materials.'"
• "New work opportunities in factories improved standards of living, as did wage increases.  Ford himself assisted in this shift.  He actually created his own market, and raised the bar for the entire world of industry."
• "Viewed from a design perspective, the Model T epitomized the general goal of the first industrialists: to make a product that was desirable, affordable, and operable by anyone, just about anywhere; that lasted a certain amount of time and that could be produced cheaply and quickly."
• "Today the International Style has evolved into something less ambitious: a bland, uniform structure isolated from the particulars of place.  Such buildings reflect little if any of a region's distinctness or style."
• "In product design, a classic example of the universal design solution is mass-produced detergent."
• "To achieve their universal design solutions, manufacturers design for a worst-case scenario; they design a product for the worst possible circumstance, so that it will always operate with the same efficacy.  This aim guarantees the largest possible market for a product.  It also reveals human industry's peculiar relationship to the natural world, since designing for the worst case at all times reflects the assumption that nature is the enemy."
• "The waste, pollution, crude products, and other negative effects that we have described are not the result of corporations doing something morally wrong.  They are the consequence of outdated and unintelligent design."

"The Sincerest Form of Flattery"

This piece is an interview with Janine Benyus, a biologist and science writer.  When I first took a look at this reading, I was not sure as to what this subject had to do with design.  However, after reading deeper into it, I discovered that, in this interview, a different type of design is being discussed--one that creates devices that will better the environment and make for a more economical society.

I found it hard for me to personally relate to this interview because it consists of information regarding environmentally-related design--a type of design that does not exactly interest me.  Though, I suppose in order for one to be a well-rounded designer, one must be knowledgeable of every type of design.

Benyus' love for nature and her allowing it and its aspects to become such a huge part of her life is awesome.  However, it is just not a lifestyle to which I am able to relate.  But, I enjoyed seeing the world through Benyus' eyes because it is a design perspective which I have never before explored.

From this interview, I obtained the fact that Benyus believes we should create technology based only on what nature has already been doing.  This way, we can simply improve what we've already been given.  However, weren't we put on this earth for a reason?  Two of those reasons being to express our personal opinions on things and use our minds creatively.  These reasons, among others, don't come into play if we are solely going to build from something that already exists.  Humans are supposed to make mistakes--that's how we learn.

Key points:

• "Biomimicry is the practice of borrowing nature's design principles to create more sustainable products and processes."
• Benyus believes that biomimicry allows designers and others to extract design principles from nature and use them in their own designs.
• Benyus believes that fossil fuels have been in existence for longer than we could even imagine.
• "People think all we need to fix our predicament is a free source of energy, but I think we need to change our behaviors.  More energy would just help us deplete the earth's lifeblood faster."
• Benyus took part in the design of a website titled, AskNature.org.  This site is a place where biologists can connect with engineers/designers and vice-versa.  They can then discuss projects they hope to create collaboratively.
• "There's no time for untested technologies that may not be fit for the earth.  We've got to use technologies that have already been tested by nature herself."

"Buckminster Fuller" Extract

The main focus of this article seems to be the effects the design, the environment, and wealth have had on humanity.  According to the author, there are "four billion real-wealth billionaires" on this Earth.  This wealth, of course, does not necessarily equal billions of dollars.  "Wealth is the accomplished technological ability to protect, nurture, support, and accommodate all growful needs of life."  This statement is probably my favorite from this article because its perspective is so true, yet unseen in the eyes of many.

Another interesting statement the author makes in this article is, "The world's power structures have always 'divided to conquer' and have always 'kept divided to keep conquered.'  As a consequence the power structure has so divided humanity--not only to special function categories but into religious and language and color categories--that individual humans are now helplessly inarticulate in the face of the present crisis."  These divisions create an issue when it comes to crises because people have become unaware of how to interact with those of different religions, cultures, and races.  If people are unable to identify with one another, how can they possibly communicate?

Key points in the reading:

• "The overall design of humanity's present social, economic, and, political structuring and the physical technology it uses wastes 95 out of every 100 units of the energy it consumes.
• The omni-engineering-integratable, invisible revolution in the metallurgical, chemical, and electronic arts now makes it possible to do so much more with ever fewer pounds and volumes of material, ergs of energy, and seconds of time per given technological function that it is now highly feasible to take care of everybody on Earth at a 'higher standard of living than any have ever known.'"
• "Money is not wealth."
• "Humanity does not understand the language of science.  Ninety-nine percent of humanity thinks technology is a 'new' phenomenon.  Most people therefore think they are against technology, not knowing that the technology they don't understand is their only means of exercising their option to 'make it' on this planet and in this life.  Physical Universe is technology and the technology does make possible all humanity's option to endure successfully." 

