While researching for this weeks blog I came across an article about the partnership of AIGA and Adobe to characterize future designers. I thought that this was very useful for me, so I decided to share it with you all. The two companies conducted research with some of the profession's best thinkers to try and define future designers.
The article states, " For several years, it has been apparent that design studios and corporate departments have been looking for a new kinds of designer one that has traditional skills and yet a much broader perspective on problem solving". Their findings showed 6 major trends that define designers role. The following are the six trends and a little bit about them:
1.Wide and deep: meta-disciplinary study and practice- Designers must be able to draw on experience and knowledge from a broad range of disciplines.
2. Expanded scope: scale and complexity of design problems- Designers need to meet the growing need for anticipation of problem and solution rather than solving known problems.
3. Targeted messages: a narrow definition of audiences- Designers must understand both differences and likenesses in audiences and the growing need for reconciliation of tension between globalization and cultural identity.
4. Break through: an attention economy- The understanding what is currently driving clients' conception of form
5. Sharing experiences: a co-creation model- Designers must change their idea of customers/ users to co-creators
6. Responsible outcomes: focusing on sustainability- Designers need to recognize the future involves human-centered design in an era of increasingly limited resources.
The article was supposed to show a designer of 2015, However I think these trends are already happening in graphic design. More and more companies are transforming into a green company. Companies are doing this to please there customers, but also saving money and helping our planet. Our Personal life and our Professional life are molding into one; like the article say blogging and other types of social media are bringing these two closer. This article was helpful for me as a young designer, especially the trend about expanding scope. I believe my work could greatly improve if I focused more on anticipating "the problem and solution, rather than solving known problems.
Great topic...and I also feel that these trends are already happening in design. After seeing what a future designer might consider, I felt like finding out what the future of art in general might consist of. Here is a link if anyone was interesting in hearing about the future of art. http://www.emergence.cc/2011/02/the-future-of-art/
ReplyDeleteYour post makes me think of the history of design... when designers would use letterpresses and had a deeper connection with pencils and paper. I'd hope that designers would be able to come back to these techniques, or perhaps, create a modern connection with their work that goes beyond upgrading new adobe software every 6 months.
ReplyDeleteIt's a little weird to think that all designers in the near future can fit into 6 categories. Even though I thought these would be categories on the style more than abilities and scope, its a little strange to see according to this article where design is going to in the future when were still in the present and creating these categories.
ReplyDeleteI am ambivalent about compartmentalizing design like this. I don't think we need to be this rigid. Maybe it's just a paranoid attitude, but this sounds dangerous to future and present designers. Why not just say what you need and let the designer do what they are supposed to be trained to do.
ReplyDeleteThis was very informative. Thank you for sharing it with us. I'm not sure if the picture is that relevant but I guess its a requirement eh?
ReplyDeleteWhat I think is interesting is that many of these characteristics are mentioned in our Advertising design class as well as in marketing studies. Anticipating problems and solutions is key in marketing in order to maximize profit, why not in design?
ReplyDeleteI think all of us may have an edge on "wide and deep." Aside from being art majors, we all have a pretty well rounded liberal arts education. One of the most exciting (and intimidating) things about this field is that we constantly have to update and broaden our skills to stay relevant. If you study design, you can study everything.
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of you can agree when I say, the future scares me! I recently saw an interview with an inventor known for predicting technological world events who basically said we'll all be robots in 2045. Well not robots, but we with technology moving at the speed it is now, we'll be merging with it even more than just constantly having a phone in our pocket. It'll be in our blood streams keeping us healthy. ANYWAY now that I've shared that semi-irrelevant, possibly irrational fear...I think yes, these things are starting to happen with design now. Designers are becoming much more than doers--we must be thinkers too.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I think that the work life and home life really are melding together and things such as blogging and social networks are doing things like this. I think this gives us something to look forward to really. I think people are going to start to see other traits that designers have that they see will be important. We are taught to be conceptual thinkers, and to pull from inspiration from the rapidly changing world almost to the point that it is second nature.
ReplyDeleteAIGA is such a good resource for graphic designers. It always has information on the site that is helpful for tips on getting your work out there and an advocating for promoting your own voice and ideals to your target audience. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI like what Chris said - that advancing design should be about more than upgrading Adobe products every time they come out.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it was Tony's presentation that spurred the discussion about why hire a designer when you could just do it yourself. I hate this idea, as I have direct experience with it (hearing "well, I mean you have a great portfolio, but I have my mac here so I can just do it"). We all know there is more to it, we just have to convince potential clients that they need us too!
I think a lot of these concepts could apply to other fields, too, especially the entrepreneurial/business world. It's tiring but important to keep up with changing trends in today's world, and to be open of new ways of doing things.
ReplyDeleteThis was very interesting and informative. I agree with what Chris said as well, if letterpresses where what was normally used for graphic designers years ago, and today is the mac with adobe programs, what is next for the future of how design is done by graphic designers?
ReplyDeleteVery interesting topic. It is weird to think that the programs we use today will one day be out dated.
ReplyDeleteGreat advice posted, makes sense that what is current today will not be so current tomorrow or in the future. Perhaps this is why being a good designer has so much to do with "being in the now"
ReplyDeleteI also really enjoy the image you included with your post : )
ReplyDeleteI agree with Shanna's post. And find the image appropriate because at times it does feel like one is suppose to be able to do everything.
ReplyDeleteThis site is a great fine scary but great.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! It sums up everything we have been talking about in the blog and in class- in regards to what Chris said about going back to a more analog sense of design. I think, as I stated in a pervious post, that a lot of industries in the world are facing the same sentiments in digressing back to the connections to their work from the past.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the resource!
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