How is the global state of instability influencing product and interior design?
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- Seymourpowell
Share your thoughts!
- detritus0
You're kidding, right?
Gauche, nouveau riche one-percenters get to spend more monies on less savoury things, but beyond that?
The world just keeps on turning.
The oft-unmentioned increasing global stabilities have more to offer evolvong design paradigms than this socially nonexistant 'instability' you talk of.
- qoob0
Instability is socially nonexistent? Tell that to the millions of unemployed 20s and 30s people who have had to put off starting their careers. Or older people who lost their savings and can't retire. Surely there is a big effect there.
Having said that, who knows what the affect on product and interior design is. You do see the theme of declining living standards reflected in TV shows and movies quite a bit these days.
- "global state of instability" says something markedly different to me.detritus
- detritus0
K, if you mean instability in terms of austerity, i'd jave to be an idiot not to appreciate its existence - but that, i think, has negligible impact on consumer design in and around the home... if anything, today's poorer live in an age of increasing plenty, thanks to the very same 'Chimerical' feedback mechanism that's impoverishing us in the first place.
Who cares if the economy's going down the shitter if I can pop down to my local China-importing megaMart and buy items that would've cost me more last year?
What impact does that have on design? None, other than more of the same.
- True, there's no shortage of cheap consumer shit. Maybe that is the trend.qoob
- lowimpakt0
The instability around material security and consistency of supply of critical materials will have a big impact on product in the coming years. The bill of materials for most manufacturers is pushing 40% and I don't see this dropping soon. There will be a serious rethink around how we design, what we design and the business models required.
The new mac book could be seen as the antithesis of this point because it has been design with unrepairability/obsolescence in mind but that is an anomaly driven by the mindlessness that comes from a cash soaked design strategy.
- lowimpakt0
instability is affecting people's investment/purchasing decisions.
on the one hand it's making budget retailers successful but there will be a limit to which consumers will tolerate the environmental and social exploitation that drives down prices.
- vaxorcist0
OK.. seriously...
Look at the window height of cars designed before and after Sept 11, 2001 that are for sale in US....
I've seen focus group studies that said that people felt safer if they didn't think people could see into their cars very well, they felt vurnable if anything below their shoulders or upper torso was visible outside the car...
This of course was contradictory to reality, the more you can see out the fewer cars, bikes, kids and curbs you are likely to crash into, but psychology beats logic often....
so... compare an 1990's car's wide open view, lots of deep windows, seating position where you can see a TON out the windows, and yes, people can see you... compare this to the short windows of most currently available cars, where the height of the windows has been made much shorter, where the vehicle itself sits up higher, where you can barely see outwards if you don't adjust the seat in a certain position.
Just park a 90's car next to say a 2007 car in a parking lot and check out the window area... it's astonishing... how.. far.. backwards.. the paranoia can make us go sometiimes... so much for "design progress"
- Please. There is a world outside the USA and 9/11. Get over it.qTime
- Morning_star0
Ummm...right...uhhhh... I kinda disagree with the premise that the world is currently more unstable than it has been in recent years/decades. These are the most peaceful and least violent times we've ever been through as humans.
Besides, the cyclic 'cultural' influences, function and cost are all far more influential compared to the perceived global instability .
- qTime0
This sounds like an overly self important college essay question.
To be honest apart from austerity I can't see any. If there is its far too early to tell. Plus you can't really say global instability is the reason for a change in product design.
Perhaps your seeing it from the US/Europe lens too much.
Instability is a constant fact for 90% of the world.- eh what? http://en.wikipedia.…lowimpakt
- that was for morning starlowimpakt
- Instability doesn't mean warqTime
- See below, Link provided.
Morning_star
- d_rek0
I guess I take your question about global instability and relate it to global financial markets.
Without a doubt the current state of global financial markets is directly influencing all industries - and design industries (product, graphic, etc) are no exception. Budgets shrink. Creative/Marketing departments shrink with them. Employers expect you to be more innovative / creative, but with less (contradictory, no?).
So how would this affect product/interior design? Companies suddenly have less money or less inclination to spend money on these things. Historically American businesses have not favored creativity over their bottom line.
And yes, I would say it's directly tied to global instability in financial markets. There is a lot of volatility and risk in most financial markets right now. I don't expect American markets to stabilize until after the presidential election. And Europe? Who knows whats gonna happen with the Euro. Until then it's probably going to be a bit of a bumpy ride.
- biusness0
I'm reminded of some quote by a comedian that went:
'I'm not denying people are losing their jobs, but for the vast majority of us the only difference is we have to get a 42" TV instead of a 47" TV'
- lowimpakt0
this is not the kind of thing most people, especially designers, are in tune with on a daily basis but here is a good report from the World Economic Forum of business risks from global instabilities.
http://www.weforum.org/reports/g…
"Economic imbalances and social inequality risk reversing the gains of globalization, warns the World Economic Forum in its report Global Risks 2012. These are the findings of a survey of 469 experts and industry leaders, indicating a shift of concern from environmental risks to socioeconomic risks compared to a year ago. Respondents worry that further economic shocks and social upheaval could roll back the progress globalization has brought, and feel that the world’s institutions are ill-equipped to cope with today’s interconnected, rapidly evolving risks. "
- Morning_star0
@ lowimpakt
Give the link a read dude. I know it seems counter intuitive but it is true.
"Despite all the drawbacks of modern living, we really are living in the most peaceful time in recorded history. But remember, it's all relative. Even more peaceful days may be yet to come.'
http://history.howstuffworks.com…- fair point. i misread your first post. I find it hard to be positive about syria, iraq, africa etc.lowimpakt
- It's hard BUT look at what was happening a decade ago with Uganda, Liberia, DRC etc massacres were so frequent they didn't make the news. ..Morning_star
- ...didn't make the news. Now they do and whilst it is heart wrenching viewing they are less frequent.
Morning_star
- pressplay0
german designer developing cheap diy furniture for those living of Hartz IV (which is the inofficial name of the german social welfare programm)
http://hartzivmoebel.de/
- Seymourpowell0
Thank you for showing your interest in this topic!
You all raised some very interesting points.
We are currently debating this issue on our LinkedIn group called Seymourpowell Design and Innovation Network.
Here is the link http://www.linkedin.com/groups?g…
Looking forward to seeing you all engaged on our page!
Thanks!
