Dear Colleagues,



I must remember that Simon’s quote starts as “not only engineers design, all who devise courses of action aimed at changing existing situations into preferred ones…etc”

And he goes down enumerating professions and activities but not even mentioning architects or urban planners in that definition, not to speak of industrial designers or graphic designers long established at the time. 

This is on the third or fourth edition, in the 1990’s, in which Simon, in the preface, claims to have had a special attention in revising that particular chapter “On the Science of Design”. I’m quoting from memory, so be gentle if I messed up the editions or dates. 

So, I’m not claiming that design is only a prerogative of Designers. On the contrary, I assume that design is part of myriads of professions (as Simon defined). 

However, until recent years, when someone had printed in their business card the word “Designer” just bellow his/her name it meant clearly that that person was NOT:



an engineer

an architect

a lawyer

a chef

a hair dresser

a computer scientist

a sociologist

a psychologist

a psychiatrist

a car mechanic

a politician

an artist

a data analyst

a rocket scientist

etc

etc etc



BUT, all these professionals design in Simon’s definition.



Another thing that we should take in consideration is that Simon provides no evidence, proof or justification of his assumption of what design is apart from his convictions (no other authors, no dictionary definitions, no history of design) on what design is and since he do not include architecture, graphic design, industrial design, set design and production design in cinema, we must look at his definition with careful eyes. 

His starting point is what engineers do as “design”. And he is right since he don't want to study a science of design, he wants to study the science in Design. So it’s obvious that whatever “designs” engineers do they should be limited by what Simon considers science. So it is on the design that engineers do, that he find easily the presence of science. 



If we persist on confusing what design is with what designers are (as a disciples or as professionals) we will arrive to a meaningless soup. 



Curiously enough in Webster’s first dictionary in the 1820’s all this is well explained: 



“DESIGN, v.t.[L. To seal or stamp, that is, to set or throw.] 

1. To delineate a form or figure by drawing the outline; to sketch; as in painting and other works of art. 

2. To plan; to form an outline or representation of any thing. Hence, 

3. To project; to form in idea, as a scheme. Hence, 

4. To purpose or intend; as, a man designs to write an essay, or to study law. 

5. To mark out by tokens. 

6. To intend to apply or appropriate; with for; as, we design this ground for a garden, and that for a park. The word design may include an adapting or planning a thing for a purpose, or mere intention or scheme of the mind, which implies a plan. The father designs his son for the profession of the law, or for the ministry. It was formerly followed by to, but this use is now uncommon. 



DESIGN, n. 

1. A plan or representation of a thing by an outline; sketch; general view; first idea represented by visible lines; as in painting or architecture. 

2. A scheme or plan in the mind. A wise man is distinguished by the judiciousness of his designs. 

3. Purpose; intention; aim; implying a scheme or plan in the mind. It is my design to educate my son for the bar. 

4. The idea or scheme intended to be expressed by an artist; as the designs of medals. 

5. In manufactories, the figures with which workmen enrich their stuffs, copied from painting or draughts. 

6. In music, the invention and conduct of the subject; the disposition of every part, and the general order of the whole.” 

(Webster, 1828)”



The first meanings on both noun and verb originated a Profession, the rest are consequences, colloquial instrumental uses of the word. We couldn’t imagine a profession in which you are trained to prepare your son fro the bar (both meanings of bar)



Best regards,

E











Eduardo Corte-Real

PhD Arch.

Associate Professor

Professor Associado com Agregação

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