DESIGN in SOCIETY

All aspects of life include design, and that’s disregarding the non-aesthetic views. Normal lawmakers also use design, even though it may be in the form of words. They “design” the words to achieve their end, and I don’t mean using pretty typography to mesmerize the court, they “design words” to eradicate loopholes and to reinforce their meanings.
They don’t stop at that. They also design their outfits for presentation. They want to look as professional and as knowledgeable about the issue as possible, so they dress sharp, suits and ties. All small details are coordinated to the smallest things, like what type of shoes they wear to what kind of color. They present the best looking front they can put forward, to get a good first impression. They choose colors that do not come off as too obnoxious or even too calm; they have to find the perfect combination as they plan as if their life depended on it.
When they put this all together, they are truly a formidable presence and truly a force to be reckoned with. Design is not just used in consumerism and art, it’s also found in the world of the seemingly unaesthetic. One just needs to know where to look!

Color TRANSFORMS

Although black and white designs are known to be very classy and traditional, the modern age has brought a barrage of colorful designs upon us. Although the stark contrast black and white designs bring us is really appealing, color often brings it to a whole new level. Not only does color bring “pop” to an advertisement or logo, it draws more attention to it. People are more likely to look to the colorized logo when placed side-by-side with a black and white logo.
The black and white design, as striking as it is, would take second place after a colorful logo. The colors also appeal to a wider range of people, as children and adults alike often prefer the brightness colors often provide.
By usage of color, people can also transfer or imply emotion. Viewers are left thinking about the advertisement they just saw, wondering why they’re feeling that way, and what made them feel that way. Colors also bring the viewer much more personal attachment than what just a black and white advertisement would bring. Even just slight accents of color are more appealing than plain black and white, this can be seen in the fashion industry where almost everything has been touched by color.

Design is Dangerous

Guns, knives, missiles, all of these weapons have one thing in common – they were designed to hurt. Whether to explode on impact, or to have the design to hurt the most from farthest away, or from up close, the designs of these weapons were under much thought and consideration, these were not designed for the benefit of society, these were supposedly designed for the safety of society.
Whether the curve of the blade was designed to be thinner for more aerodynamic qualities, or if the handle has a certain shape that allows it to be gripped more securely, the knife or dagger has to be one of the most designed weapons of all time. Each culture around the world has its own type of blade, from small stilettos to sabers, they vary from the small to the gigantic.
Grenades were designed to not only provide impact for a faraway object, it also adds additional damage from shrapnel as it explodes. Simply said, it’s a two-in-one, and many armies around the world take advantage of this.
Although this seems as if it’s a weird blog post, I was essentially surrounded by weapons (Black Ops came out, and my dorm is full of gamers), this thought has actually crossed my mind many times. I, however, am not usually this violent. :)

Makeup + Costumes

When one thinks of theatre, one always thinks of the exaggerated costumes and stage make-up that make the whole experience something memorable. Stage makeup is designed to stand out from far away. When one sees a member of the cast up-close, it is definitely something that one does not forget easily. Healthy pink cheeks are bright red, wrinkles are jagged black lines, large eyes are extreme usages of eyeliner. Makeup is not the only thing that makes acting stand out—the costumes often help make-or-break the deal. Colors are brighter, more exaggerated, they help convey what the audience should be feeling, and what they should interpret about the character wearing the garments.
The design of such things are also crucial, as the costumes the actors wear must be easy to move around in, depending on the character they are portraying. The makeup must resist sweat, and must still produce a bright opaque color. There are many things that designers need to consider, such as the need for makeup that can be really easily applied, or costumes than can be changed really fast. Design can be found in all aspects of life, such as the acting and aesthetic world. There are always practical aspects to be found in everything, and in the theatre world, design touches everything as well.

