A brief introductien
Thinking about people: Their systems, situations, and services
Educated in graphic and product design with an MA at the Royal college of Art. I now focus on designing systems. Working in teams of specialists and users.
Design for me is about people, how they live think and do. Since I finished my master in Design at the Royal College of Art in London (2007) I prefer to see design as a collaboration. A collaboration with experts forming a team to innovate systems, situations and services in a social way.
Questioning everything to find the real problem and increasing the quality of life by changing the daily. It is design but with a social innovation at its core. I figured that I cannot just make things, there must be a reason, an explanation, and preferably a socially related question. Although material experimentation is a big part of my work, the context, and why I work on a project always has to do with a social happening. I react to what I see, hear and feel. Sometimes supporting and solving problems, sometimes commenting and taking a stand. Design in my eyes is a service that has to find its position in our society. And a designer is a person that has the ability to think about objects, materials, situations and systems from a different perspective by asking the right questions solve or to provoke. To offer a solution in any possible way.
A nice quote as an approach that almost always brings you where you want to go with charm, risk and appealingly randomness is one of Zaphod Beeblebrox from Douglas Adams, ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy’:
‘I don’t know what I’m looking for.’ ‘Why not?’ ‘Because … because … I think it might be because if I knew I wouldn’t be able to look for them.’
The changing role of the designer
Today we see that the role of the designer is constantly evolving and expanding. From designing objects to designing systems and services. Working together with experts and users to develop innovative ways of designing and living with products not seen as the goal but used as a tool. This is applicable for all creative disciplines. Designers are in essence communicators, some do this better through objects some better in print or other media. The product is not the goal but the medium. We see that more and more companies, governments and designers become aware of the value this role can add to the development of systems and services. To develop long term sustainable solutions that make the experience between the service provider and service user more empathetic and engaging. What is key to this kind of approach is the way awareness of the situation is created. This is what most of my projects are about. Creating the right kind of transparency.
My aspirations
With my experience I am researching to and building on how designers can contribute to making our world a bit more understandable. This in collaboration with experts and users to capture the spirit of the ‘now’ and push this forward into future scenarios on how we can live together in new ways, providing the steps to work towards that goal. Can we convince governments and business to work with creatives to create stunning solutions for our today’s social issues. Is this more human / social approach not the way to make money? My ambition is to lead creatives, business and government in this thinking, helping them find out what this means and how it works I see myself as director of processes where I guide the players of the system to learn who they are and how to do better by being good through finding and doing.
How can we work together to design betterways of living together.