Monday, March 14, 2011
Course response 10
When I signed up for this class, I didn't really know what to expect. I wasn't really sure how an introductory course to such a broad subject would be formatted. I was pleasantly surprised by the class though. Both the books we read and the class discussions were extremely thought provoking. It really made me think about what a significant impact design has on all aspects of our world. In addition, our assignments were really fun and I felt they really encouraged creativity. I really like submitting all of our assignments on a blog, it made doing homework simple and straight forward. OverLl, this class was a great introduction to design and I look forward to taking more design classes.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Journal 09
Group
Adam
Carl
Jeremy
Telina
Considering we are presenting today, it is rather fortunate that we are done with our project + presentation. Things went pretty smoothly on this project, and although everyone might not have been super psyched on the product we designed, we managed to come to a compromise and finish the project. Everybody worked on their part of the project at home, and we used our in class meetings to show and discuss what we had worked on at home. We only had to meet outside of class once, last night, to finalize everything before we presented. To help give our project focus, I made a summary of our ideas based off of the rubric that we are going to be graded off of. I figured it would be useful as a sort of reference sheet for the main points we need to make during our presentation. I also digitized Telina's design for our kiosk. Overall, despite my usual distaste for group projects, I think things went rather well.
Adam
Carl
Jeremy
Telina
Considering we are presenting today, it is rather fortunate that we are done with our project + presentation. Things went pretty smoothly on this project, and although everyone might not have been super psyched on the product we designed, we managed to come to a compromise and finish the project. Everybody worked on their part of the project at home, and we used our in class meetings to show and discuss what we had worked on at home. We only had to meet outside of class once, last night, to finalize everything before we presented. To help give our project focus, I made a summary of our ideas based off of the rubric that we are going to be graded off of. I figured it would be useful as a sort of reference sheet for the main points we need to make during our presentation. I also digitized Telina's design for our kiosk. Overall, despite my usual distaste for group projects, I think things went rather well.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Heskett's Extremely Cloudy Crystal Ball
When reading the title of Chapter 10, "Futures", one should pay particularly close to the pluralization, as that one "s" establishes an pluralized, inquisitive tone, rather than a singular, declarative tone. As in previous chapters, Heskett writes in a style that, rather than strictly defining design, raises thought provoking questions about design, leaving the reader to come up with the answers. Rather than predicting one definite future for design, Heskett outlines issues in design that will lead to any number of possible futures, for the world of design and the world it shapes.
It seems that the underlying issue that will determine the future of design is a question of puppetry, "Who will be pulling at the strings of designers in the future?". Will the puppet masters be corporate bigwigs? Will designers, as Heskett puts it, "be merely technocrats, devoting their skills to the highest commercial bidder without consideration of the ends they serve"? Or will designers respond to the pulls of less physical entities, serving environmental or social issues?
One quote, concerning the significance of the growing trend of designing "experiences", particularly reverberated with me: "It also suggests that life is so meaningless for people incapable of experiencing anything for themselves that they have to be supplied with a constant flow of artificial, commercialized, and commodified experiences that take on their own reality. " The recent emphasis on "viral" marketing campaigns is one such example. By removing advertisements from TV screens and magazine pages and making them real-world experiences, the response to advertisements has changed from changing the channel or flipping the page to telling your friends about it on Facebook. I feel that such willful participation in marketing campaigns is a bit unnerving, and I sincerely hope that design instead focuses on the needs of the 90 percent of the world's population that lives "in the so-called 'Third World', in 'Developing' or 'Peripheral' countries".
However, Heskett manages to slightly take off the gleam of that dream, as he questions: "if basic requirements become more completely satisfied, will the whole world turn to conspicuous consumption, and with what consequences?"
Let's just hope McDonough's "Industrial Re-evolution" has happened by then, and the consequences are minimal.
It seems that the underlying issue that will determine the future of design is a question of puppetry, "Who will be pulling at the strings of designers in the future?". Will the puppet masters be corporate bigwigs? Will designers, as Heskett puts it, "be merely technocrats, devoting their skills to the highest commercial bidder without consideration of the ends they serve"? Or will designers respond to the pulls of less physical entities, serving environmental or social issues?
One quote, concerning the significance of the growing trend of designing "experiences", particularly reverberated with me: "It also suggests that life is so meaningless for people incapable of experiencing anything for themselves that they have to be supplied with a constant flow of artificial, commercialized, and commodified experiences that take on their own reality. " The recent emphasis on "viral" marketing campaigns is one such example. By removing advertisements from TV screens and magazine pages and making them real-world experiences, the response to advertisements has changed from changing the channel or flipping the page to telling your friends about it on Facebook. I feel that such willful participation in marketing campaigns is a bit unnerving, and I sincerely hope that design instead focuses on the needs of the 90 percent of the world's population that lives "in the so-called 'Third World', in 'Developing' or 'Peripheral' countries".
However, Heskett manages to slightly take off the gleam of that dream, as he questions: "if basic requirements become more completely satisfied, will the whole world turn to conspicuous consumption, and with what consequences?"
Let's just hope McDonough's "Industrial Re-evolution" has happened by then, and the consequences are minimal.
J08: Coleman Project Personal Documentation
Group
Adam
Carl
Jeremy
Telina
What would it be like if Coleman expanded into the indoor home goods market? How could they apply their established design principles to appliances, furniture and the like? Or would they come up with a completely new product? These are among the questions our group have been trying to answer during our time in class last week. While it has been somewhat difficult for our group to come to a consensus on what our product should be, I believe we are going to go forward with Jeremy's idea for a better window insulation material. While our whole group is not in wholehearted agreement with this idea, I feel that we should pursue it due to the interest of time. Although I have never used this stuff, I know many people who have, and after hearing Jeremy describe all the problems with the standard plastic sheets commonly used, I feel that there is a gap in the market for this type of product. We still have a lot of work left to do before next Monday, so today in class, I think we should figure out who is gonna work on what, so we can each better focus on what we each have to do.
Adam
Carl
Jeremy
Telina
What would it be like if Coleman expanded into the indoor home goods market? How could they apply their established design principles to appliances, furniture and the like? Or would they come up with a completely new product? These are among the questions our group have been trying to answer during our time in class last week. While it has been somewhat difficult for our group to come to a consensus on what our product should be, I believe we are going to go forward with Jeremy's idea for a better window insulation material. While our whole group is not in wholehearted agreement with this idea, I feel that we should pursue it due to the interest of time. Although I have never used this stuff, I know many people who have, and after hearing Jeremy describe all the problems with the standard plastic sheets commonly used, I feel that there is a gap in the market for this type of product. We still have a lot of work left to do before next Monday, so today in class, I think we should figure out who is gonna work on what, so we can each better focus on what we each have to do.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Chapters 4-6: A New Hope
When I think of the future, I often imagine a vast, deserted wasteland, inhabited by roving gangs of vicious nomads scouring the countryside for resources and sustenance. While Hollywood's apocalyptic versions of the future are certainly partly to blame, it also doesn't help that we humans are going through our natural resources like rappers blowing through dollar bills at a strip club. But reading the second half of Cradle to Cradle was a burst of sunshine through my gloomy visions of the Earth's future.
In our current state of affairs, it is practically impossible to remain a member of the modern world and not contribute to the beast that is rapidly consuming our one and only world. So it is really encouraging to read how we may be able to have an "Industrial Re-evolution" to dramatically alter our deeply flawed industrial infrastructure. Although it may be impossible to curb our insatiable materialistic appetites, its good to hear that we may be able to someday consume sustainably.
In our current state of affairs, it is practically impossible to remain a member of the modern world and not contribute to the beast that is rapidly consuming our one and only world. So it is really encouraging to read how we may be able to have an "Industrial Re-evolution" to dramatically alter our deeply flawed industrial infrastructure. Although it may be impossible to curb our insatiable materialistic appetites, its good to hear that we may be able to someday consume sustainably.
Charles and Ray Eames
Wednesday's class introduced me to Charles and Ray Eames, a thoroughly interesting couple of many hats. (And apparently they were so inseparable that they even share the same Wikipedia article) I was really interested to see how influential they were in several different fields. As one with many pursuits, it's cool to see others excel in so many different areas.
The Do-Nothing Machine was really whimsical, it reminded me of a Rube Goldberg contraption, but instead of doing something poorly, it did nothing really well.
