Form Follows Function

"Working out problems first, and then thinking about how we can change them for the better"

I wish to design to change the world for the better. 

For meaning. For purpose. For people. 

The lecture given this week spoke about design thinking, designing management and systems. I liked that, it meant problems were being found and solved. When we are taught about good design, form follows function, otherwise you would have a beautiful bedroom that doesn't have room for a bed. 

The quote at the top of the page was given by the lecturer, someone who wasn't a designer, talking about how she designs. I agreed with her comment, why build something that doesn't serve a purpose or solve a problem or help people. Surely that is much more ethical design?

We were introduced to a company called IDEO. Their role as designers are to change companies containing staff who aren't designers, for the better though teaching them creative strategies. Working through the problems with designers who have other ideas and ways of thinking. 

In Architecture there is quite a famous example of what happens when form doesn't follow function; when an architect is so obsessed with the aesthetic of the building they forget about the purpose. Zaha Hadid's first build in 1993 was the Vitra Fire Station in Germany, a beautiful linear design with concrete. When it came to opening the build and the engines to pull out, a design floor came into appearance when the engines struggled to get out of the building at a proper speed. With this failure another fire station was built and now the building is used as a museum. 

Posing the point, it may be beautiful, but if it doesn't work, well what a waste. 

In my current project I am creating a large fish eye lens, that when looked through is positioned so that you can view the site from the eyes of a pensioner that once sat there. It is supposed to create a painting like effect to allude back to the history of the site. In keeping with the theme of this post, when designing the size and shape of my lens I research the dimensions so that it will work, not even thinking about its aesthetic, as it's aesthetic can be thought about through choice materials. Its position is not where the installation will look best but to show the view that is appropriate. 

A Model of my fish eye lens and a picture to show what is seen when looked through

References

Ideo. (2014). About IDEO. Available: http://www.ideo.com/about/. Last accessed 9th Jan 2014.

Unknown. (Unkown ). Failure, Change, Adaption. Available: http://stendhalsyndrome.tumblr.com/post/128378612/failure-change-adaptation. Last accessed 9th Jan 2014.