Design Goggles

History is filled with designers telling people how to live. And just as much, with people living however they please, no matter what designers say. This conflict between the creators of space and the people who inhabit those spaces goes on today. Is that tension productive? Are designers and architects learning the lessons of yesterday, or just repeating them? Do any of us really know how people will use the spaces we create, even with the best of intentions?

One of the best parts of living in a city is having access to an endless array of bars and restaurants, and the food and drinks are just the beginning of what draws us out. Aesthetics play a huge role in the experience, as well, and design can make or break a successful bar, restaurant, or lounge. How do we create spaces that feel authentic instead of clichéd? How do we entice social media buzz with design, and navigate the fickle world of design trends? Seattle restaurateur and designer Linda Derschang joins us to answer these questions and more.

There is nothing more inescapable in the world of architecture and design than the celebrity architect. On television and in film, famous architects — both fictional and real — swagger and lecture, point to the horizon, and find themselves surrounded with adulation for their unique visions. Even though there are a few dozen celebrity architects in the world, for the rest of us, the world is a bit different. These “Capital ‘A’ Architects” may be inspiring at times, yet can do real harm to the profession with their work and attitude. Case in point: Bjarke Ingles.

We now live in a world where an entire generation lives in constant terror that their friends are doing something cooler than they are. FOMO, or fear of missing out, can have a paralyzing effect. How are today’s community spaces and event organizers changing how they design gatherings to meet the demands, and fears, of the next generation of people?

Artistic expression is a fundamental part of the human condition, but body art remains one of the most stigmatized versions of expression on a global level. In the US, 40% of Americans under the age of 30 have a tattoo, so clearly something is shifting. Why has tattoo art, and the designers and artists that work in the medium had such a hard time being accepted into the artistic community, and why do so many unfair stigmas remain?

When someone asks you what it’s like to live in Seattle, it’s not the easiest question to answer, and one of the biggest reasons why, is that words just don’t do it justice. Three women set out to use graphic design to solve this, creating a book comprised almost entirely of infographics. To answer the question once and for all, the answer is, beautiful.

In the post “Inconvenient Truth” world, many of us try our best to be conscious of the impact we have on the environment, and designers, even more so. There are companies everywhere boasting how “green” their products and services are, and once you take a deeper look, it’s not as simple as it seems. Is buying a product that claims to be “green” helping the environment? Are designers that choose recycled products doing enough? Or, have we all succumbed to “greenwashing,” the act of marketing things as environmentally sensitive, when they’re anything but?

In today’s data-driven society, it’s easy to forget that we don’t experience our lives in numbers. Instead, we experience our lives in impressions and feelings. Design at its core is meant not only to help us survive, but to make us feel something: perhaps safe, or comfortable, or relaxed, or joyful. Yet in western culture, we resist talking about design in terms of emotions, we prefer geometry and color, zoning, and square footages. How can we get back in touch with the emotions that are at the core of experiencing design?

The word “design” is one of the most intriguing in the English language (says us designers), straddling the line between specific and vague, and causing an unparalleled possessiveness among many creative professions. How do we unpack what it means to all of us, and in the end, is it a word that does creatives harm, or does it do us justice?

It’s official, Hustle Culture is a thing. As young workers enter the workforce, there is a glamorization of overwork. Some are cheering it on, but are we risking the burnout of an entire generation? Gary Vaynerchuk, dubbed by the NY Times as “The Patron Saint of Hustle Culture” may have started it, but it has taken on a life of its own, as Instagram accounts light up with all-nighters, coffee binging contests, and other overwork competitions. What’s the line between seizing an opportunity to make your mark on the world, and just plain grinding?