The interview by the French woman was also really entertaining, it seemed that Charles thought her questions about the meaning of design were a bit silly, and I would have to agree. I feel such restricting exercises are a bit pointless, as it seems to focus on what you can't do, rather than what you can.
The Do-Nothing Machine was really whimsical, it reminded me of a Rube Goldberg contraption, but instead of doing something poorly, it did nothing really well.
The interview by the French woman was also really entertaining, it seemed that Charles thought her questions about the meaning of design were a bit silly, and I would have to agree. I feel such restricting exercises are a bit pointless, as it seems to focus on what you can't do, rather than what you can.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
one three five thee five three
1 definition
An indoor home good is a product intended to be kept and used inside the home, with purposes including cooking, cleaning, relaxing, etc.
3 indoor home goods
5 indoor home goods links
Bed Bath & Beyond
HomeGoods
Pier 1 Imports
UncommonGoods
Crate and Barrel
3 indoor home goods trade show booths
5 outdoor camping/recreation links
Cabela's
Coleman
REI
Gander Mountain
Cousins Army Navy
3 outdoor recreation/sporting trade show booths
An indoor home good is a product intended to be kept and used inside the home, with purposes including cooking, cleaning, relaxing, etc.
3 indoor home goods
BONUS 4TH HOME GOOD
5 indoor home goods links
Bed Bath & Beyond
HomeGoods
Pier 1 Imports
UncommonGoods
Crate and Barrel
3 indoor home goods trade show booths
5 outdoor camping/recreation links
Cabela's
Coleman
REI
Gander Mountain
Cousins Army Navy
3 outdoor recreation/sporting trade show booths
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
Cradle to Cradle: Chapters 1-3
In the first three chapters of Cradle to Cradle, McDonough and Braungarten, reveal the folly of our past ways, the error of our current ways and the possibilities for a better designed future. The Industrial Revolution is shown to have created a poorly designed industrial paradigm, one that uses chemicals and processes of unknown consequence and depletes natural resources with no plan of preserving them. The current environmentalist movement is shown to be a step in the right direction, but a step that will only delay environmental doom. McDonough and Braungarten then begin to outline their new "Cradle to Cradle" manufacturing model, which seeks to completely eliminate the concept of "waste" (Which is a really cool and much needed idea).
I thought it was very interesting how they framed the history of industrial progress as a conflict of Man VS Nature, Every progress a kick to the balls of nature, using brute force to make nature serve our interests. It's really interesting to think how the Jungian archetype of nature as something to conquer, something that needs to be beaten back to make room for civilization, has led to our very sorry current condition. And as a staunch Native-American sympathizer, I couldn't help but think of the way that the Native Americans, a culture that lives in harmony with nature instead of against it, were very nearly wiped out, to make room for our "civilization".
After thinking this, a voice in my head dismissively commented "That's some hippie shit, man". I believe this to be the voice of the current paradigm, the popular opinion espoused in the popular media. This immediately brought to mind Richard Serra's Television Delivers People.
This 1973 work of video art is a critique of mass media and shows television as an agent of social control used to benefit those in power. Think of how characters expressing contrary ideas are often portrayed in popular culture. Think of the idealistic hippie, that could change the world if it only weren't for their crippling marijuana-induced laziness. Such characters are often seen as needing to wake up and join the real world (Ya know, cut their hair, get a job, start building credit). By reinforcing the connection between environmentalism and hippies, the ideas are marginalized by the dismissal of the character. While I am not exactly suggesting that there is some huge corporate media conspiracy to keep environmentalists at bay, it interesting to note how popular media "works to keep the status quo" (As Serra argued).
However with the advent of the internet, a comparatively unrestricted form of mass communication, the nature of mass media has completely changed, and it will be interesting to see how it will continue to affect social progress. The role the internet played in the recent events in Egypt is one recent example. However it is saddening to see the way corporations are trying to gain control over the internet, what with the recent concern over net neutrality and the ever increasing need for advertisements. (On Youtube!? is nothing sacred?!?!?!)
I thought it was very interesting how they framed the history of industrial progress as a conflict of Man VS Nature, Every progress a kick to the balls of nature, using brute force to make nature serve our interests. It's really interesting to think how the Jungian archetype of nature as something to conquer, something that needs to be beaten back to make room for civilization, has led to our very sorry current condition. And as a staunch Native-American sympathizer, I couldn't help but think of the way that the Native Americans, a culture that lives in harmony with nature instead of against it, were very nearly wiped out, to make room for our "civilization".
After thinking this, a voice in my head dismissively commented "That's some hippie shit, man". I believe this to be the voice of the current paradigm, the popular opinion espoused in the popular media. This immediately brought to mind Richard Serra's Television Delivers People.
This 1973 work of video art is a critique of mass media and shows television as an agent of social control used to benefit those in power. Think of how characters expressing contrary ideas are often portrayed in popular culture. Think of the idealistic hippie, that could change the world if it only weren't for their crippling marijuana-induced laziness. Such characters are often seen as needing to wake up and join the real world (Ya know, cut their hair, get a job, start building credit). By reinforcing the connection between environmentalism and hippies, the ideas are marginalized by the dismissal of the character. While I am not exactly suggesting that there is some huge corporate media conspiracy to keep environmentalists at bay, it interesting to note how popular media "works to keep the status quo" (As Serra argued).
However with the advent of the internet, a comparatively unrestricted form of mass communication, the nature of mass media has completely changed, and it will be interesting to see how it will continue to affect social progress. The role the internet played in the recent events in Egypt is one recent example. However it is saddening to see the way corporations are trying to gain control over the internet, what with the recent concern over net neutrality and the ever increasing need for advertisements. (On Youtube!? is nothing sacred?!?!?!)
Design & The Environment
As is thoroughly evidenced in Cradle to Cradle, the Industrial Revolution spawned a poorly planned, unsustainable industrial infrastructure that is extremely damaging to both our environment and the future of life on Earth. I believe it is extremely urgent that we re-design our hulking, gray, industrial infrastructure to be more sustainable and to produce more nature friendly products and processes. Design should be holding environment's hand, not kicking it in the balls over and over and over again. It seems that the key is to, instead of attempting to separate ourselves from nature, embrace our place in nature and follow a "cradle-to-cradle" manufacturing model, or as Elton John so eloquently belted out: "But all are agreed as they join the stampede/You should never take more than you give/In the CIIIIIIIIRCLE OF LIIIIIIIIFE". The bad design of the past is killing our world, and hopefully we can save it with good design in the future.
Amagerforbrændingen Waste Treatment Plant
Although not entirely perfect, this design for a Danish waste treatment plant follows many of Cradle to Cradle's design principles. While a waste treatment plant wouldn't normally seem like a cool place to hang out, this plant won't only convert waste to energy, it will also function as an artificial ski slope. In order to make the implications of consumption a little more tangible, CO2 is released from this plant's smokestack in one ton increments, in the form of giant smoke rings. This new plant will be 20 percent more efficient and contribute to an annual CO2-reduction of 50 to 60 thousand metric tons. Although this may still fall under the category of "doing less bad" the momentum of our current industrial paradigm is too great to be reversed in one fell swoop, it must be slowed down first.
Biomimicry Institute
Although the word is not printed once in Cradle to Cradle, McDonough and Braungart's ideas have much in common with biomimicry, the idea that sustainable solutions to human's problems can be discovered by examining nature. The Biomimicry Institute is an organization that seeks to advance the field of biomimicry. Their website offers much information on biomimicry, including case studies of biomimicry in action and children's music CDs, so you can greenwash 'em while they're young.
Green Guru Gone Wrong: William McDonough
After initially reading Cradle to Cradle, I envisioned William McDonough as some sort of eco-friendly designer Jesus, but this article has given me a much more balanced view of him. This article also ties in the themes of RiP!: A Remix Manifesto, as it reveals how McDonough's desire to monetize his concepts has made him unwilling to relinquish control of his ideas, which prevents Cradle to Cradle design from being implemented on a larger level.
Trash into Art
Skateboarding is not the most environmentally-friendly activity, as avid skateboarders will go through decks quickly, resulting in a lot of waste. However, Japanese artist Haroshi is breathing new life into skateboards, creating beautiful sculptures from refuse.
GreenSource
GreenSoruce is a magazine that focuses on enviromentally-friendly design. Their website offers much info on the area, including news, current projects, and green product reviews.