Design & Ethics

"First Things First" Manifestos
Although I initially had some trouble understanding these two works, I ended up finding them to be extremely informative.  To me, these works, especially "Design Is About Democracy," contain interesting and useful information.  One of the most interesting statements I came across while reading is, "What seduces us is its 'image.'  This image reaches us first as a visual entity--shape, color, picture, type. But if it's to work its effect on us it must become an idea."  In other words, a successful design must be both visually appealing and mentally stimulating.

It seems to me that advertising and design are quite closely related.  According to the "Design Is About Democracy" piece, "We imagine that we engage directly with the 'content' of the magazine, the TV commercial, the pasta sauce, or perfume, but the content is always mediated by design and it is design that helps direct how we perceive it and how it makes us feel."  Therefore, the design of an advertisement can essentially make or break a product and its level of success, or lack thereof.

The article by Matthew Soar, "The First Things First Manifesto and the Politics of Culture Jamming," discusses, in length, the focus, the opinions, and the pros and cons of the manifesto.  Relative to the piece "Design Is About Democracy," Soar brings up the topic of advertising versus design.  He gives his readers the opinions of others on the subject of how similar they really are, and how they relate to one another.

I found the following statements to be important ones in the articles:

• "By far the greatest effort of those working in the advertising industry are wasted on [trivial purposes, like selling cat food, detergent, etc.], which contribute little or nothing to our national prosperity."
• "We are proposing a reversal of priorities in favor of the more useful and more lasting forms of communication."
• "We imagine that we engage directly with the 'content' of the magazine, the TV commercial, the pasta sauce, or perfume, but the content is always mediated by design and it is design that helps direct how we perceive it and how it makes us feel."
• "What seduces us is its 'image.'  This image reaches us first as a visual entity--shape, color, picture, type.  But if it's to work its effect on us it must become an idea."
• "The critical distinction drawn by the manifesto was between design as communication (giving people necessary information) and design as persuasion (trying to get them to buy things.)"
• The British designer Jock Kinneir stated, "Designers oriented in this direction are concerned less with persuasion and more with information, less with income brackets and more with physiology, less with taste and more with efficiency, less with fashion and more with amenity.  They are concerned in helping people to find their way, to understand what is required of them, to grasp new processes and to use instruments and machines more easily."
• "It's possible for visual communicators to discover alternative ways of operating in design."
• "At root, it's about democracy.  The escalating commercial take-over of everyday life makes democratic resistance more vital than ever."
• "In contrast to design, there seems to be something resolutely furtive or even confessional about the notion of ad people taking the time to criticize the workings of their own profession."
• "By broadening the focus of critical attention in these ways we can continue to tease out the characteristic contours of the relationship between the subjective claims of designers and ad creatives and the structural constraints within which they generally operate; to explore the ways in which commercial practice enables non-commercial endeavours; and, to identify those subjective and/or structural elements that ultimately result in conservative, regressive or even pernicious 'texts.'"

"A Critique of American Apparel"

The company American Apparel is praised for their 'sweat-shop free' practices and 'environmental initiatives,' but people are more concerned with the way by which the company promotes itself.  The advertisements for American Apparel are said to 'emulate amateur pornography,' which contradicts the idea of 'ethics [being] central to their production.

This article brings up excellent points regarding the controversy that surrounds American Apparel.  If this company is so 'ethical and socially responsible', why are its advertisements so provocative?  Shouldn't they be more on the conservative side?  But, I guess it's true--sex does sell.

Key Points:

• "It is ironic that a company that so heavily markets itself as being 'socially responsible' has no problem using images of young women that continue practices of subordination."
• "The re-appropriation of 1970s imagery [is one of the tactics the company uses.]  This is seen to be an attempt to invoke nostalgia for a sexually liberated time, pre-AIDS consciousness."
• "Ethical practices American Apparel employ detract from their unethical portrayal of women within their advertisements."