Nikon D90 DLSR

The Nikon D90 was top of its class when it came out. Not only did it exceed the expectations of the public, it introduced a new height to which DSLRs (digital single lens reflexes) can reach.
DSLRs are known for their superior quality in pictures and artistic photography, but before this they were not known for their ability to capture high-definition video. However, with the release of the Nikon D90, HD video capture had become possible and thus, a new generation of DLSRs have been born.
Despite having all this new technology in the frame, the D90 does not look any bigger than the average DSLR. It comes with the option of having multiple lenses, a tripod stand, different settings, but somehow this new feature of high quality video allows the Nikon D90 to stand apart and gather the attention of the general public.
To be able to store that much new technology in such a small frame, the designers of the Nikon D90 must have had to do a bit of rearranging. Though they use the same lens, it requires different technologies to be able to code and record the video. After that, they must determine the location of the different wiring and devices needed for the camera. Placement, after all, is crucial if one does not want a combustible item in their hands, or hanging around their neck.
The digital camera has come far from the original Film Single Reflex Lens cameras. Though some say that technology cannot capture the beauty of nature at all, there are many that try. Even after if they do not succeed, they use programs to alter the original colors to eventually receive an imitation of the final product they had initially envisioned. Of course, technology is always improving, and there is without a doubt that one day technology will overcome the barriers that practicality puts up.
While the Nikon D90 was breaking barriers, its frame designers were also aiming for an easily accessible display and button console. If one looks at the shape of the frame, one notices the grip on the left side that not only provides an easy way to hold the camera, but also a convenient place to store the battery. Slots for the memory card and cables can be found under a flap on the other side of the camera, and small icons are available for reference on top of the multitudes of buttons that can be found around the display and top. For the more technical aspects that professional photographers look for, they can be found in the small display at the top of the camera.
Although this camera can be used by professionals to earn a living, the camera itself is also quite accessible by amateurs and recreational users. While it has many different options that professionals may choose to change, it’s also quite usable as a regular point-and-shoot camera with different simple settings for different situations. Many people find the better quality of the pictures much more gratifying than what a simple point-and-shoot camera usually provides.
While many may think that the modern DLSR may not evolve any more, there is a bright future for the camera that adapts to every situation.

Online Profiles

Throughout my extensive time spent online, I’ve noticed something that ALL social sites have in common. What is this profile page?
There are a few basic elements: The picture, the biography, the interests section, and a contact section.
One kind of wonders, after a while, is this really ME, shoved into a small page? All of my quirks, everything that I use to beguile strangers in real life? You expect ME, my personality, everything about me to fit on this one small corner—not even corner, niche!—of the interwebs? How is this possible?
That was how it was designed. To get somebody’s interest, you first catch their attention with 1. Your picture. 2. Your interests. 3. The possibility that they can contact you. This all fits, perhaps, with your personal display of color added in the background, or in the text.
It’s a plot by an evil genius!
However, using this format, even then, we start to blend together. With the multitudes of people that swarm online every day, there is no possibility that you can possibly even THINK of recognizing every single person you’ve come across. This cannot be helped. Although depressing, one must always think of putting their best foot forward, one never knows who’s watching.

COMICS - Words & Images

When one thinks of comics, one almost always mentally pictures an image with words in text bubbles. They’ve become melded together, and one rarely finds comics without words now.
Together, words and images create an impact. Or they meld together to create a more seamless idea, to let the viewer to more easily understand what is happening. Moreover, the words and images combine to tell a story. With a combination of simple lines to indicate motion, and different types of bubbles to tell if the character is thinking or talking, the reader is drawn in through his or her imagination, their ability to provide closure automatically bringing them far closer to the story than just words or pictures alone.
I believe that comics are so popular just because of this. They allow the reader to enter a different world—just through words and lines. The imagination supplies the rest. It brings the reader into the realm of dots of color and ink, of italics and underlines, of word bubbles and motion blurs. It requires active participation.
Comics have long been part of the world, but recently they have been integrated even into educational materials. I have seen my friends read books on calculus illustrated with anime characters, even coming with a plot line that wants you to think you aren’t learning anything when it’s slyly shoving it into the back of your mind. People are innovative. People are thoughtful.