As is thoroughly evidenced in Cradle to Cradle, the Industrial Revolution spawned a poorly planned, unsustainable industrial infrastructure that is extremely damaging to both our environment and the future of life on Earth. I believe it is extremely urgent that we re-design our hulking, gray, industrial infrastructure to be more sustainable and to produce more nature friendly products and processes. Design should be holding environment's hand, not kicking it in the balls over and over and over again. It seems that the key is to, instead of attempting to separate ourselves from nature, embrace our place in nature and follow a "cradle-to-cradle" manufacturing model, or as Elton John so eloquently belted out: "But all are agreed as they join the stampede/You should never take more than you give/In the CIIIIIIIIRCLE OF LIIIIIIIIFE". The bad design of the past is killing our world, and hopefully we can save it with good design in the future.
Amagerforbrændingen Waste Treatment Plant
Although not entirely perfect, this design for a Danish waste treatment plant follows many of Cradle to Cradle's design principles. While a waste treatment plant wouldn't normally seem like a cool place to hang out, this plant won't only convert waste to energy, it will also function as an artificial ski slope. In order to make the implications of consumption a little more tangible, CO2 is released from this plant's smokestack in one ton increments, in the form of giant smoke rings. This new plant will be 20 percent more efficient and contribute to an annual CO2-reduction of 50 to 60 thousand metric tons. Although this may still fall under the category of "doing less bad" the momentum of our current industrial paradigm is too great to be reversed in one fell swoop, it must be slowed down first.
Biomimicry Institute
Although the word is not printed once in Cradle to Cradle, McDonough and Braungart's ideas have much in common with biomimicry, the idea that sustainable solutions to human's problems can be discovered by examining nature. The Biomimicry Institute is an organization that seeks to advance the field of biomimicry. Their website offers much information on biomimicry, including case studies of biomimicry in action and children's music CDs, so you can greenwash 'em while they're young.
Green Guru Gone Wrong: William McDonough
After initially reading Cradle to Cradle, I envisioned William McDonough as some sort of eco-friendly designer Jesus, but this article has given me a much more balanced view of him. This article also ties in the themes of RiP!: A Remix Manifesto, as it reveals how McDonough's desire to monetize his concepts has made him unwilling to relinquish control of his ideas, which prevents Cradle to Cradle design from being implemented on a larger level.
Trash into Art
Skateboarding is not the most environmentally-friendly activity, as avid skateboarders will go through decks quickly, resulting in a lot of waste. However, Japanese artist Haroshi is breathing new life into skateboards, creating beautiful sculptures from refuse.
GreenSource
GreenSoruce is a magazine that focuses on enviromentally-friendly design. Their website offers much info on the area, including news, current projects, and green product reviews.
RIP! A Remix Manifesto
I really enjoyed the documentary we watched in class, and not just because I had a couple seconds of screen time (wearing 3D glasses for God knows what reason):
Although most of the film was focused on Girl Talk and his music, the oft-cited "Remixer's Manifesto" made it clear that much larger issues are at stake:
These themes are very interesting and important, and work to illustrate the threat posed by legal restrictions on sharing ideas. I believe that any sort of progress, whether it be musical, social or scientific, is fostered by the free exchange of ideas, and allowing large corporations to have such restrictive power over ideas will benefit nothing but shareholder's pockets.
It seems to me that the recording industry is perverting copyright laws to serve their own selfish ways. I believe that copyright laws should function to protect ownership on ideas, to establish origin, so that someone else cannot claim that they came up with your idea. It's not like Girl Talk is simply making a mixtape of his favorite songs and claiming he wrote and sang them all. His compositions of wildly varied samples are new works that are much more than simply the sum of their parts. And unless you are somehow materializing objects with your mind, any creative process is simply taking things that already exist and putting them together in novel ways.
It is almost too perfect that Girl Talk's alter-ego is Gregg Gillis, mild-mannered biomedical engineer, because it allowed the film maker a nice transition into some of the deeper implications of allowing authoritative control over ideas. Because all progress is simply a reaction to the present conditions, how can there be progress if it is illegal to alter present ideas? This is especially significant in a field like biomedical engineering, as life-saving advances may be being impeded.
Although most of the film was focused on Girl Talk and his music, the oft-cited "Remixer's Manifesto" made it clear that much larger issues are at stake:
- Culture always builds on the past
- The past always tries to control the future
- Our future is becoming less free
- To build free societies you must limit control of the past
These themes are very interesting and important, and work to illustrate the threat posed by legal restrictions on sharing ideas. I believe that any sort of progress, whether it be musical, social or scientific, is fostered by the free exchange of ideas, and allowing large corporations to have such restrictive power over ideas will benefit nothing but shareholder's pockets.
It seems to me that the recording industry is perverting copyright laws to serve their own selfish ways. I believe that copyright laws should function to protect ownership on ideas, to establish origin, so that someone else cannot claim that they came up with your idea. It's not like Girl Talk is simply making a mixtape of his favorite songs and claiming he wrote and sang them all. His compositions of wildly varied samples are new works that are much more than simply the sum of their parts. And unless you are somehow materializing objects with your mind, any creative process is simply taking things that already exist and putting them together in novel ways.
It is almost too perfect that Girl Talk's alter-ego is Gregg Gillis, mild-mannered biomedical engineer, because it allowed the film maker a nice transition into some of the deeper implications of allowing authoritative control over ideas. Because all progress is simply a reaction to the present conditions, how can there be progress if it is illegal to alter present ideas? This is especially significant in a field like biomedical engineering, as life-saving advances may be being impeded.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
On How To Not Just Be Less Bad
"I was tired of working hard to be less bad. I wanted to be involved in making buildings, even products, with completely positive intentions."
This quote, from the introduction of "Cradle to Cradle", could serve as the creed for William McDonough and Michael Braungart's approach to environmentally-friendly design, a smarter alternative to the retroactive methods of making the shoddy nature-molesting designs of the past slightly less nature-killing and world-ruining. For attaching a bunch of solar panels onto a building and calling it environmentally-friendly is just as deceptive as attaching a ramp to a building and suddenly deeming in handicap-friendly. No matter how much shit you tack on to a bad design, underneath all the soda-bottle carpeting and curb cuts, there still will be a bad design. Or in other words, no matter how much biodegradable surface cleaner you use, you still can't polish a turd. (F**k off Mythbusters)
However, it is not just the designs of our buildings and products that is harmful to the environment. The design of the systems that run our world; industry, government, pretty much all of the infrastructure of advanced human society, all these systems run in flawed ways that are essentially assuring that life will one day cease on the planet Earth. The modern human world was designed with productivity first and foremost in mind, with little consideration for consequences. And in this world where productivity rhymes with profit, we are quickly learning the errors of our ways, that our productivity is only working to hasten the destruction of our world, and that there is no amount of little green pieces of paper worth losing the wonderful magical playground we have somehow inherited. Because of the destructive ways we have created, one seeking to not harm in the environment finds themselves to be in a state of moral paralysis, unable to make a move without having "unwittingly become party to a process of waste and destruction".
This is how I felt when trying to determine a career path for myself, as it seems virtually impossible to earn a living without directly contributing to the continued destruction of our environment, our habitat. So I am extremely interested in learning about McDonough and Braungart's ideas on how to "Eliminate the concept of waste"- not reduce, minimize, or avoid waste, as environmentalists were then propounding, but eliminate the very concept, by design".
If my life's work could in anyway help to create a smarter. more sustainable world, it would help quite a bit to ease my conscience, as I just can't help but enjoy the many, many benefits of our modern, industrialized world. And often I am slightly disgusted by the decadence our lifestyles. It seems quite cruel that a privileged few of us have the luxury to be concerned with the designer of our clothing or whatever the f**k the Kardashians are doing, while the rest are concerned about where there bi-weekly meal is coming from or if their child is going to die from diarrhea.
I think the mock children's show "Wonder Showzen" perfectly satirized this disparity:
I find it ridiculous that we have developed solutions for such trivial problems, while we still haven't solved many of the very basic problems of existence that plague much of the world. We don't need to develop any new cosmetic surgical procedures. We need to develop more things like the water-purifying bottle, the infant warmer, or any of these other Design for the Other 90% projects. I would like it very much if I could help people just live, exist.
Cause just like William McDonough, I'm tired of just trying to be less bad.
