NextD Journal I ReReThinking Design Special Issue, April 2007
Nate Burgos |
Beautiful Diversion
Nate Burgos, Inc., United States
Rage of Change: Writing Design Up or Down Having read and reread Nussbaum’s take, I’m reminded of persistent refrains I glean, whether at a design conference or in the media: “These are interesting times for design” and “It’s an interesting time to be a designer.” What makes the times worth our interest is its constant flux. It's easy to proclaim “sea change” and make, even ride, waves in many domains of disciplines, especially design. Amidst heated language, Nussbaum points to the current state of how designers identify and engage opportunities for not only positive outcomes but also enduring ones. How designers engage change is a part of the refrains. Whenever there is talk about “changes” accompanied by coined concepts and terminology and marked as impact on design disciplines, I’m reinforced with lessons I still hold and hone, such as Design is an intense investigation; Never work in a vacuum; and Iterate, iterate, iterate. Aim here is to inform decision-making. This sounds simple but is always challenging. What these lessons keep hammering are that designers are never the sole sources of meaning, that there is an ever-changing world adjacent to our work. In striving for meaning in both work and world, design can be described as a sign of the times and Nussbaum presents another rhetorical mirror to design practice and education. As change rages on, design remains a choice: Engage the new or Stick with one’s limited definition of versatility. If the former is chosen, then there is genuine interest invested in making design as relevant as possible. If the latter is picked, then the times, and the world for that matter, are kept flat. I would like to think Nussbaum’s article was a consistent reminder (write-up) of opportunities, small and large, local and global, for designers to help lead and contribute in partnership, rather than a broad-brush reprimand (write-down) sweeping all designers into a heap of indictment.
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