The top 1% are counting on you. They are hoping you will continue to think democracy is the reason you are free and materialism is a celebration of progress. They need you to believe that you are the product of your own limitation and you exist because of a chance collision of matter, in a universe vast and largely unexplored. Frank Zappa put it like this. “As long as you’re just smart enough to do a job and dumb enough to swallow what they feed you, you’re gonna be alright”.
Image by Bitzcelt
I recently told a colleague, the public require direction. Afterwards it struck me what I was really eluding to – that people enjoy being enslaved. Much in the same way a convict looks forward to the confines of his cell as sanctuary, the knowing familiarity of his surroundings and the routine of what to expect. We want to be free, but we’re hard-wired to follow. To live in comfort and be told how to live is reassuring. So it doesn’t surprise me that organised religion is on the rise, when all atheists have to offer is the wonder of an uncertain future. We don’t just care about being ethical consumers and global citizens, we want to be told what we can buy and who we should be buying from. There are rants and reviews on just about everything. Trusted voices direct the populace to travel here, buy this and avoid at all cost. The influence of opinion is valued so highly, that the world’s financial markets nor our politicians can operate without them. Today the media functions as a propaganda machine and we are caught between the echoes of a profit driven agenda. We feed daily on a diet of gossip, sport and lifestyle. News and commentary blur into one, so that news becomes a matter of interpretation where nothing can be disproved. It’s too much to unpack and distill every piece of information, so a million different commands a day are processed automatically, without a moments thought. It feels completely instinctual, unconscious. Free. Maybe that’s why we find it so easy to let others make decisions for us.
Even at home, we have established rituals and timescales around when to meet for conversation, food or sleep. For corporations, meetings are the means by which everything gets done. Little else matters, unless there’s an event in your diary to which participants have responded and agreed to attend. Sometimes armed with agenda and action, they can bring authority to a gathering of the socially handicapped. Mostly they are dull monologues, repetitive and depleting. Swallowing up huge swathes of daylight and people. Then spewing them out, in order to delegate the tasks of the last meeting, whilst anticipating the work of the next.
I have been observing with increasing interest, the status and politics at play. Like an Escher drawing, the pattern endlessly loops and returns, the hypnotic rhythm of people rushing from desks, to rooms and back again. The hamster turns it’s wheel, oblivious to the idea that moving doesn’t mean you’re going anywhere. Curiously at the same time, is a sense that what’s really going on is a performance, with cast acting out routines according to well-entrenched traditions. Moving like figurines in choreographed sequences, speaking when cued and retreating for brief respite, when the scene has reached its necessary conclusion.
Orators, audiences and the story of people is how cultures began. A seemingly random evolution of language and customs, but actually completely aligned with people, nature, movement and time. Lights from towns and cities form perfectly organic shapes and whenever I fly, I’m reminded that the chaotic view from the ground makes perfect sense when looking down from above. I wonder what organisations’ look like from above? Amazingly simple and connected.
I have just finished reading “Life’s a pitch: How to sell yourself and your brilliant ideas” and come to the haunting realisation that we are all liars. Well, sort of. Some of us are completely unaware that we are lying at all. Whether we actively manage the semantics of our outward persona, or we think we are just being ‘ourselves’, it turns out that there is no such thing as a natural state free from judgement and manipulation. We are trying to persuade and get our own way all the time. And when we aren’t, all we are doing is failing. When you meet someone for the first time, you aren’t meeting them – you’re meeting their representative. They’re funnier, better dressed, smarter and more charismatic than usual. It’s only later down the line when they aren’t pitching for favours, sex or money that you realise you were seduced by a carefully constructed illusion. We are pitching all the time, so why not take control of your image and get more out life?
The problem I have with this (aside from I’m failing) is that crafting a persona involves deception. We already do it; Our choice in clothes project a multitude of attributes before a single word is spoken, but imagine if everyone was doing it and doing it well. Would they all be getting their own way? And wrapped up in the smoke and mirrors, would we all be too frightened to show the ugly truth about ourselves? Or would we forget and totally believe in the image we had created?
Image by Ben Fredericson
A mask can be a liberating and powerful aid, giving a complete sense of freedom to the wearer and the confidence to act without judgement. Actors and celebrities use mask techniques to be able to perform and sustain highly public lives in the media. In some cultures, masks are believed to possess spirits that inhabit the soul of the person who wears them. Behind the protection of a mask, people act without doubt or inhibition because they don’t see a reflection of themselves in others, they see an image of the person they want to be. Eventually the dressing dissolves, a diversionary tactic no longer welcome. ‘Real’ is what’s left when you take everything else away. Behind the curtain, fragile and unique is the individual waiting to be noticed.
