Does Design Matter?

Does design matter? A simple question really….or at least it’s a simple question to ask, but not all that simple to answer.

The question was posed to me by a friend over coffee and a bagel one morning. We were having a discussion about the quality of homes in a particular neighborhood.  I of course retreated to my architecturally trained and knee jerk response of “Hell yes it matters”! And then I was greeted with that ever so common and most annoying question. “Why?” I answered of course, but in all honesty, was not satisfied with my response. My response was not confident and I realized that I have never honestly reflected on a personal level why design, that is to say high quality good design matters to me, and by extension to the public, society and civilization.

Design, at is base and core level, is a thoughtful response to a problem. In other words, design is process that leads to an answer to a problem or question. Believe it or not, cavemen were designers. Primitive designers yes (pun intended), but still designers.  Intuitively, they realized that in order to survive, they had to become hunters, and the more efficient hunters they were, the stronger and healthier they became.  They became aware through trial and error (life and death) that it was better to attack an animal with a pointed stick as opposed to a blunt stick. It took less energy, and the pointed stick could penetrate the animals hide easier than the blunt stick could.  The problem: How do we kill an animal and provide food for the clan. The answer: Use sticks that have pointed edges as opposed to blunt sticks. They arrived at that conclusion through a process of investigation, trial and error and thought. They began to look for sticks that had sharper points, and then began to shape it themselves by scraping the end against a rock until the point became sharp. They designed a better weapon to attack an animal with.  They then realized that the weapon would be even better if the tip of the stick had a hardened edge, fashioned and shaped from stone that was then tied to the end of the stick. They now had the ability to pursue and hunt bigger game with tougher hide that their weapons could now penetrate. Without that process, the trial and error; the weapon would not have improved. Without the inspiration to attach a pointed stone to the tip of a stick, there would be no improvement to the weapon, and they could not hunt bigger game that would ultimately provide more food for their growing clan.

  “Does design really matter? After all, a house is just shelter right”? My response is still “Hell yes it matters”! But I would add the following. “Without design, a stick does not become spear”!

Without design……….

…sound never becomes speech, words and music.

...the ocean remains to be the end of the world.

…there are no footprints on the moon.

…a horse drawn wagon never becomes a car.

…there is no Macbeth, no Mona Lisa, or Avatar.

…there are no nets to protect children from malaria in Africa.

…the album is never replaced by the eight tracks, the tape cassette, the compact disc or the I-pod.

…travel time between California and New York is weeks instead of hours.

…nothing would scrape the sky but clouds.

…a house provides shelter and nothing more. 

Without design, a house is nothing more than shelter and a suburban neighborhood a bland collection of structures void of any inspiration or creativity. Without design, a house is something you buy and occupy rather than invest and live in. Without design, a house is a product purchased that you adapt to, rather than a crafted object that is adapted to you, your family and your life.  

                                  Falling Water, Frank Lloyd Wright

“Hell yes, design matters”!!

 RBP  3.26.12