Designers must have rationale. Designers must do things for a reason. Designers must know why. But is this always a good thing? What happens when something just is? I would say, the majority of the time, maybe even 90% of the time, a designer must know why. But there are times when having to know the why ruins the purity. It shackles an idea. Walls off an interpretation. Silos the execution. If it feels like your rationale is doing any of these, best to just let it go. Best to just let it be what it is. That should be enough.
MEX > OMA: Enrique Norten
Design Alliance Omaha is back with one of our signature lectures. This year we welcome Enrique Norten, Mexican architect and principal of the design firm TEN Arquitectos. Projects as places where senses and meanings are accumulated: planning and scale, the architecture and its objects, the city and its complexity.
I do love a good, thought-provoking lecture from an esteemed architect. One constant is the multiplicity and action in public space, as the bridge, between people and their environment. Quite an impressive set of projects. Taking place the day after Election 2016. I’m expecting the mood to be celebratory.
Special sidenote. It’s the 10th anniversary of Design Alliance Omaha. To everyone who has ever attended a lecture, Pecha Kucha OMA, or generally advocated for design in the middle of everywhere, we’d like to extend our gratitude. We couldn’t have come this far without you.
Enrique Norten
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha
Campaign Buttons!
Here’s a little side (Action Backed) project. We asked our friends to help us make some buttons. They are somewhat thematically tied to this year’s presidential election. Cody took the lead on this one.
Artists: Eric Nyffeler, Brett Stenson, Ellen Wilde, Steven Sczepanik, Murphy Phelan, Jonny Ashcroft, Orion Janeczeck, Matt Carlson, Justin Kemerling, Cody Peterson.
Fill out this form, we’ll send you 16 buttons.
What makes a good conference?
Last week I attended the Affect Conference in Portland. A 2-day event about the work, culture, and design of social change, with a dash of volunteering. It also had childcare, ASL interpreters, reserved wheelchair and accessibility seating, gender-neutral restrooms, a quiet area, code of conduct and photo policy, and a “no laptop” rule during talks. In short, very thoughtful, very inclusive.
The speaker lineup was equally as thoughtful. Gamers, activists, developers, and designers sharing stories of gender identity, gaming for good, the ethics of care, and designing government to be better. When once you choose to live a life devoted to social justice, how your life will never be the same. How we are not saviors but servants. Why we must take care of ourselves first. And my story, on the 6-year tale of the design side of the #NOKXL campaign. A full schedule of talks that went down so many roads, some to a firm destination, and others with plenty to still think about and work on.
I think that’s what I enjoyed most about the conference. It wasn’t just a design conference. It wasn’t just a tech conference or an activist conference. It was a social change conference and that can be reached by so many means. Different talents, career paths, issues, and causes. In whatever city you happen to live in, dealing with the local and national politics of the day. We can all get there. And the stories that are shared from the place of social change are as varied as the people living them.
This makes for a diverse conference. It challenges you to never get settled in. It keeps you on your toes as ideas you don’t really know about are discussed and the ideas you think you know well, have new light shed upon them.
A good conference is also just long enough. Perhaps too brief. As you are still looking for more. Which means you have been spurred on to get back to work and continue the fight in whatever way your days take you.
Something Called Progress
The 6th annual poster show for Nebraska Appleseed is all set. This year we have 8 posters to be unveiled at The Good Apple Awards on October 13th. This year also marks the 20th anniversary of Nebraska Appleseed. A marvelous feat for a wonderful organization who continues to stand up for justice for all Nebraskans, year after year.
Ready to Affect
OMA > PDX
This week I’m hitting the road to PDX! I’ll be speaking at the Affect Conference on Friday. Here’s the schedule of events. My slides are done. The flow feels good. I’ve practiced a bit. Feeling solid overall. I’ll be sharing the story of #NOKXL design. Based on our case study, it looks at the high points of a six year project. From the land of rural Nebraska to the steps of the White House, it’s a tale of people power, relentless organizing, and working for social change. There’s also a healthy does of typography, color, texture, etc. It’s a design conference after all. Really looking forward to hanging out in Portland and experiencing a 2-day event on work, culture, and design for social change.
It’s not quite survival mode, but it’s close
When it’s lingered too long. When it just won’t let go. When it clings, and clings, and clings. When that happens, there’s a switch that goes on. Similar to Sylvester Stalone’s switch in Over the Top that makes him one hell of an arm wrestler. This switch puts design into hyperdrive deliverable mode. When that happens, there’s less compromise and there’s less time for feedback. When that happens, it’s head down, nose to the grind stone, grinding out whatever needs to be made. Expertise takes over. Knowing the best way to do it and just doing it takes over. Buff, tweak, finalize, send. Done and done.