WORDS and IMAGES

Words and images are inseparably entwined in the public’s mindset, but it was not always this way. Now, when painters choose cityscapes, words have no choice but to appear, but before, words were not always so easily found with images. Now, words and images are combined to produce a powerful punch. It gives the viewers something to read, something to process, something to wonder about. This combination can be found in all situations now, from CD covers to textbooks, they utilize everything they can to capture the viewer’s interest, and to increase recall of their product’s advertisement.
These are most often used in company logos in the modern age. They combine something that symbolizes their company, along with their company name or perhaps a few choice words to summarize their company’s dealings.
This particular combination of words and image is supposed to ensnare your attention, to draw your eye to it whether you wish to see it or not. It leads one’s eyes down, to the logo, the design, the words. One cannot help but think that the art of advertisement has almost been boiled down to a science—what direction they lead your eyes, to what they want you to think—they think more than you think when you see the picture.

Window Displays

These happen to be almost the most literal way to describe design in society. These are displays of design in society—window displays trying to draw you into their fantasy worlds, saying “Buy me! Buy me!”
As children wandering down streets of shops with our parents, who hasn’t stopped and pointed at a display, tugging at their parents sleeves, saying, “Please! Buy this for me! It looks so fun/pretty/cool!” It takes a good display to entice the young minds.
A lot of thought goes into putting up displays. They have to take into consideration the new trends for toys, but also the environment and the things the kids would like—possibly starting a new trend.
It’s a combination of interior design and fashion, color coordination and spatial arrangement. The ultimate goal is to draw in the viewer, to wish that they had the items featured even though the items themselves may not be the best or of the highest quality. They draw you in using color, to make it POP! And to attract all the attention. Then, they use bright lights and subtleties, to keep you interested at the window, thus gaining the attention of even more people, slowly then, gathering a crowd at the window.
Even like this, design permeates society. It slowly seeps in through the cracks, from how one’s mother would arrange the plates at dinner-time, to what kind of household accessories she buys, to how she cleans and arranges the house. Everyday life is filled with design, to the objects one holds to the ones one arranges. There is no escaping design.

Bottles

Specifically, water bottles.


One of the most overlooked objects is the plastic water bottle. It is constantly referred to as a waste of resources (which it is), but that’s about all the attention it gets. Nobody looks at its design, it’s multiple love-handles for easy gripping. How the cap is smaller, so that when it’s mass-produced it uses less plastic overall. Who notices these things?

Designers are often given a hard job. How do they make something so mass-produced better? How would they possibly improve a design that’s been pondered over for so long? They consider shape, form, how it’ll be used, how it’ll end up. Everything is considered at least once, written on a post-it, stuck on a board.

Water bottles are now shapelier than before. This is to help facilitate the ability to drink water while running or walking, or to increase one’s ability to hold on to the water bottle. When the water bottle was once just a cylinder, it now has curves rivaling a woman with an hourglass figure. Is this supposed to lure new customers to its shape? Or are they really conserving plastic by making the bottle walls thinner?

With each new design comes new problems. Many users of these bottles find that it’s almost impossible to open the water bottle without squeezing or spilling at least a fourth of the water, and that they crinkle loudly whenever one accidentally squeezes the bottle too hard.

Objects like these are constantly improving. Many examples can be found: metal water bottles. Not only do they reduce the plastic waste produced, they’re reusable and exceedingly more fashionable—just look at all the colors possible!

Interaction of Form and Content in Objectified

"Design needs to be plugged into human behavior." Tim Brown has a point.
Many times, the form is directly linked to its content. There are many examples of this, from objects that can only serve one purpose, like a car. Its form is obviously designed to serve one purpose, though its many different parts can be taken to be used for something else.

Form is the literal object. The external. What we see visually, what we feel tactilely. Content is the internal. What we imagine its use to be, what we can use it for.
Sometimes, the designer thinks for the people. They must make their product people-friendly, easy to figure out the content, simply from looking at the form. There are no VCR-look-alikes.
One must also take into account culture and location. For example, there was the toothpick from Japan that had the part that broke off into a toothpick rest. Though Americans looking at the toothpicks would just see a decorated toothpick, Japanese people would see something that they would use every day. There’s also the tiny hotels the Japanese are fond of, as well as the overabundance of vending machines that sell everything one could ever think of. Many Americans would not be able to fathom the usage of any of these, and all of those would have to be taken in context.

One also needs to think about how time changes cultures. Something that was useful thirty years ago may not be useful anymore. Take into consideration cell phones. Back then, cell phones were humongous compared to current day models. They would not fit anywhere, at all. In this way, technology and time have obviously been big factors.