Hi all,
When I read Chris's post, part of which ran:
> It is probably true that the distinction is blurred but that is a realistic blurring. Certainly there are many artists who operate in something like an industrial or factory mode (As Ken points out this has always happened), there are craftspeople whose practice blurs into industrial production and there have been industrial designers who were not much concerned what happened to their work once the ideas were on paper. The growth of technologies that give artists and designers control of production has made it less likely that anybody could find work without a sound grasp of the technical and organisational practicalities of their arts.
it struck me that it wasn't so much a blurring of disciplines, but rather that
individuals could just be using different disciplines. I think of it as
rather like left-brain/right-brain. My understanding of how that works is
that we don't use both sides together, but rather alternate. We're not
*conscious* of the alternation (one sees it in fMRI studies), but it seems to
happen. Also like protocol analyses in engineering design, that seem to
suggest engineering designers alternate between "synthesis" tasks and
"analysis" tasks, without really being aware of it.
Could it be that the "blurring" of disciplines is just an alternation of
"roles" each with a distinct thinking style?
And on Ken's notion (which I share) of the difference between art & design:
has anyone considered some kind of survey of artists and designers, to find
out if/how this difference plays out in 'real life'? I should think that would
make a fascinating grad thesis.
Cheers.
Fil
Ken Friedman wrote:
> Dear Chris,
>
> The blurring lines of different practices are a genuine sign of
> UNISCIPLINED practices. The kinds of artistic practices that obtained
> before the 1800s and since the 1960s do have much in common with design
> practices.
>
> This is different to the claims in the article cited, however, since the
> common point is group practice rather than solitary creation.
>
> But there is a second issue, and this is a crucial distinction between
> art and design. In art, one sets out to solve artistic problems that the
> artist sets for himself, herself, or their group. In design, we set out
> to understand and solve a problem for a legitimate problem owner. The
> problem owner may be an individual, an organization, or a constellation
> of stakeholders. The nature of our success as designers depends in great
> part on how well we meet the needs of those who bring us problems to solve.
>
> That's a simple way to put it, of course, since we may sometimes be
> called on to find, restate, or redefine the problem -- perhaps to ask
> the legitimate problem holder to reconsider or reframe the desired outcome.
>
> Altogether, though, design always includes multiple participants on the
> creative side of the enterprise. This is a contrast with art, that may
> or may not do so. An artist can say, "I succeeded" at will -- much like
> Alfred Jarry placing a toothpick between his thumbnail and the flesh of
> his finger, holding it up with a satisfied exclamation as his last
> gesture. For a designer to succeed, the process must serve the needs of
> all relevant stakeholders.
>
> Yours,
>
> Ken
>
> p.s. This post involved no cheap plugs. This is not an advertisement for
> the 2008 DRS Conference, UNDISCIPLINED. If I intended to advertise the
> conference that will take place from July 16 to 19 in Sheffield, I would
> suggest that people visit the conference web site at
>
> http://drs2008.designinquiry.wikispaces.net/
>
> But I would never do anything like that.
>
> --
>
> Chris Rust wrote:
>
> So I see no distinction and that's one of the reasons why I am
> interested in exploring the confusion of disciplines in this summer's
> DRS conference. (cheap plug)
>
>
--
Prof. Filippo A. Salustri, Ph.D., P.Eng.
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
Ryerson University Tel: 416/979-5000 x7749
350 Victoria St. Fax: 416/979-5265
Toronto, ON email: [log in to unmask]
M5B 2K3 Canada http://deseng.ryerson.ca/~fil/
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