This quote, from the introduction of "Cradle to Cradle", could serve as the creed for William McDonough and Michael Braungart's approach to environmentally-friendly design, a smarter alternative to the retroactive methods of making the shoddy nature-molesting designs of the past slightly less nature-killing and world-ruining. For attaching a bunch of solar panels onto a building and calling it environmentally-friendly is just as deceptive as attaching a ramp to a building and suddenly deeming in handicap-friendly. No matter how much shit you tack on to a bad design, underneath all the soda-bottle carpeting and curb cuts, there still will be a bad design. Or in other words, no matter how much biodegradable surface cleaner you use, you still can't polish a turd. (F**k off Mythbusters)
However, it is not just the designs of our buildings and products that is harmful to the environment. The design of the systems that run our world; industry, government, pretty much all of the infrastructure of advanced human society, all these systems run in flawed ways that are essentially assuring that life will one day cease on the planet Earth. The modern human world was designed with productivity first and foremost in mind, with little consideration for consequences. And in this world where productivity rhymes with profit, we are quickly learning the errors of our ways, that our productivity is only working to hasten the destruction of our world, and that there is no amount of little green pieces of paper worth losing the wonderful magical playground we have somehow inherited. Because of the destructive ways we have created, one seeking to not harm in the environment finds themselves to be in a state of moral paralysis, unable to make a move without having "unwittingly become party to a process of waste and destruction".
This is how I felt when trying to determine a career path for myself, as it seems virtually impossible to earn a living without directly contributing to the continued destruction of our environment, our habitat. So I am extremely interested in learning about McDonough and Braungart's ideas on how to "Eliminate the concept of waste"- not reduce, minimize, or avoid waste, as environmentalists were then propounding, but eliminate the very concept, by design".
If my life's work could in anyway help to create a smarter. more sustainable world, it would help quite a bit to ease my conscience, as I just can't help but enjoy the many, many benefits of our modern, industrialized world. And often I am slightly disgusted by the decadence our lifestyles. It seems quite cruel that a privileged few of us have the luxury to be concerned with the designer of our clothing or whatever the f**k the Kardashians are doing, while the rest are concerned about where there bi-weekly meal is coming from or if their child is going to die from diarrhea.
I think the mock children's show "Wonder Showzen" perfectly satirized this disparity:
I find it ridiculous that we have developed solutions for such trivial problems, while we still haven't solved many of the very basic problems of existence that plague much of the world. We don't need to develop any new cosmetic surgical procedures. We need to develop more things like the water-purifying bottle, the infant warmer, or any of these other Design for the Other 90% projects. I would like it very much if I could help people just live, exist.
Cause just like William McDonough, I'm tired of just trying to be less bad.
I'm Hungry
Ugh. I forgot to get gas yesterday. I'll have to get some after I get groceries. I haven't gotten gas in a couple weeks, so I should have a bunch of FuelPerks saved up.
I hate driving... I REALLY hate driving in winter.
Well, I can't really see if anybody is coming, so um, here goes.
Phew.
Shit. It's Sunday. Why do I always go to the grocery store on Sunday? It's gonna be packed. F**k. It's worse than I expected. Look at this madness! Utter chaos. Sunday at Giant Eagle is always like f**cking amateur hour...
Hah. That's pretty pathetic that I see myself as some sort of superior grocery shopper.
Where are all the baskets?
Oh.
"Can I grab one of these?"
Hmm... that dude seemed kinda... well, slow.
Alright, what do I need again?
OK, all I need from the produce section is a lemon. This one will do.
Oh yeah, I gotta make sure to remember everything that happens so I can write that thing for class.
Please hurry up and make your meat selection and move out of the way! How f**king long does it take to pick out a package of crushed up cow flesh? I hate grocery shopping on Sundays. Hmm... I don't usually buy ground turkey, that's weird they put it with the ground beef instead of with the other poultry. What the f**k? Taco seasoned ground turkey? Are people really so impotent in the kitchen that they can't even season their own meats? Can't I just get some regular f**king ground turkey meat? Well, I guess ground chicken will work.
Geez, lots of people are buying beer.
Why is the section of cheap, shitty wines called "California Popular Wine"? With whom are Carlos Rossi and Franzia popular with? Winos? Hah. Well, I guess I am not much better considering my wine selection process consists of not much more than a brief consideration of price and alcohol content. Hah. I guess I probably would be doing my wine shopping in the "California Popular Wine" section if I wasn't planning on cooking with some of it.
OK, what next?
Pasta.
Caa-vaa-taa-pi
Hah. Everything I know about Italian accents I learned from Giada de Laurentiis and "The Sopranos".
Alright, here we go... Giant Eagle brand? Good enough.
Aghhh... so many people in here... I hate having to awkwardly squeeze past people in the aisles.
Hmm... I should write thing for class as some sort of stream-of-consciousness type thing. Writing a straight list of 50 things sounds pretty borin- Shit.
I should've gotten the canned tomatoes while I was in the pasta aisle. Ah, well I'll just get them on my way back.
OK... eggs.
Hmm... looks like eggs were popular today.
Cracked one in here.
These look fine.
OK, OJ.
High pulp? that sounds pretty good, I like pulp.
Huh, I do most of my shopping on the outskirts of the store. Fresh vegetables, bakery, fresh meat and seafood, dairy. Hmm... I bet those areas are on the outskirts because they are closer to where they are delivered and prepped for display. And food with a longer shelf life are in the aisles. Ehhh... food shouldn't come in a cardboard box... wrapped up and packaged like a f**king action figure or something.
Hah.
Interesting contrast. Outskirts of Giant Eagle: fresh vegetables, bakery, fresh meat/seafood, dairy, and....... feminine hygiene products.
Where the f**k is the Pert Plus? It's green, it should stick out.
Wow, shampoo containers are really colorful.
Ah.. here we go.
Huh, I wonder if people that give a shit about washing their hair would look down on me for using Pert Plus the same way I look down on people that eat bullshit super-processed foods...
Whatever, f**k 'em...
Ok, shaving cream...
Ehh... considering that I shave once a week, and have been using my roommate's shaving cream for the past two months, I'll just go for the cheap stuff... Barbasol? Sounds great.
Alright, just need some tomatoes and I can get out of here.
Ah... I forgot to check how much kale I have left... I hope it's enough. I've never really had kale before, but it tasted good enough in that soup yesterday. Turkey and kale meatballs sounds kinda weird, but I'm sure it will be good. Well, I guess they'll be chicken and kale meatballs now.
Alright, canned whole tomatoes, Umm... I don't think I have any left, so I should probably get two cans.
Ahhhhhhh... these lines are ridiculous.
Well, I guess this one looks the shortest.
Ughhh... their cart is jam packed with groceries... I'm gonna be here all night,
AGGGHHHH... the worst part about user-operated checkout systems is that half the users are completely incompetent... You should have to pass a test before being able to access the self-checkout lanes...
Gah... the Super Bowl is tonight? That explains the madness.
Hah... Sausages, cheese, and sour cream? Looks like the Coke cooler has become the receptacle for the indecisive shopper.
Ahh.. good, looks like these people actually know what they are doing...
Geez, it's later than I thought... I really don't want to wake up at 6:15 tomorrow.
I really hate that I have nothing to look at besides these stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid celebrity "news" magazines. Are there really people that actually care what is going on with anyone from "Teen Mom"?
Alright... they're done bagging.
Ah, can't forget to scan my Giant Eagle card...
*beep*
*beep*
*beep*
*beep*
*beep*
I'm really glad I don't work in a grocery store anymore, and I don't have to listen to this chaotic orchestra of electronic beeps and bloops for hours on end...
Alright... it was less than I thought it would be...
Hmm... I'm not really sure but it really looks like this guy is staring at me type my PIN in...
OK, I can definitely fit all this into two bags...
Aghh.. I just wanna get outta here...
Alright...
Finally.
I hate driving... I REALLY hate driving in winter.
Well, I can't really see if anybody is coming, so um, here goes.
Phew.
Shit. It's Sunday. Why do I always go to the grocery store on Sunday? It's gonna be packed. F**k. It's worse than I expected. Look at this madness! Utter chaos. Sunday at Giant Eagle is always like f**cking amateur hour...
Hah. That's pretty pathetic that I see myself as some sort of superior grocery shopper.
Where are all the baskets?
Oh.
"Can I grab one of these?"
