annie leonard.

This week I watched 3 videos by Annie Leonard:

The story of cosmetics:

The first one I watched was the story of cosmetics. As a female myself, I own quite a lot of beauty products, hair care, skin care, make up, the lot. When Annie talked about what was actually in those products, it got me thinking. Did I really know what ingredients are in my eye-shadow? Do I really know what products are in my own shampoo? These days everyone is looking for a cure for cancer yet all these chemicals are ‘linked’ in some way to cancer. The point that Leonard bought up was very interesting; it put a spin on the priorities the cosmetic companies sees, both in our health and in the safety of our health. It’s well known that the first priority for a business is profit, but is it really worth it at the risk of everyone’s health?

The story of bottled water:

Water, something that comes out of our taps, something you drink daily, something we have the luxury of not worrying too much about. Annie Leonard’s video on bottled water was eye opening, I knew the prices of bottled water were raised up significantly, but to say that the price was jacked up 2000% was definitely surprising. I had already known from previous research that our ‘recycled’ bottles were actually shipped to India, however Leonard brought new light to it by describing it as ‘mountains of plastic bottles’. I have to agree that the pictures on the bottles are misleading, however you could say that it is a marketing scheme that any company would be guilty of. As industrial designers, we should be thinking of cleaner ways, leaning towards a more sustainable lifestyle. Consuming plastics at our rate, and not doing enough to recycle or reuse them will be a major factor in the near future.

The story of stuff:

Design for the Dump – something that designers are very aware of these days. Annie Leonard describes it as a marketing technique, in which companies and designers create newer, more advanced models and in turn we neglect our older models and things – thus designing things to be thrown away. Industrial designers should realise that a standardisation is necessary, not just for common things like usb ports, but larger scale things like laptop chargers. If it was a universal standardisation, not only would we be saving valuable resources, but there would be no need to constantly upgrade what we already have. Making common parts for electronic gadgets alike should be a move that the world all moves towards. I think this video shows that we need to think towards the far future, not just in the short scheme of things because at this rate, our world is going to consist of landfills in every country.

product sketches.

These are some of the sketches i've done after visiting the powerhouse museum with some friends on the weekend.

my design career.

     Design has always been an integral part of my life as I was growing up because both my parents worked in the fashion industry. It only seemed natural that I would develop my creative talent as I grew older, and this was evident in the classes I took in primary school. I always loved art: drawing, painting, sketching and was never without my colouring pencils. This all began from the way I was raised. However in high school, my classes became more academic and I neglected my creative side. After four years, I realised what I really wanted to do, and it was some form of design where I could let out my creative spirits.

     As a child I was open to the world of fashion design as my mother was a seamstress. She would make seemingly scraps of material into beautiful garments and I was mesmerised. She had worked for leading fashion labels such as David Jones, Manning Cartell, Kirrily Johnston and many other smaller Australian boutiques. I remember as a child I would sit in her workroom and use scraps of material to make my own clothes for my dolls and teddies. I was the kind of child that could be trusted with scissors and needles because I learned the techniques from a young age. Coupled with that, my father also worked in the fashion industry for over ten years, with leading swimwear brands such as Speedo and Seafolly, so I was constantly surrounded by fashion design.

     I saw from a very young age that the design process is more than the average person believes it to be. There are many steps taken, and many areas are revisited in order for the creation of a final product. It is both tedious, but rewarding. I believe it was sometime during high school that I decided I wanted to be a designer of some sort, so I started researching the types of university courses out there. Industrial design was something new to me, I hadn’t heard of anyone who had done the course earlier, but when I read the course outline I was intrigued. I loved the idea of recreating products to make them more aesthetically pleasing and being opened to a world of different materials.

     Industrial design was only offered at a handful of universities, and I already had my heart set on entering UNSW from a young age. Thus the choice to study industrial design at this university wasn’t a very difficult decision to come to. However when the course began, it was nothing like my expectations. Fundamentals in particular dissolved all prior beliefs to what a designer was, and I believe all the students started on a fresh and even slate. Thus far, the course has been engaging and interesting, I’ve enjoyed all my units and I’m looking forward to what the others bring.

     The future is something that I’m anticipating. I believe industrial design isn’t my only option, and I’m looking forward to embracing other branches of design as well. Graphic design has also been an interest of mine for some time now, and I think that it’s worthwhile to invest some time into studying that as well. The only thing I know now is that I do want a more hands-on career and will embrace design, albeit the late nights and designers-block.

Design confusion.

So that's my poster for design confusion. I got gifted the iDog by a friend, and if i didn't have the instruction manual, i wouldn't have guessed how to get full use of the functions!

design excellece: product poster

Just looking at the Aeratron fan i can appreciate all the curves and thought gone into the process. It wasn't until i had to gather research about it that i realised there wasn't very much information out on the internet. The images were all very small and required a lot of digital enhancing, or in the case of the logo; i had to redraw it from scratch. However with that being said, the fan itself is beautifully structured and the shape and texture of it just adds to a sense of serenity.

David Kelley: human centred design

David Kelley discusses how he went to TED annually without fail, and over time he’s seen a progression towards designing for the consumer rather than for the designer. He reminiscences on how some products or objects, particularly technological products were displayed, and gives his viewers an explanation of how they were showcased under black cloths on conference tables. This was his introduction into a focus on products and he demonstrated with a slideshow of previously designed objects, and how some have become ubiquitous in recent years such as his example of the heart defibrillator.

The last 18 years have been revolutionary in the design world because people have begun to focus on what humans want, an approach to designing behaviours and personalities into products and in turn have made a designers job even more enjoyable. Designers used to build 3d models and 3d renderings to communicate their ideas but now larger firms have altered objects to make it more unique, particularly through internal video production groups to make experienced prototypes between man and machine.

The first video was Prada’s innovative take on environmental design – consisting of technology in their retail stores. They wanted to focus on both a cultural role and a retail role, thus customising things instead of buying them right off shelves. There was a scanner developed, so a sales associated could scan a clothing item in, and it would then be displayed on screens around the store, the item of choice shown on runway models, regular people or even allowing different sizes and colours to be listed. This Prada store also included a liquid crystal display in changing rooms – allowing clear glass doors to transform into a blurred surface. Their changing rooms were also customised with a “magic mirror” that would show the subject turning with a three second delay to allow customers to see the back of the garment on them. All these changes were made to create a more personalised touch to a retail experience and this is where designers are headed towards.

Another example that David Kelley introduced his views to, was the whole conceptual idea of a cubical space. Once known as just a drab office area, a team decided to revamp it and conduct research on what would make a more inviting, and fun work space. Their research was a fun take on including human behaviour into a still object, and they succeeded in designing an area which was both appealing to the eye, and suitable for an innovative office space.

Today the new design process is more centred towards the consumers’ senses, and in reality including behaviours and personalities into a product. Designers are more trusted and integrated into the design process than ever before as it brings new innovative methods for creating and designing.