"Ethical Design Education"

My favorite statement from this article is, "We're all slaves of seasonal trends and fickle consumers, we're creatures of a throwaway culture."  This statement caught my attention because it has so much truth to it. Although we might not realize it, we all, in some way or another, follow these trends.  Such styles come and go from season to season, hence the name 'trends'--they don't last forever.

In order to learn, we must 'step out of our comfort zone.'  Just as in any other profession, designers learn from their mistakes.  A successful designer is one who accepts his or her failures as experiences.  From these experiences, he or she is able to improve his or her design skills.

Key Points:

• "I interpret ethics to mean that we have a moral duty, an obligation to our fellow humans and other living creatures."
• "We're all slaves of seasonal trends and fickle consumers, we're creatures of a throwaway culture."
• "It's important, at times, to step out of our comfort zone."
• "Even though people's circumstances and cultures are different, they value the same things."
• "We'll just call it design--a nobel and necessary human activity."

"The Responsibilities of the Design Profession"

This author of this article makes a valid point when he states that, "Designers should in the future be educated and not merely trained."  I strongly agree with this statement because I believe that in order to create a successful design, one must educated on the subject of design.  Without an educational background in design, one is not able to accurately design.

It is amazing to me how prominent design is across the globe.  Everywhere we look, design is there.  Even when we don't see or realize it, design is there.  It seems to me that so many people are unaware of the impact design has on everything.  I suppose if one is not a designer it is not really something one thinks about.

Key Points:

• "The majority of today's designers are formally trained and highly professional in their attitude to their work, and their training has given the best of them great fluency in the visual language of this age.  This change in the status and training of designers is perhaps the most significant development in the profession during the past decade."
• "If we examine the development of design over the past 150 years it is apparent that designers are faced today with a profound challenge not to their ability, but to their integrity."
• "No matter how brief the message or how small the article (or how bad the end result) every product and every printed sheet is designed by somebody.  Quite often many people contribute to the final results."
• "Unhappily, there are clear indications that both in the graphic and product design fields far too many designers are today working for the approbation of their colleagues rather than in an honest attempt to solve specific design problems to the best of their ability.  They are motivated by fashion rather than conviction and they are rapidly undermining the basis and principles of twentieth century design."
• "As design has progressed from an amateur to a professional activity the jobs and the opportunities have grown larger, too."

Corporate Identity & Consumption

"No Logo"
The article "No Logo" discusses the value and extreme importance of brands.  Nowadays, rather than working together, brand identities and factory production are in direct competition with one another.  Instead of worrying about the quality of their products, companies are more concerned with how much money they have left over for branding.  However, I would think that most people would want the most for their money.  If I were to buy an expensive name-brand product of poor quality, I would be sure to never buy anything by that brand again.  If I am going to spend money on something, I want my money's worth.  I'd rather buy a good-quality store brand product than a poor-quality name brand one.

The following is a list of key points I came across while reading the article:

• "A product is something that is made in a factory; a brand is something that is bought by a customer."
• True value = "the idea, the lifestyle, the attitude."
• "Superbrands need lots of space on which to stamp their logos."
• Brands live on.
• "Many companies now bypass production completely.  Instead of making the products themselves, in their own factories, they 'source' them."
• "Things are now made cheaply, so there's lots of money left over for branding."
• The needs of brands are important, as opposed to the needs of workers.
• "Manufacturing can be outsourced, which leaves the focus primarily on product development and brand management."

"Bing! It's Fabien!"

The article titled "Bing! It's Fabien!" discusses the many of the likes, interests, and beliefs of French art director, Fabien Baron.  I found many of Fabien's opinions to be similar to my own.  For example, he believes that when too much text is cluttering a page, "you need to let some oxygen in [there.]"  Personally, I am more partial to simple, straight-to-the-point, organized, "clean-looking" designs.  Too much text is often overkill.  The words "simple, direct, honest, and 'forward'" are used in the article to describe a typical "Fabien" design.

The typeface Didot is often mentioned in this article, as it seems to be Baron's typeface of choice.  The author of the article writes (about Baron's designs), "When space is slightly bluer or pinker or browner than white, it is set off with a block of aqua or charcoal or bronze-colored type in the Didot typeface."  He also states that Baron enjoys "Didot, with overlapping, multicolored letters, swimming in oxygen."