Hmm... that dude seemed kinda... well, slow.
Alright, what do I need again?
OK, all I need from the produce section is a lemon. This one will do.
Oh yeah, I gotta make sure to remember everything that happens so I can write that thing for class.
Please hurry up and make your meat selection and move out of the way! How f**king long does it take to pick out a package of crushed up cow flesh? I hate grocery shopping on Sundays. Hmm... I don't usually buy ground turkey, that's weird they put it with the ground beef instead of with the other poultry. What the f**k? Taco seasoned ground turkey? Are people really so impotent in the kitchen that they can't even season their own meats? Can't I just get some regular f**king ground turkey meat? Well, I guess ground chicken will work.
Geez, lots of people are buying beer.
Why is the section of cheap, shitty wines called "California Popular Wine"? With whom are Carlos Rossi and Franzia popular with? Winos? Hah. Well, I guess I am not much better considering my wine selection process consists of not much more than a brief consideration of price and alcohol content. Hah. I guess I probably would be doing my wine shopping in the "California Popular Wine" section if I wasn't planning on cooking with some of it.
OK, what next?
Pasta.
Caa-vaa-taa-pi
Hah. Everything I know about Italian accents I learned from Giada de Laurentiis and "The Sopranos".
Alright, here we go... Giant Eagle brand? Good enough.
Aghhh... so many people in here... I hate having to awkwardly squeeze past people in the aisles.
Hmm... I should write thing for class as some sort of stream-of-consciousness type thing. Writing a straight list of 50 things sounds pretty borin- Shit.
I should've gotten the canned tomatoes while I was in the pasta aisle. Ah, well I'll just get them on my way back.
OK... eggs.
Hmm... looks like eggs were popular today.
Cracked one in here.
These look fine.
OK, OJ.
High pulp? that sounds pretty good, I like pulp.
Huh, I do most of my shopping on the outskirts of the store. Fresh vegetables, bakery, fresh meat and seafood, dairy. Hmm... I bet those areas are on the outskirts because they are closer to where they are delivered and prepped for display. And food with a longer shelf life are in the aisles. Ehhh... food shouldn't come in a cardboard box... wrapped up and packaged like a f**king action figure or something.
Hah.
Interesting contrast. Outskirts of Giant Eagle: fresh vegetables, bakery, fresh meat/seafood, dairy, and....... feminine hygiene products.
Where the f**k is the Pert Plus? It's green, it should stick out.
Wow, shampoo containers are really colorful.
Ah.. here we go.
Huh, I wonder if people that give a shit about washing their hair would look down on me for using Pert Plus the same way I look down on people that eat bullshit super-processed foods...
Whatever, f**k 'em...
Ok, shaving cream...
Ehh... considering that I shave once a week, and have been using my roommate's shaving cream for the past two months, I'll just go for the cheap stuff... Barbasol? Sounds great.
Alright, just need some tomatoes and I can get out of here.
Ah... I forgot to check how much kale I have left... I hope it's enough. I've never really had kale before, but it tasted good enough in that soup yesterday. Turkey and kale meatballs sounds kinda weird, but I'm sure it will be good. Well, I guess they'll be chicken and kale meatballs now.
Alright, canned whole tomatoes, Umm... I don't think I have any left, so I should probably get two cans.
Ahhhhhhh... these lines are ridiculous.
Well, I guess this one looks the shortest.
Ughhh... their cart is jam packed with groceries... I'm gonna be here all night,
AGGGHHHH... the worst part about user-operated checkout systems is that half the users are completely incompetent... You should have to pass a test before being able to access the self-checkout lanes...
Gah... the Super Bowl is tonight? That explains the madness.
Hah... Sausages, cheese, and sour cream? Looks like the Coke cooler has become the receptacle for the indecisive shopper.
Ahh.. good, looks like these people actually know what they are doing...
Geez, it's later than I thought... I really don't want to wake up at 6:15 tomorrow.
I really hate that I have nothing to look at besides these stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid celebrity "news" magazines. Are there really people that actually care what is going on with anyone from "Teen Mom"?
Alright... they're done bagging.
Ah, can't forget to scan my Giant Eagle card...
*beep*
*beep*
*beep*
*beep*
*beep*
I'm really glad I don't work in a grocery store anymore, and I don't have to listen to this chaotic orchestra of electronic beeps and bloops for hours on end...
Alright... it was less than I thought it would be...
Hmm... I'm not really sure but it really looks like this guy is staring at me type my PIN in...
OK, I can definitely fit all this into two bags...
Aghh.. I just wanna get outta here...
Alright...
Finally.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Hunting Down Design
After receiving the clues, Adam and I immediately went to the Knowlton Library to take care of the chair clues, as well as to use one of the computers in the library to figure out where else we had to go.
Clue #1
Me sitting in the Barcelona chair at the Knowlton Library. Designed by Mies van der Rohe, this chair requires much hand craftsmanship.
Clue #2
Sitting in the Chaise Longue ("long chair" in English) while reading Form Magazine. This chair was designed by Le Corbusier, and has been nicknamed the "relaxing machine".
Clue #3
The Wexner Center. Designed by Peter Eisenman, its design reflects the mismatched street grids of campus.
Clue #4
The Science and Engineering Library, designed by Philip Johnson. Its arches echo the giant arch of Johnson's AT&T skyscraper.
Clue #5
Thompson Library, designed by Acock & Associates. Its recent renovation cost $108 million and took 27 months to complete.
Clue #1
Me sitting in the Barcelona chair at the Knowlton Library. Designed by Mies van der Rohe, this chair requires much hand craftsmanship.
Clue #2
Sitting in the Chaise Longue ("long chair" in English) while reading Form Magazine. This chair was designed by Le Corbusier, and has been nicknamed the "relaxing machine".
Clue #3
The Wexner Center. Designed by Peter Eisenman, its design reflects the mismatched street grids of campus.
Clue #4
The Science and Engineering Library, designed by Philip Johnson. Its arches echo the giant arch of Johnson's AT&T skyscraper.
Clue #5
Thompson Library, designed by Acock & Associates. Its recent renovation cost $108 million and took 27 months to complete.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Image vs. Identity
Much of Heskett's chapter on Identity focuses on the creation and significance of corporate identity, concluding with this explanation of the difference between two similar concepts, image and identity:
"Image is a projection of how a company would like to be understood by customers; identity is the reality of what a company delivers as experienced by customers. When the two are consonant, it is possible to speak of corporate integrity. If a gulf opens up between the two, however, no amount of money flung at visual redesigns will rebuild customers' confidence. Put another way, image is credible only when supported by a good product or service."
When thinking of companies with discordant images and identities, I immediately thought of the fast food industry, especially the industry creator and leader, McDonald's. The average experience of eating McDonald's is nothing like what their advertisements would have you believe. Plus it's no secret that fake food is used in fast food advertisements. Yet despite the huge disparity between their image and their identity, they are able to maintain huge profits, demonstrating that if you spend enough on advertising then you can spend a lot less on the food and your employees.
So while a mom-n-pop hamburger shop may have better food and service, McDonald's can out-advertise them any day of the week. It's a shame that such chain restaurants can thrive on overblown images. Yet I suppose that because fast food has become such a ubiquitous institution, for those looking for cheap, quick eats, healthier (and non-addictive) alternatives may be less obvious.
"Image is a projection of how a company would like to be understood by customers; identity is the reality of what a company delivers as experienced by customers. When the two are consonant, it is possible to speak of corporate integrity. If a gulf opens up between the two, however, no amount of money flung at visual redesigns will rebuild customers' confidence. Put another way, image is credible only when supported by a good product or service."
When thinking of companies with discordant images and identities, I immediately thought of the fast food industry, especially the industry creator and leader, McDonald's. The average experience of eating McDonald's is nothing like what their advertisements would have you believe. Plus it's no secret that fake food is used in fast food advertisements. Yet despite the huge disparity between their image and their identity, they are able to maintain huge profits, demonstrating that if you spend enough on advertising then you can spend a lot less on the food and your employees.
So while a mom-n-pop hamburger shop may have better food and service, McDonald's can out-advertise them any day of the week. It's a shame that such chain restaurants can thrive on overblown images. Yet I suppose that because fast food has become such a ubiquitous institution, for those looking for cheap, quick eats, healthier (and non-addictive) alternatives may be less obvious.
The Tyranny of Objects
"The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, and penetrates us, it binds the galaxy together."
