Design to a Designer

Like so many of our classmates, I come from a design background. Because of my degree in Graphic Design, I see the natural connection between Art and Design as well as Design in the world around us. As Pink states, "It's easy to dismiss design—to relegate it to mere ornament, the prettifying of places and objects to disguise their banality. But that is a serious misunderstanding of what design is and why it matters—especially now." In reality, everything (except what occurs in nature) is designed. Someone had to design the coffee maker I use every morning, the bookshelf I just bought, etc., but that doesn't mean that all design is good. What is happening now, as Pink discusses, is people (specifically the middle class) aren't satisfied with things that are strictly functional.

Pink uses Target as an example, which is perfect. Target has done a much better job of bringing in designers and branding themselves as THE hip, low cost store. There is a reason I drive all the way across town to go to Target when there is a Walmart five minutes away. There are a lot of the same products at both stores, but when it comes to cute clothes, fun accessories, and modern home goods Target is the place to go when you care about more than function. During the Design group's presentation, they asked us to come up with our own definition of design in less than 10 words. I came up with the following:

Thoughtful planning and creation, making a product more than functional.

 To me, that is exactly what design is about. It isn't just quickly coming up with a design that will work, it is about designing the best possible product that will be look nice aesthetically while performing it's necessary function.

The last thing Pink discussed that I found so interesting was the design of hospitals and classrooms. As a teacher who teaches art on a cart, I am in several different classrooms a day, and I know first hand that the set up of some classrooms promote learning and art activities much better than others. One thing I've never thought about however, is the design of hospitals. It seems like complete common sense now that I think about it, because if I was recovering in a dingy old room, with no light, chipping paint, and stains on the ceiling I could see it taking much longer for me to get better than if I was in a more cheerful, clean environment.