One of the most interesting statements I came across while reading the article is the fact that, "Baron finds it hard to articulate his aesthetic; he is not a word person."  This struck me as quite interesting because if one is not comfortable with words, how can one easily incorporate words into one's designs?

I found the following to be key points in the article:

• 'The composition of the text should reflect the meaning of the words.'  "Fabien [Baron] has tossed that principle out the window, more or less.  By changing the size and color of letters in mid-word, by ordering letters vertically as well as horizontally, by using overlapping courses of type arranged in an inverted pyramid, Fabien manages to make the words as graphically interesting as pictures."
• "Modern is clean and young and direct.  Modern is graphic as opposed to classic."
• Fabien's philosophy of life: "Tomorrow is not today.  That is the beauty of the world.  There will always be change.  Tomorrow, people will be different.  So if you don't look forward you might as well do something else."

"Branding the Individual"

Of the articles "No Logo," "Bing! It's Fabien!," and "Branding the Individual," the one titled "Branding the Individual" definitely struck me as the most interesting and informative.  I took three times as many notes on this article as I took on each of the others.  According to this article, "the consumer defines the brand, but the brand also defines the consumer."  Consumers can make or break a brand by how often they purchase it.  The brands that a consumer purchases says something about that consumer.

"We attach much more significance to the purchases we make when we are shopping for leisure; these are the goods that may give us identity or bring to us a sense of belonging."  For example, I put much more time and thought into a clothing purchase than I do a purchase I make at the food store.  I take my time when purchasing things such as clothing and handbags because these are things that I will eventually be associated with it; these are things that I will own and with which I will be seen numerous times.  Like the article says, "brands are used as a means of expressing personal identity and identifying with a collective taste."

According to the author, "Consumption is either a tool for the 'invention' of self, or a process that strips away our individuality."  This statement is definitely true.  By buying certain items and certain brands, one expresses one's individuality and creates the way in which one will be viewed by others.  However, if one were to buy all items and brands bought by many others, that person would likely just blend in with the crowd.

I believe that the following points are key in the article:

• "The post-modern subject, it has been argued, constructs him or her self through the appropriation of goods, 'surfing' through style cultures and 'trying on' personal identities like clothing."
• "The contemporary consumer is pictured as 'the isolated individual, juggling with assorted signs and symbols in a never-ending attempt to construct and maintain identity in a fragmented and ever-changing environment.'"
• "All material possessions carry social meanings... we must think of goods as 'communicators.'"
• "For most of this century, consumption has been associated with not individuality or the 'authentic' self but mss culture and a loss of self.'"
• "Consumption has become our primary mode of living."
• "As new cultural forms emerge, whether in music, literature or fashion, our preferences will adjust."
• "We make meaning with the goods we buy."

"Media, Gender and Identity"

According to this article, "modern media has little time or respect for tradition."  It seems as though we are constantly trying to move further and further away from tradition in every aspect.  Today, society holds perceptions and opinions totally unlike those it held forty, even thirty years ago.  In my opinion, society has become almost too 'outgoing.'  Although movies with sex scenes and Nickelodeon shows with controversial topics such as teen pregnancy are no big deal nowadays, what happened to not having to lock one's front door at night?  Or letting your child ride his bike to his friend's house alone?  We can no longer do such things.  Why is that?  Maybe people have been given too much freedom--they feel free to do whatever they want whenever they want however they want?  I am not quite sure.

In my opinion, one's identity is made up of so many different aspects.  One creates one's identity through personal thoughts, opinions, and experiences.  Although identities are thought to be unique and individual things, it is not unlikely for one to try to be like someone else.  However, such a situation is indeed a personal experience.  Nevertheless, the topic of identity is anything but clear.

The following is a list of points I found to be key in this article:

• "The mass media has become more liberal, and considerably more challenging to traditional standards, since then, and this has been a reflection of changing attitudes, but also involves the media actively disseminating modern values."
• "Role models serve as navigation points as individuals steer their own personal routes through life."
• "The binary division of 'male' and 'female' identities should be shattered...and replaced with multiple forms of identity--not a new range of restrictive categories, but an abundance of modes of self-expression."
• "Contradictions are important because the multiple messages contribute to the perception of an open realm of possibilities."
• "Today, nothing about identity is clear-cut, and the contradictory messages of popular culture make the 'ideal' model for the self even more indistinct--which is probably a good thing."
• "To discuss gender and media is to aim arguments at moving targets."