Although ol' Ben Kenobi was talking about a fictional metaphysical power, if you minus the talk of Jedis and energy fields, this quote shows design to be a fitting real-world analogue for "the Force". For design not only shapes our physical lives, what we do and how we do it; it can also shape how we think and how we view the world.
And just like the force, design can be used for good or evil.
I started along this line of thought during our class discussion on "Designing for Accessibility". I began thinking about the consequences of a world designed without accessibility in mind. By creating a world where the handicapped are restricted in their movements and interactions, they are marginalized, with design's narrative voice telling them that their needs are less important than those who are not handicapped.
Retrofitting and designing special alternatives for the handicapped is not much better. While many of the physical barriers may be lifted, allowing the handicapped to function better in our world; the mental walls are still firmly in place, cordoning off the handicapped into a group of second-class citizens. The need for special design colors the handicapped as a nuisance, for most will be more concerned about the inconvenience of building a new ramp rather than the social good of providing for the handicapped.
It seems to me that the best solution is universal design. By harmoniously combining the needs of all people into one design, all can feel equal and none will be stigmatized. If humankind's intelligence can serve any good end (because lord knows it has already served many evil ones), I think it should serve to help reduce the power of Fortuna's cruel wheel. And allowing those who are handicapped to live better, fuller lives is one way to do that.
And helping these kids rise above the cycle of crime and violence that pervades lower-class communities is another.
This is design used for good. When these guys are creating their own bikes, they are also in a sense creating their own identity, perhaps allowing them to avoid gangs that prey on the identity-less youth.
Although ol' Ben Kenobi was talking about a fictional metaphysical power, if you minus the talk of Jedis and energy fields, this quote shows design to be a fitting real-world analogue for "the Force". For design not only shapes our physical lives, what we do and how we do it; it can also shape how we think and how we view the world.
And just like the force, design can be used for good or evil.
I started along this line of thought during our class discussion on "Designing for Accessibility". I began thinking about the consequences of a world designed without accessibility in mind. By creating a world where the handicapped are restricted in their movements and interactions, they are marginalized, with design's narrative voice telling them that their needs are less important than those who are not handicapped.
Retrofitting and designing special alternatives for the handicapped is not much better. While many of the physical barriers may be lifted, allowing the handicapped to function better in our world; the mental walls are still firmly in place, cordoning off the handicapped into a group of second-class citizens. The need for special design colors the handicapped as a nuisance, for most will be more concerned about the inconvenience of building a new ramp rather than the social good of providing for the handicapped.
It seems to me that the best solution is universal design. By harmoniously combining the needs of all people into one design, all can feel equal and none will be stigmatized. If humankind's intelligence can serve any good end (because lord knows it has already served many evil ones), I think it should serve to help reduce the power of Fortuna's cruel wheel. And allowing those who are handicapped to live better, fuller lives is one way to do that.
And helping these kids rise above the cycle of crime and violence that pervades lower-class communities is another.
This is design used for good. When these guys are creating their own bikes, they are also in a sense creating their own identity, perhaps allowing them to avoid gangs that prey on the identity-less youth.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Survey Says....
since everyone knows the news is all lies and fabrications, I talked to the people to see what is REALLY going on with the issues that affect us most...
Sunday, January 23, 2011
The Deep Dive
Although the first few minutes of "The Deep Dive" stirred up memories of a previous viewing (how could I forget Ted Koppel's wavy coif and Basset Hound jowls?), considering I couldn't really remember when, where, or why I watched it, my memory of the content of this episode was also lacking. So Wednesday's viewing was a nice refresher of IDEO's modus operandi. From all appearances, IDEO seems like a unique consultancy firm full of extremely creative and intelligent people, and I find their open-ended approach to the design process extremely appealing.
Their original take on design is evident just from seeing their unusual office, adorned with everything from a basketball hoop to a DC-3 wing. Their playful environment is significant because, as Heskett notes, "...environments are frameworks for activities, significantly affecting patterns of use, behavior, and expectations in home life, work, leisure, and a range of commercial ventures." It's not surprising that the ideas flow freely through IDEO's walls when they are covered in such a quirky miscellany. Their collection of toys offers some hope for the would-be designer, for it is heartening to see that for every brilliant idea they have, they probably come up with hundreds of turds (like Monster Shoes).
The environment at IDEO allows for a very open forum for new ideas, as all ideas are welcomed, even those odd, silly, and borderline stupid. All these ideas are coming from a team filled with people coming from very different backgrounds of study. This allows for new designs to be seen many different multiple perspectives, so all aspects of the user's interaction with the object is considered. The result of this loose design process is a very tight final product; well planned and smartly designed.
What I liked most about IDEO's design process is that it represents the viability of office structures alternative to the common corporate business structure (which I hear can be quite soul-crushing and evil). Although when I see the employees' contraption for hanging bikes, I have to wonder if they are perhaps overindulging in their freedom a bit. Can they not just install bike racks and lock them outside? That seems to be a much simpler solution and a less arduous process than carrying them inside and hanging them from ropes.
Their original take on design is evident just from seeing their unusual office, adorned with everything from a basketball hoop to a DC-3 wing. Their playful environment is significant because, as Heskett notes, "...environments are frameworks for activities, significantly affecting patterns of use, behavior, and expectations in home life, work, leisure, and a range of commercial ventures." It's not surprising that the ideas flow freely through IDEO's walls when they are covered in such a quirky miscellany. Their collection of toys offers some hope for the would-be designer, for it is heartening to see that for every brilliant idea they have, they probably come up with hundreds of turds (like Monster Shoes).
The environment at IDEO allows for a very open forum for new ideas, as all ideas are welcomed, even those odd, silly, and borderline stupid. All these ideas are coming from a team filled with people coming from very different backgrounds of study. This allows for new designs to be seen many different multiple perspectives, so all aspects of the user's interaction with the object is considered. The result of this loose design process is a very tight final product; well planned and smartly designed.
What I liked most about IDEO's design process is that it represents the viability of office structures alternative to the common corporate business structure (which I hear can be quite soul-crushing and evil). Although when I see the employees' contraption for hanging bikes, I have to wonder if they are perhaps overindulging in their freedom a bit. Can they not just install bike racks and lock them outside? That seems to be a much simpler solution and a less arduous process than carrying them inside and hanging them from ropes.
Dieter Rams
- Studied architecture at the the Werkkunstschule Wiesbaden for one year, then left in 1947 to learn carpentry.
- He eventually returned to school and finished his degree in 1953, after which he worked for Otto Appel's architecture firm.
- In 1955, Dieter began working for Braun as an architect and interior designer, applying his architecture background to design exhibition sets and offices
- But he became increasingly interested in designing products, the first product he worked on being the SK4 radio and record player. Abandoning the traditional wooden case, Rams and Hans Gugelot worked together to design a more industrial metal case with a plastic lid
- After several more successful designs, Rams became the head of the product design and development division at Braun in 1962, a position in which he strove to create products that were not only easy, but also enjoyable to use.
- Rams set many industry standards, including his deconstruction of the stereo system. Rams took the standard stereo system with integrated speakers, and separated the speakers into individual units, in order to make the receiver unit more compact.
- The development of new transistor technologies in the 1960's made large radio tubes obsolete, and allowed Rams to design more compact, functional products.
- By the mid-60's Rams' work was considered the apex of modernity and his products were much sought-after by fashionable consumers
- Rams' approach to design is summed up by his "10 Principles of Good Design"
- Good design is innovative.
- Good design makes a product useful.
- Good design is aesthetic.
- Good design makes a product understandable.
- Good design is unobtrusive.
- Good design is honest.
- Good design is long-lasting.
- Good design is thorough down to the last detail.
- Good design is environmentally friendly.
- Good design is as little design as possible.
- According to Rams himself, Apple is the only company currently designing products according to his principles.
Sources:
http://www.designboom.com/eng/interview/rams.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dieter_Rams
http://designmuseum.org/design/dieter-rams
S. Neil Fujita
- Trained in painting at the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles, CA
- After graduating, he worked for the Philadelphia ad agency N. W. Ayer & Son, the first ad agency in America, established in 1869
- During his time at N. W. Ayer & Son, he developed his modernist style, which has been described as: "a kind of synthesis of Bauhaus principles and Japanese sensibility".
