As designers, we must realize that there is more to our job than making things look pretty. We have to understand that what we do has a bigger impact on the world than what we would assume. Our work actually influences society and how it perceives the world. In this day and age, multimedia art has become an integral part of reality. What we make is no longer limited to “for display purposes only”. Rather, our work becomes an extension of people’s lives.
It is incredibly important for us to take a step back and observe our work process. Do we create with all factors in consideration? Or do we simply pick a beautiful font and be done with job? As members of the society we influence, we have a responsibility to create things that help the community step forward in the right direction. That’s why we need to study past creations and learn what those products were able to contribute and what they failed to achieve. That’s why we need to pay attention to mediamorphosis.
Today, our work seems more like a prosthetic arm than a real one. What we make is never going to be a permanent fixture in people’s lives. The constant race for innovation leaves most products with an average shelf life of 6 months. I guess you can thank Apple for that one. But now that I think about it, you really can thank them. They’ve pushed society as a whole to develop at a faster pace. As designers, that means that when we create, we have to look even more into the future. We really have to come up with new visions for the coming generations. It’s a real challenge but I believe that it will bring good things. For example, a couple of years ago, we would’ve never thought that we could be friends with people from all over the world without having to leave our homes. But that kind of thinking has changed. Now, more than ever, people believe in the unimaginable and the unthinkable. For them, it’s possible. See how our work comes full circle?
So design with a bigger purpose in mind. What you create could transform the world.
