There's More To Life Than Design

The latest of the irregular discussions I take part in left a number of the participants, including me, questioning the things we previously professed a passion for and the motivation for doing the things we do.

The designer who stated at the last meeting that only people who have graduated from design schools should be allowed to become designers admitted that he said it because, in his own words, he ‘felt talentless and had no passion for what he was doing’. In short, he had been pushed into design by an overbearing father and, irrationally, began to rail against those who didn’t study but ended up as designers. Mouths were literally agape as he finished by saying he was sick of all the pretension and bullshit that surrounds design. ‘Just look at us,’ he concluded, ‘why do we feel that design is so important that we need to get together in little groups and talk about it?’

There was an awkward silence before somebody asked what he wanted to do.

‘Hiking. I love hiking. I used to read design magazines and tell myself I was enjoying them, but I love reading hiking magazines. It might sound geeky, but it’s true. Don’t get me wrong, I still like nice looking things, be it furniture, buildings, clothes, whatever, but at the weekend I want to surround myself with hills and fresh air, not furniture and people constantly competing, backstabbing and ignoring you because you’re not ‘famous enough’.’ [article continues below]

Nobody seemed to know what to say, so he asked us what we enjoyed doing in our free time, with surprising results. People I thought lived and breathed design and architecture expressed hitherto hidden loves for gardening, opera, bowling, computer games, boxing, foreign languages, boats, beekeeping and chess. These people who I had felt awkward around at first, as if they would somehow expose me as a fraud for having not studied design, suddenly felt much closer to me. Recently I had been questioning why I liked design and why I found it interesting, to the extent that I wondered if I really did like it, whether I had confused an interest in nice design with an interest in the process of design and the people who do it. Did I really care who designed that nice looking chair or was it enough that it was nice looking? Did I go to design shows because I really wanted to be there or because I felt that I should be there?

The meeting was the most animated one to date. We were challenged to answer questions honestly and really say what we felt. I was asked what magazines or websites I really enjoyed reading on a regular basis. Answering honestly, I said the only magazines I really enjoy reading regularly are Surfing, Surfin’ Life and Surfer. Asked what I would rather do at the weekend, go to a design show or go surfing, I went for surfing without hesitation.

Similarly, one renowned designer said he rarely read design magazines or websites, preferring those with environmental themes, while a graphic designer said he drew inspiration from skateboarding and snowboarding – his two loves which none of us were aware of. Five of the twelve participants said they preferred reading SFTE when we mentioned something about the environment, surfing, skateboarding or an aspect ofJapan. Looking at the site statistics closely, I was surprised. Many of the more popular posts/articles were not about design.

Two hours flew by. People who had seemed listless and perfunctory when talking about the meaning of design or debating who the best designer was were suddenly lively and spirited. A person I had considered incredibly pompous at previous meetings was asking my advice about home-composting and paper-reduction techniques with keen interest, while a forty-something architect and I lightheartedly debated the pros and cons of shortboards and longboards.

The designer who had got us started on this track announced that he was going to quit his job and seek work doing something connected with hiking and the outdoors. Not everybody wished him well, but the majority of us did. As we were leaving, he asked if SFTE had become the website I wanted it to be. I said that I didn’t really know. I still enjoy supporting young designers, which was one of the original aims. Perhaps I listened to other people too much concerning other aspects. It's still a privilege to get email from talented designers, but other correspondence is making me question my motivation. I get a lot of email asking about the environmental projects I am involved in, or people asking me where there is a good skateboard ramp or surfing spot close to Tokyo. I get email asking about Japanese culture, what it’s like to live here, what advice I would give to somebody wanting to visit or thinking about moving here.

I wasn't the only one who left with more questions than answers. Perhaps readers have some suggestions?

Comments

[Dimitri]

I wish him good luck with hiking. The lesson is to try to do what you like, surely? It's tough sometimes, but I think worth it. It's not unusual to like design and, for example, surfing in my opinion. I come to SFTE usually for design, but I also like other articles here.