At this years TypoLondon, conceptual artist Lawrence Weiner solemly told us design was visceral and art was empowerment. My experience of art is often in grandoise buildings and clinical white spaces. We visit museums and galleries in droves, but it remains a very singular activity, where people stand and stare quietly, to contemplate and reflect upon the object, painting or concept.
Gary Hustwit’s new film “Urbanised” shows how art can be public and encourage communities to re-contextualise and contribute to the places in which they live. But this is as much about urban planning as it is art. Since it requires design to understand how people interact, play and behave. In the books and many talks given by Edward de Bono and Sir Ken Robinson, we can see how the ability to be creative is not related to the discipline in which we work, but more about unlocking our potential and natural talent by creating the right environment and using the right tools. Art, design, music, film and performance all borrow and lend from each other. That’s why inspiration can be found everywhere. Shoes inspired by sculpture, architecture by appliances and so on. How influential to society is hard to prove. Especially when you consider we covet the work of dead artists and designers more than living ones. Ultimately, it always boils down to the same question – Is it good enough? The hardest part of all is recognising if something is really good and how to make it better.
I bought a bicycle helmet for £159 from The Cycle Surgery, and was plunged further into shock, after discovering it was constructed from polystyrene. “Isn’t that mostly air and very cheap?” I offered. “Yes, it’s also very light and gives your head more ventilation” replied the cheery sales advisor. So a bit like Aero – the chocolate bar with bubbles, or a pair of Levi’s with holes, I spend more on a product that I’m actually getting less of. This idea has taken the world by storm. Whether it’s energy, food, transport or housing – I get less, but I pay more.
Illustration by Spigget
Everywhere the same words echo like a tribal mantra – simple, clean, consistent. More is vulgar, unconsidered and irresponsible. Advocates Josef Müller-Brockmann, Dieter Ramms and Philip Glass tell us, design is clarity and somehow this adds up to a greater vision for us all.
Unfortunately, today’s purism comes at a price. High technology, organic food, sustainable materials and advanced medical treatment have infiltrated every aspect of our complicated lives. But as prices for commodities have continued to rise, less and less of us have benefited. Or as Karl Lagerfeld famously said of The Chanel Mobile Art Pavilion designed by Zaha Hadid, ‘It would be perfect if there were no people in it”. Unlike the bauhaus movement of the 1920′s, this new minimalism was conceived without people in mind. The vision we have planned for ourselves has nobody in it.
We all believe the idea that treasure is hidden. Only after you have un-earthed, sifted through and peeled back many impostors, will the real prize reveal itself. This notion of search and enquiry to reveal the truth is something which pervades every aspect of our lives. And we have heard it repeated back to us since we were children. In fairytales as much as real-life, we shift constantly between a cycle of search and reward. Our searching helps us to uncover the truth about ourselves and brands reward us by serving up endless ways to rediscover and refashion our image. The fact that consuming less makes us happier is inconsequential, when we recognise that consuming gives us relief. And we are obsessed with getting a fix.
Illustration by Dekade-Z
Search is a characteristic that thrives on a generation in flux. The difference now is that technology underpins a movement that is truly global. Governments, revolutions, communities and ordinary individuals around the world rely on digital networks to gather information, communicate, publicise and operate. And there’s no sign of recession here – Apple’s $9.5 billion revenue made from ipad sales in 2010 means the future looks exceptionally rosy for hand held devices.
Understanding how to live has become increasingly complex. In an age of ‘wants’ rather than ‘needs’, a bicycle in a less developed country has two wheels, a seat and provides a means of getting from A to B. In trendy parts of London, it’s a Pashley and costs £500. Of course we are buying much more than a bike. British heritage, craftsmanship and a badge of pride, or so it would seem. Ensuring we get from A to B and experience a lot more besides the journey.
Image by Alan Barnard
The rewards do not make life simpler, but properly conceived do build a richer, multi-dimensional experience of the world around us. The potential to understand ourselves in ever greater volumes and to apply that thinking to stimulate and surprise our gluttonous appetite for treasure.
We are in the business of desirability and our success is measured by uptake. If you help flog more stuff and get more people to talk about you, then design has done a good job. We help the consumerist machine look better and work more effectively, so everyone can make money. But do you ever get the feeling that design has a greater purpose? And who told you it was cool?
