Design Romantic
December 23rd 2011
Whenever I go on break, I start thinking about work. I love design in all it’s shapes and forms from architecture to visual, interior to fashion, city planning to lighting. And I could not forget my own area of user experience and interaction design. The thing I love most about design is the ability to solve problems. Problems make my work purposeful.
I derive pleasure in determining answers to design problems. It’s that neurochemical release of endorphins one might get when after scrambling one’s brain for hours they arrive at the correct answer to a mathematical equation. Eureka! Or after lines and lines of code and bug fixing, a program executes and comes alive! An answer arrives as if summoned, the formula works as if by magic, but it’s not so mystical – it’s design. Design is euphoric.
Design to me is both the process and the solution to problem solving. Once you enter into the mind set of design, everything has meaning and expression that can be analyzed and critiqued; even one’s own life. That’s where I get deep. I love design so much, I treat my own life as a sort of design, an experience I craft through my ambitions, choices, and constant self improvement.
When I get to thinking about design I start thinking about designers. We don’t live in a vacuum. It’s difficult to be original, there’s too much available inspiration to ignore. I am inspired by many types of designers. Here are a few of my most inspirational designers of all time:
Coco Chanel (fashion design)
She changed the world. Her designs allowed women to dress more freely and in turn live more equal lives with men. Her work was a catalyst for modern feminist movements. Along the way, she defined classic. Similar to the way David Hume’s Problem of Induction has never properly been resolved, no one can out classic Chanel. The little black dress affects me personally.
Edith Head (costume design)
When I think of Edith Head I first think of those big black rimmed glasses and than I think machine. The ubiquity of Edith Head’s work in the Golden Era of Hollywood attests to the strength of her creativity and productivity. If you learn about Edith Head, another amazing quality, was that it was always her goal and feat to deliver designs ahead of time and under budget. She would make every project manager cry tears of joy. Similar to the way artist Salvador Dali created a celebrity of himself through self promotion, Edith Head is one of the most iconic designers in history.
Daniel Burnham (architect & urban planner)
The man inspired Emerald City from the land of Oz – he designed Chicago. He designed downtown Washington, DC. In the Philippines, he designed Manila – at the time called the Paris of the Pacific. I’m enamored of cities, great cities like ones Burnham designed. The project is immense. The plans of a city define life and culture. The longevity of a plan can outlive the civilization that created it (think Machu Picchu).
Steve Jobs (industrial, digital design)
How could I not put Steve Jobs on my list? He changed computing and in turn changed my life. I admire Jobs the most for living the American dream, a dream that certainly keeps me patriotic. His vision for personal computing, inventiveness, and value for design are all the other great qualities of the man. The computer is the most dominant form of media today, and Apple computers from iPods to iMacs set the bar for computational experiences. With his passing, I think how amazing I got to walk with a giant and pioneer of my own field. It reminds me how young computational media still is and despite how rapidly it has advanced, thanks to people like Steve Jobs, there is still so much uncharted territory to explore.
