The new globalism

3 Mar 2008

As the third and last day of the 11th Design Indaba came to a close last week, it became increasingly apparent that it is pointless designing anything now unless it directly contributes to the wellbeing of people and their environment.

A new design ethos

A well-thought out design system should be timeless, says Gert Dumbar, Dutch doyen of visual branding. Currently in the process of developing a new corporate identity for the Dutch Government, Dumbar is also responsible for the branding of the Dutch Police force. In essence, he identifies the role of the designer as:

simplifying systems
organising chaos and
saving lives.

To this end he is currently at work with his son on a vast pro bono exercise, researching and developing a system of disaster graphics, [similar to the universal ‘airport' graphics which we now all take for granted, developed in 1974 by the AIGA], Dumbar's ‘alphabet' will ensure that safe areas, collapse warnings, war zones, flood warnings and other vital communications will be available in kit form – for use in places like Darfur, Indonesia or other high risk areas. [Go to www.studiodumbar.com.]

The new networking

And using design to point out where the high risk areas are in advance is the definitive Renaissance man for the 21st century, Shinichi Takemura, whose ‘Global Stethoscope Project' allowed those of us lucky enough to attend his presentation on Friday, 29 February 2008, the opportunity to listen to water music, from a 700 year old Buddhist temple in Kyoto, in real time. [Go to www.aqua-scape.jp.]

More impressive is the Tangible Earth project, a 10 million:1 scale model of the earth which does everything the real one does, enabling one to see the planet as a whole – from its seismic activity to air pollutants, cloud movement, the migratory patterns of birds, ocean currents and patterns of global warming etc in real time – [you can also project the model forward of back in time] Like Google Earth, the model allows one to zoom in on any given area, but difference with this model is in that it allows one to see the earth as a whole living entity.

It is via initiatives like this and others – such as the Global Corridor project, the Ubiquitous Museum project (http://map.elp.or.jp/umm.html and the beautiful Hitokei Sun clock concept (www.kalium.net/designSketch/hitokei/) which sources sunrise and sunset photos from around the world via Flickr – that Takemura hopes to provide a more holistic picture of our planet and make people aware of the real plight of fellow planet dwellers, children in war zones for example become more real to us and not just another abstract headline – providing a very new kind of global ethos.

A new design culture

Even something as frivolous as fashion isn't irrelevant at a design conference, as Nkhensani Nkosi pointed out during a debate amongst arguably South Africa's three most successful fashion exports –herself, Gavin Rajah and Amanda Laired Cherrie – fashion already contributes R35 billion to the SA economy. Hold this number up against the fact that it is derived for the most part from the chain stores, which hold the industry to ransom with regard to economies of scale, and we can start seeing independent fashion designers in our region as a very long and lucrative tail.

A new design heritage

From Abott Miller, Pentagram, New York, we saw 100 year-old iconic Harley-Davidson brand encapsulated into a museum and corporate headquarter project currently underway in Milwaukee – bet you can't wait to check the webcam at www.harley-davidson.com.

From the same outfit, an even more moving example of what design can accomplish now, is Mannahatta, a design project under consideration, in conjunction with research scientist Eric Sanderson, which will also make use of a full scale model, this time of Manhattan. The project aims to overlay a vast database of the natural and cartographic history of the region onto the existing one, in a museum format, and in so doing allow visitors to go back in time to 1609 and engage with the original picture of what was apparently one of the most biologically diverse places on earth at the time. See it at www.wcs.org/sw-high_tech_tools/landscapeecology/mannahatta/.

A new management

The fact that science and many different disciplines of design now often need to dovetail in order to achieve the necessary objectives, also throws new emphasis on teamwork, on effective management systems and of productive and happy working environments – these things are no longer nice to haves – but vital to the health of people who put in the hours and the fruits of their efforts. In this regard clear objectives and clear mandates to design professionals can also have a considerable positive impact on the success and wellbeing of companies, regions and new living social networks.

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