Objectified Response

It was interesting getting a view into the minds of the people who design the products that we use in our everyday lives. I was continually amazed at the number of designs for chairs that are possible. Our use of chairs is a fairly simple interaction; the only moving part is the person sitting in it or getting up, however the considerations that go into making it seem to be endless. From the shape, material, comfort, aesthetics, sustainability, and how easy it would be to mass produce, it’s no wonder that even today, there isn’t a definitive chair design. This example obviously lends itself to any kind of designed object. Everything that we use has at some level been tailor to an expected use case. It was also interesting seeing the discussion about designing a more comfortable grip for the vegetable peeler. The invented design was actually the version of the product that I was familiar with and this really emphasised a couple of points for me. When a design is really good, you don’t think about it. It seems simple and it can become harder to even imagine things being another way. It also highlights the speed of adoption and ubiquitousness that these designs can take. This being a field that I feel passionately about, I have a huge amount of appreciation for the type of people who constantly re-evaluate these designs and iterate upon them. Jony Ive talking about late 2000’s Apple design philosophy is an absolute treat. It’s clear how their attentiveness to design catapulted the success of their products to the level they have reached today. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this doc and I will probably try to watch Hustwit’s Helvetica at some point in the near future.