- In 1954, Columbia records recruited Fujita to the in-house design team that they were assembling to sustain the label's graphic legacy created by Alex Steinweiss
- At Columbia, he moved away from Steinweiss's illustrative style and created more modern designs, featuring photography and the work of Abstract Impressionists. He felt the rhythm and energy of progressive jazz would be best complemented by the stylized abstractions of modern painting.
- With this approach, he created some of the most striking album covers of the mid-20th century.
- In 1960, Fujita left Columbia to start his own design firm.
- Fujita collaborated with the public relations firm Ruder & Finn in 1963 to create a design division called Ruder, Finn & Fujita, which later became Fujita Design.
- Many of Fujita's clients were publishers and Fujita designed the covers for several notable books
- Fujita is also responsible for the NBC's Today Show logo, which has been in use for over 30 years.
Sources
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/books-obituaries/8093733/Neil-Fujita.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/27/arts/design/27fujita.html
http://www.aiga.org/content.cfm/waxing-chromatic-an-interview-with-s-neil-fujita
Charley Harper
A red teardrop with sunburst wings and a triangle tail, a flock of multi-colored rounded polygons passing through a cerulean backdrop, a swarm of polka dotted polka dots scuttling over crumbling brown ellipses; these are the stylized fauna that inhabit the vibrant, visual ecology seen through the eyes of Charley Harper.
For when Harper looks at nature he doesn't see the feathers of a bird or the scales of a fish, rather, as he puts it: "I see exciting shapes, color combinations, patterns, textures, fascinating behavior and endless possibilities for making interesting pictures". Harper's blissful marriage of simple forms and complex arrangements produced lively illustrations that, along with the work of many other mid-Century Modernists, blurred the lines between design and art.
Charley Harper was born on August 4, 1922 in Frenchton, West Virginia and was raised on his family's farm. This rural environment imbued within Harper an appreciation for the natural world that would drive the rest of his life's work. Harper eventually left his native habitat to study as a realist painter at the Art Academy of Cincinnati. However his plans were soon delayed as he was drafted into the military shortly after beginning his studies.
Harper's next three years were spent serving Army Intelligence during WWII. He continued sketching during his service, and experience that also influenced his work (considering his illustrations are of cute lil' woodland creatures rather than blood-thirsty Nazis and horribly disfigured soldiers crying for Momma, it's clear that the war influenced the form of his work, rather than the content). As Harper himself notes, the chaotic nature of war was an environment that forced him to learn how to “grasp the important elements of a scene quickly and put them down with minimum detail.”
After his time in the Army, Harper returned to Cincinnati and finished his studies. He was awarded the first Stephen H. Wilder Traveling Scholarship, which allowed Charley and his wife Edie to explore the American south and west and experience the biomes of those regions and the variety of wildlife that inhabit each ecological community.
Upon his return, Harper began to tutor at the Art Academy of Cincinnati and also began work in a commercial studio. Here Harper began to grow frustrated with the limitations of perspective and shading and realized the lack of commercial demand for realism. He began experimenting with new styles until he developed the iconic style he is now know for.
The synthesis of Harper's experiences was a style he called "minimal realism", through which he strove to depict nature using the fewest possible visual elements, often in the form of basic colorful shapes garnished with more complex details and textures. His style is the expression of his unique perspective of nature, seen by an ever-reducing mind. “I don’t try to put everything in, I try to leave everything out. I never count the feathers in the wings; I just count the wings.” Harper's minimalist style is the product of a diverse array of influences. He was not only inspired by art movements like Cubism and Minimalism, but also some not so obvious sources, such as Einsteinian Physics (non-Euclidean Geometry) and architecture.
As a sauce is reduced to concentrate flavors, Harper's reduction of the natural world to basic shapes and bold colors creates a piquant ecosystem, whose simplicity serves as stark contrast to the complex world created by "intelligent" humans. When I look at Harper's illustrations, I am visited by my recurrent pining for the idyllic simplicity of life as an animal; find food, eat, rest, mate, die. (WARNING: prolonged viewing of Harper's work my lead to our world to appear more and more like a futuristic sci-fi reality, in which an ugly industrialized hellhole is inhabited by mindless lemmings programmed for destruction by skewed social and power structures, all to serve the desires of corrupt political overlords.) And despite the complexities of many of his compositions, a pervading sense of balance remains, providing the same calming effect as a walk through the woods.
Due his work's focus on wildlife, many of Harper's work can be found on posters and other promotional materials for nature-based organizations, such as the National Park Service, Everglades National Park, Cincinnati Zoo, Cincinnati Nature Center, Hamilton County Park District, the Michigan Audubon Society and the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania. Much of Harper's work stems from his 34 year long collaboration with "Ford Times", the travel magazine published by Ford Motor Company. Ford first commissioned Harper to illustrate the recipe section in the December 1948 issue. He continued to do more work with them and because his illustrations were so popular with readers, the magazine began sell prints of his work.
The recognition he gained from his work at "Ford Times" attracted many different clients and allowed him to enjoy commercial success throughout the 50's and 60's. Throughout this time Harper's work spanned from illustrating a Betty Crocker Cookbook, to designing posters for the National Park Service, to creating a tile mosaic mural on the walls of the Cincinnati Federal Building.
Harper also dabbled in writing, and has released compilations of his work that include poems to accompany each illustration.
Whitecoat
Welcome to the world, little whitecoat, baby harp seal with tearful eyes. Warm and cuddly in your immaculate pelt, you are helpless and defenseless on the arctic ice; you cannot swim, you can scarcely crawl. And you are so trusting. We think you are beautiful. We love you. We hear your cries of pain and terror under the hunter's club. But we would wear you. Goodbye, little whitecoat, from the endangering species – those friendly folks who bring you to extinction.
Harper's view of nature is now being introduced to a new generation, as his work has recently taken new forms. In 2008, Old Navy released a line of children's product bearing his work. And proving that an 83 year old man can still be in touch with youth culture, he collaborated with the Dayton-based, nature-themed skateboard company Habitat Skateboards in 2005 to produce a line of skateboard decks. Productive into his late years, Charley Harper created a extensive portfolio of work, and although he died on June 10, 2007 of complications related to pneumonia, he has left behind an extensive portfolio and an enduring legacy, ensuring that futures generations will see cardinals, flocks of birds, and ladybugs in a whole new light.
Add these two enterprising artists to the list of those inspired by Charley Harper. When I look at their simple, avian adornments, I can't help but be reminded of his work.
Sources:
http://castorandpollux.co.uk/2010/07/charley-harper-essay-from-delicious-industries/
http://www.rtpi.org/component/option,com_jevents/Itemid,19/catids,77|78|79/day,25/evid,427/month,08/task,icalrepeat.detail/uid,7894420461b604070a85c82d5471bf28/year,2010/
http://charleyharper.blogspot.com/2009/07/charley-harper-and-habitat-skateboards.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-Euclidean_geometry
http://www.jstor.org/pss/1575193
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charley_Harper
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/Publications/Birdscope/Spring2006/world_birds.html
http://www.viget.com/inspire/charley-harper/
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Finally a Voice for the White Upper Class
Although reading about "objects" seems about as mundane as reading about "stuff", or even "things", Heskett manages to make it pretty interesting. For me, Heskett's most thought-provoking idea came at the very beginning: "Objects are a crucial expression of ideas of how we could or should live, put into tangible form."
It really made me look at the objects in my life from a new perspective, and made me realize how much the objects in our lives shape the ways in which we live, how they define what we are able to do and how we do it. Not only that, but the objects in our lives also can express much about us; our interests, our beliefs, our social class, etc.
Keeping that in mind, I was a bit peeved to learn about the "Juicy Salif". After reading about Phillipe Starck's distinguished "lemon squeezer", I did a bit of research on him, and while many of his other designs appear to be both functional and aesthetically-pleasing, this particular design rubs me in all the wrong ways. While it is indeed pretty cool looking, it seems like it exists more to stroke the egos of all those involved (the designer, the manufacturer, and the consumers), rather than to actually juice lemons.
Despite my rather utilitarian viewpoints towards consumer products, I am no Gradgrind; I can appreciate art and understand the importance of aesthetics, but it seems a bit disingenuous to sell a $96 conversation piece as a lemon squeezer. And considering the previously noted communicative powers of objects, this particular object communicates a few ideas that I find irritating, namely "appearance is more important than function or utility", and in regards to the owner: less " I have a lemon tree in my backyard and I like to make fresh lemonade on hot days" and more "I have lots of money and good taste and I like to laugh watching my personal chef try to figure out how to use this thing to extract the juice needed for the beurre blanc that goes with my dinner party's sous-vide organic squab entrée".
