Sustainable design, illustration and web development
This is my blog, for writings on design, sustainability, and such.
Some people listen to Classical music. Some people go to a gallery. Some folks prefer to watch sports or have sex or eat nothing for 3 days.
Everyone has a different preferred way of getting inspired, and mine just happens to be, well…everything.
Arguably one of the most unsettling movements in technology today is also one of the most promising. The way an individual feels about the Open Source Initiative (OSI) is generally determined by whether or not they own or work for a company that owns proprietary software that is now being challenged by a never-ending tsunami of free, ever-evolving applications released under the OSI’s guidelines.
It cannot be overstated just how much a well-trained designer is ingrained with the concept of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ design. From the very first day of class you are coached through critical-thinking routines and tense critiques, all with the intended end result of developing a new generation of designers with good taste.
Like a well-woven tapestry or epic oil painting, it has the power to inspire and amaze. Like a broken window, it can drag a bad neighborhood deeper into disrepair and violence. It can be found in the ruins of Pompeii and on the sides of traincars and is constantly evolving, the same piece taking thousands of shapes before being whitewashed over, creating a clean canvas where there was once a work of art or work of vandalism.
Some people become designers because they love creating artwork, but don’t want to be broke all their lives. Some become designers because they like the lifestyle and trappings of an aesthetics-based profession, or think that designing SOMETHING will help them leave their mark upon the world. It could be their baby, growing up before their eyes, splashed across every poster and brochure and website and fashion accessory they design.
Having worked in large bureaucratic environments, small boutique studios and as a freelancer, I’ve sat and listened to arguments from all sides about which is the superior set up for optimal design quality and efficiency.