Maybe I shouldn’t be admitting this, but I originally began studying Industrial Design because I wanted to style products. That is what I thought ID was – styling things that already exist a.k.a making things cute. For example:
Taking a plain teacup and making it into a delightful tinkerbell teacup.
BUT ID is more about ideation. Thankfully, I think I am fairly good at developing new ideas. Inventing new product concepts is much more challenging and mentally stimulating. Coming up with new ideas or improving on an old one is also more admirable in my mind. Take the One Laptop Per child:
It is a laptop specifically designed for children in poor countries. The designers have taken a well developed product (laptops) and customized it for a very specific population: screens visible in bright sunlight, very rugged and durable exteriors, extra strong wireless capabilities and a simple kid-friendly interface. They also styled the device to some extent.
In the end, I wouldn’t mind styling products for huge marketing campaigns but I’d like to think I’m capable of more. Styling is an art in itself. Maybe one day I can style the entire Disney Princess line. How fun would that be?
RAHUL DESAI | art & design 
0 Responses to “To Style or to Ideate”