The glitter used to embellish, intellectually entice and subconsciously attract, is the mainstay of creative departments the world over. It helps us believe what we are doing is right. It’s the promise of brilliant ideas and beautiful execution. It’s proof that what we do adds value and is often the only way we can go home at night, feeling as if we have accomplished something. Everyone wants to feel part of the magic, so is it any wonder then, that designers are some of the biggest bullshitters you’ll ever meet. And some of them are my best friends.
Image by Jonathon Barnbrook
Do brands like Nestle, Coca Cola and BAT deserve our shine? Should we be exercising some opinion on whether companies stand for ‘the common good’ or are we protecting choice for the consumer? Interestingly, societies where fringe elements are not allowed to exist, breed contempt. It is only in a free society, where all views and choices are available, that people tend to harbor less radical opinion. So we should fear each other less and embrace our material needs for what they are. What we shouldn’t be doing is help corporations lie. In our desperation to please, we sometimes forget that we are architects of change in the modern world. Our skill can be used to empower people and organisations to advance society.
Advertising swagger and accolades are poor substitues when it comes to addressing the real design challenges of our time. We are still at war, our economy is teetering precariously on a festering stack of inequality and dwindling resources, not to mention the world is growing old, fat and despondent. I think we need a re-design. Anybody?
Let’s face it, if you haven’t got ‘friends’ running into the plus hundreds by now, you’re a bit of a loser. And not only that, it somehow confirms you’re a rather introverted, close minded individual who heard there was a party going on last week, but never got an invite. Image has always been about social culture, but now it’s become more about projecting what you are not – lonely, meaningless and unworthy. Because the social currency that we all tap into has one means above all others of measuring your worth and that is the numeric value of your connections. You must appear to be followed (not a follower), an inspiration (not a borrower) and you need to demonstrate polymathy (with success) to be valuable. And if that someone is a designer, then god help you. It’s not going to be easy, not only do you have to appear what you are not, you have to live and breathe what you purport to be.
What else can you do? I can juggle with my feet. But most of the time I’m having an internal dialogue with myself about how insane the world is and that makes my job harder, because we are in the business of organising and commodotising experiences to bring purpose, or pleasure or both. But I like doing it in secret. Because It’s not whether my musings are newsworthy (80% of the world’s news is regurgitated) what makes me tick is how I feel and that isn’t up for evaluation by the masses. What I do and who I am are not the same and why should they be? Silvio Berlusconi might be a completely corrupt and baseless individual, but he is also a gifted politician and businessman. Angus Deaton is a great comedian, but likes hookers and cocaine. Is it fair to judge a persons worth by their public and private persona?
Image by The Associated Press
In “A Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy” the solution to the worlds problems occur to a middle-aged housewife whilst having a coffee, seconds before the world explodes. I love that. It recognises that a person’s contribution is not based on what they look like, where they hang out or what they saw. It’s based on internal observation. Isn’t that what imagination is about after all?
When you come across design that captures the imagination, you can’t help but marvel at the mind that created it. There are so many talented people and studios that I’m not going to list them all. But what I will do is pick out the ones that resonate because they have stayed with me and influence my work.
Imaginative thinking is what sets this studio apart. When the Sony Bravia campaign ‘Colour Like No Other’ was released, I thought it was impossible for another brand to own this space – until Dentsu did Canon. Their thought pieces are clear, provocative and well executed.
James Turrell is a master illusionist, but this doesn’t feel like a magic trick. Experiencing an exhibit is like being bathed in purity. The colour is all absorbing and the stillness of the space engulfs you. Even when your eyes are closed.
A team of Architects, Designers and Artists collaborate to produce really innovative digital work. Seamlessly blending technology within environments, to create fully interactive experiences. There’s a force of adrenalin about everything that they do. Truly inspiring.
One of the first things I played on my computer, was an interactive CD-ROM called ‘Ceremony of Innocence’ (1997). I remember it, because it is such an excellent example of digital narrative. The ‘game’ is about uncovering the relationship between two strangers, which you discover by unlocking a series of puzzles on the postcards they send each other. Each interactive postcard is beautifully crafted, with a clever mix of quirky and playfulness. The voiceover gets a bit ‘Jackanory’ at times, but it’s a brillaint piece of work way ahead of it’s time.
Not only does he put this all together by himself, but the stories are so compelling and persuasive that you can’t help but be shaken. Documentary filmmaking has always interested me and I remember watching his series ‘The Century Of The Self’ (2002) and the knots in my stomach that ensued. Each theme is well researched and consistently addictive viewing. I have never been the same since.
