Design is a balancing act.
Design is balancing beauty with functionality, imagination with real world parameters, perfection with cost and time constraints, usability for all with convenience for most. The challenge for a designer is to take all of these parameters and more into consideration, and still come up with something that is interesting and elegant. The ultimate goal is not to compromise opposing forces but to coerce them to work in harmony together to form one unified idea.
When you think of Apple do you think of a logo? A slogan? A TV commercial? Or do you think of their products? Today’s consumers have learned to filter through the hype and find the products that speak to them on a personal level.
What does your product say? Does it convey a clear concept? Does it pay attention to detail? Is it appropriate for its environment? Does it touch your customers on a primal, emotional level? Product design has the power to answer these questions and it is the job of the product designer to harness that power to define the brand.
Design is a responsibility...
Designers and producers are responsible for pumping a lot of “stuff” into the landscape. It is our responsiblity to future generations to tread as lightly as possible. For a designer that means staying current on eco-friendly technologies. It means making responsible choices in materials, finishes and processes. It means looking for ways to reduce parts and design for end of the product lifecycle. And it means designing products that remain relevant over time as the user’s needs change.
...and an opportunity.When we learn to embrace responsible design we understand that it is not a hindrance, but an opportunity. Customers are increasingly demanding “green” design; but it goes way beyond attracting eco-conscious customers. When we consider responsible design it opens our creativity up to whole new possibilities. We see simplicity where we once saw complexity. We see efficiency where once there was waste. We see whole new functions and flexibilities that we otherwise would have missed.