Given that I have already written more about a lemon squeezer than I ever thought possible, I'll close with what Amazon.com customer Harris Elleberg of Astoria NY had to say about the Juicy Salif:
"What I like best about this juicer is how streamlined and, well, basically perfect it is. There is no distinction between form and function in this stunning piece: What makes it work is what makes it beautiful. I like to bring it out on the piazza when I brunch, so that the early sun sparkles on the chrome while I squeeze just a few drops of blood orange juice into a flute of champagne. There's nothing better than sitting around a table laden with delicacies with a group of friends who admire the beauty of simple objects like this juicer.
In addition to being visually stunning, this juicer is also a tremendous time saver. When guests see it in my kitchen, it saves me a lot of time that might otherwise be spent explaining that I am a gigantic, pretentious douche."
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Found Patterns
Cool, spiral-y pattern on a piece of paper that wrapped a pair of shoes I bought. I have a whole box of stuff under my bed filled with random things that caught my eye. I have no idea what I'm saving them for, but they'll be there when I need them.
Same story as above, shoe paper that caught my eye and I saved. I also like it cause it reminds you where the paper came from.
Old board found in a warehouse that my roommate, John rents a room in to practice with his band. Attraction: the romance of decay, to compare/contrast with the fake wood grain above.
From a Jackson Pollock print in my roommate Kaleb's room. Although many are critical of his work, I can stare at it for hours.
A mounted butterfly hung on Kaleb's wall (He has a lot of cool stuff in his room). I've always thought that some of the coolest and most beautiful patterns in nature can be found on the wings of butterflies.
This one's a two-fer. The pattern on the mask and the pattern on the wings of the moth. Chosen for the amazing coincidence it represents: this wall is covered in African masks and mounted bugs, and this moth just happened to fly into the mouth of one of the masks and die in there. I guess he just wanted to become part of the collection.
As someone who works a job with a lot of free time, I spend a lot of time staring at grids such as this. I make the hours go by faster by doing a few crossword puzzles and Sudokus every day.
Soap bubbles in my sink. Bubbles will always meet at an angle of 120 degrees. And I think that is just neat.
Lamp we have at our house. I like it cause it reminds me of the double helix.
Not This Guy
I really enjoyed the video on Paul Rand that we watched in class on Wednesday. Although I had heard the name before, I wasn't really familiar with him or his work. He seemed like a really smart and interesting guy. I really liked his work that they showed in the movie, it was really simple and colorful. I was really interested in his comments about the painter using the terms "fine art" and "design". As Mr. Rand expressed, I also feel that it is often hard to draw the lines between different labels. Although they are necessary for human communication, I feel that labels often serve to constrict how we think about things.
I Think Therefore I Design
What is design?
Is it knowing what color palette can take your living room from casual to classic?
Is it something an intelligent entity did a few thousand years ago?
Is it Herve Villechaize pointing out that you are about to walk into the women's restroom?
Or is it, as John Heskett argues in "Design: A Very Short Introduction", "one of the basic characteristics of what it is to be human"?
As appealing as the touch of luxury and sophistication brought about by a black and white interior is, I'd have to agree with John. Although HGTV and other popular media coverage would have you believe that design is on house arrest (limited to the house and backyard only, with supervised visits to Bed, Bath, and Beyond), any way that humans manipulate and shape the world falls into the spectrum of design. Our ability to design, our ability to shape the world to fit our own needs and desires is what separates us from the animals. For example, a chimpanzee might be able to use a stick to fish for a snack from a termite mound, but a human could design a super awesome termite killing stick that traps the termite, kills it, blends it into a delicious Termite Acai berry smoothie, AND does your taxes (All for 3 easy payments of $29.99!). The process of designing this EZ Termitizer Xpress (Call Now!!) for certain functions is the physical manifestation of human's ability for abstract thought. I think therefore I design.
When thinking of a design for something, one of the first essential questions is "What form should it take?" This question is often answered with the popular dictum: "form follows function". American architect Louis Sullivan, under the influence of Darwin's theory of evolution, first expressed this idea in a 1896 essay. Just as the stripes of a zebra help it survive, so shouldn't the form of our furniture help it function? If that's the case, than how do you explain this?
Is a chair more comfortable when it looks like it might walk away with you in it? To explain this, Heskett divides function into two concepts: utility and significance. Utility is concerned with the usefulness of things, the degree to which designs are able to serve their purpose. Significance is concerned with the ways in which designs can express meaning, usually in cultural contexts. While utility is more objective, significance is very subjective, and can change with time and location.
While Heskett uses the totally boring example of toothpicks it illustrate these concepts, I'll use an example more suited to my sense of humor: the potty. In America, we have the standard, boring old porcelain bowl with a lever to flush, with little need or desire for anything more. However, in Japan, the toilets are quite a bit more involved (God bless Wikipedia, they have an article about this). The average Japanese toilet looks like this:
The utility of this toilet is that it can get you really clean after a #2. The significance of this toilet is evident when comparing American and Japanese toilets. While toilets with buttons and dials are virtually unheard of in America, 72% of Japanese households have these high-tech toilets. These toilets are a reflection of the high value placed on cleanliness in Japanese culture. It also seems that the Japanese are less sensitive about their b-holes, as a common "game" in Japan is Kancho. I use the word game lightly, as the only rule is that you stick your fingers up someone else's butt and scream "KANCHO!" (Yes, there is a Wikipedia article about this too).
Is it knowing what color palette can take your living room from casual to classic?
Is it something an intelligent entity did a few thousand years ago?
Is it Herve Villechaize pointing out that you are about to walk into the women's restroom?
Or is it, as John Heskett argues in "Design: A Very Short Introduction", "one of the basic characteristics of what it is to be human"?
As appealing as the touch of luxury and sophistication brought about by a black and white interior is, I'd have to agree with John. Although HGTV and other popular media coverage would have you believe that design is on house arrest (limited to the house and backyard only, with supervised visits to Bed, Bath, and Beyond), any way that humans manipulate and shape the world falls into the spectrum of design. Our ability to design, our ability to shape the world to fit our own needs and desires is what separates us from the animals. For example, a chimpanzee might be able to use a stick to fish for a snack from a termite mound, but a human could design a super awesome termite killing stick that traps the termite, kills it, blends it into a delicious Termite Acai berry smoothie, AND does your taxes (All for 3 easy payments of $29.99!). The process of designing this EZ Termitizer Xpress (Call Now!!) for certain functions is the physical manifestation of human's ability for abstract thought. I think therefore I design.
When thinking of a design for something, one of the first essential questions is "What form should it take?" This question is often answered with the popular dictum: "form follows function". American architect Louis Sullivan, under the influence of Darwin's theory of evolution, first expressed this idea in a 1896 essay. Just as the stripes of a zebra help it survive, so shouldn't the form of our furniture help it function? If that's the case, than how do you explain this?
Is a chair more comfortable when it looks like it might walk away with you in it? To explain this, Heskett divides function into two concepts: utility and significance. Utility is concerned with the usefulness of things, the degree to which designs are able to serve their purpose. Significance is concerned with the ways in which designs can express meaning, usually in cultural contexts. While utility is more objective, significance is very subjective, and can change with time and location.
While Heskett uses the totally boring example of toothpicks it illustrate these concepts, I'll use an example more suited to my sense of humor: the potty. In America, we have the standard, boring old porcelain bowl with a lever to flush, with little need or desire for anything more. However, in Japan, the toilets are quite a bit more involved (God bless Wikipedia, they have an article about this). The average Japanese toilet looks like this:
The utility of this toilet is that it can get you really clean after a #2. The significance of this toilet is evident when comparing American and Japanese toilets. While toilets with buttons and dials are virtually unheard of in America, 72% of Japanese households have these high-tech toilets. These toilets are a reflection of the high value placed on cleanliness in Japanese culture. It also seems that the Japanese are less sensitive about their b-holes, as a common "game" in Japan is Kancho. I use the word game lightly, as the only rule is that you stick your fingers up someone else's butt and scream "KANCHO!" (Yes, there is a Wikipedia article about this too).
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