Design is human-centred, in that, it essentially reflects human needs and wants, as well as the central ideas and artistic, cultural perceptions of the time. The designer, with empathy, is expected to accommodate aesthetic, economic, technological, and commercial constraints and arrive at an appropriate synthesis — in a cumulative process of problem solving, goal orienting, questioning of assumptions, conceptual thinking, planning, decision making and creation. Design as an activity involves a wide spectrum of professions in which graphics, interiors, architecture, products and services, all take part, with the overarching intention of enhancing the quality of life.
In order to situate current design academia and research in the arena of problem solving, it is important to briefly revisit the point of birth of modernist design education and the then articulation of the futures in specific, revolutionary ways. ‘Bauhaus’ — the iconic and influential art and design school emerged in 1919 in Germany. It was mostly in response to radical changes precipitated by the fallouts of the industrial revolution, the arrival of machine production and mechanical tools along with the changed conditions of production of articles for daily use.
The modernist impulse of the ‘Bauhaus’ aimed to rekindle the unity between technical and artistic production, with the utopian goal of arriving at solutions for social and cultural problems, on the basis of this unified techno-artistic aspiration. The Bauhaus design standards, products and buildings have left far-reaching impacts to this day, but that utopian ideal — solving of future problems, did not quite fructify in the way initially envisaged.
The lesson there, is that the domain of the futures and the solving of future problems is at times contained in an ideal-conjectural prism, following which it is with some trepidation and more hope that I suggest five ways where design, and more specifically design thinking can engage with problems effectively in the times to come:
Ecological crisis
Simply put, there cannot be infinite human growth (with its associated ‘footprint’) on a finite planet. The issues of environmental limits and resource scarcity are coming to a head with our consumption of natural resources at a rate 50% quicker than our planet can replenish them. Experts broadly agree that in many instances, the limits are being reached.
Therefore, the way I see it, the next wave of design innovation will be in the sphere of humanising technologies for renewable energies, from terrestrial sources of power, humankind will increasingly begin tapping extra-terrestrial sources of power — solar, for example. Another wave of design innovation will be in floating-architecture, building on water, as land gets scarcer, a sizeable percentage of the population will begin finding firm ground on water.
Biogenetic revolution
The frontiers of human genetics are numerous and one frontier, that of altering human genomes, is going to have far-reaching impacts. There will be a time when biogenetics will deliver on the elimination of human diseases and cancers, the stopping of ageing, and even sex determination. This will possibly lead to new fissures in society, between those (the few) who can afford biogenetic alterations for mind and body enhancement, and those (the many) who cannot.
There will be a leap in the growth of design-driven objects and object systems that will enhance certain capabilities and enable the overcoming of limitations of individual abilities of flight, mobility, reach, agility and strength among others, to compensate for what the majority cannot afford.
Social divisions & exclusions
The guiding philosophy of what is called ‘universal design’ will serve humankind well, for divisions and exclusions in societies worldwide are set to grow at an unprecedented pace.
Universal design invites inclusion at all levels across products, buildings and environments, particularly focused on including those who are most vulnerable and disadvantaged.
Together with ideas of Social Design, a wave of design interventions will aim to address both social developmental goals as well as instigate and align business interests with social welfare interests. Such design interventions will necessarily be ‘longitudinal’ and systems- or complexity-oriented.
Next wave of automation
The rise of intelligent machines echoing human logical judgment and decision-making coupled with precision tasking abilities will take over traditional human factory and mass production roles, as well as taking on specific human agricultural duties. This radically altered state of production, will mean (and I am hopeful in this) that humankind will increasingly return to their handcraft and handicraft roots of artistic-aesthetic useful production, that no machine, however intelligent, can replicate adequately or appropriately.
The sameness of machine automation will be challenged by the uniqueness of human crafts and culture that is at the heart of the idea of design.
Reappraisal of the designer’s role
Design is a very young profession still, and to realise the full potential of this transformative force, it has to be adequately comprehended, debated on, and determined as something vital to everyone — no exceptions.
In India especially, the quantum of design research and documentation is quite low, with most designers focused on practice alone. In times to come, design will evolve into a central academic discipline in its own right, and it should be recognised as such, given its transformative role in human societies worldwide.
(The author is mentor, School of Design, Whistling Woods International, Mumbai)