Design and Change

I want to see design being used for the greater good rather than for purposes of consumption. In “First Things First Revisited,” Poynor mentions the difference between “design as communication (giving people necessary information) and design as persuasion (trying to buy things.” The changes I wish to see are along these lines. To go further into detail, I want to see design used for bringing people together by showing variety, rather than singling out a certain brand, item, look, way of doing something, and what not. By showing diversity, people wouldn’t feel excluded or under par. Instead, design would be enabling a healthy community to form. People will be more in touch with reality, and through promoting individuality, a rich (not in terms of money but rather values) culture will flourish.

            Design can influence change through its power of being seen and heard by everyone. Design needs an audience—otherwise it serves no purpose. We have seen the immense power it has on people, especially through advertisements. Therefore, if design were to provoke a different message than it has been, then it will be able to influence change.

            A citizen designer is a designer who dedicates his or her work towards the good of the place he or she lives in. It is using design to make a community stronger in its relations within the members and their values. Poynor points out that commercial forces have polluted our communities by “demoralizing our sense of what full engagement” is. This simply means that the problem with today is that all this focus on consumption has destroyed our morals of interaction and the sense of community.

            I would say that magazines and TV commercials are the most effective mediums of design to all ages. TV especially influences all ages and groups since there are channels that is bound to spark the viewer’s interest.