Dear Don,
I will support you when you say design history is irrelevant facing the
complex problems we have today.
But, I will consider some issues.
First, the very notion of design is not appropriated in the same way
throughout the whole world.
Differences concerning the specific social and cultural history of
different countries, mostly on the South hemisphere, do not provide a
comprehensive understanding of design. So, it seems to me that knowing how
design developed through history is a very concrete way to reach a better
understanding of it, in its relations with engineering, crafts,
architecture and art, among other fields.
Second, to read design classics, and by classics I mean a huge amount of
pieces of work since Daniel Defoe, with his “An essay upon projects”, may
not be a dilettante practice. Of course it can be, but not necessarily. In
texts by Gropius and Moholy-Nagy, for instance, one can find a reasonable
batch of ideas that can base a lot of design theoretical issues of these
days of ours. And also the critics of those authors, like Argán, as well.
All the first American industrial designers wrote wonderful books full of
thoughts and ideas, as a lot of other ones have done it too. These readings
are not precisely history, but they are important historical issues of
design history. But they are also theoretical works. And, as you know,
theory finds its place in history.
So maybe I should agree with you in the sense that design history is
irrelevant when it is lectured or taught as story of facts disconnected to
our reality, as a kind of a glorifying past. But I cannot agree with you,
when it can deeply help a better understanding of design theoretical
construct.
Best regards, and have a wonderful new year!
João
João de Souza Leite | PhD, Professor/ Coordenador TCC 2017 | ESDI/Uerj
Escola Superior de Desenho Industrial/ Universidade do Estado do Rio de
Janeiro
School of Design/ State University of Rio de Janeiro/ Brazil
DRS Design Research Society, member
Rua General Artigas 361 #903 Leblon 22441-140 Rio de Janeiro, RJ Brasil
Telefones: 55 21 2294.3775 / 55 21 9.9768.8608
http://uerj.academia.edu/JoãodeSouzaLeite
Curriculum Lattes:
http://buscatextual.cnpq.br/buscatextual/visualizacv.do?id=K4781268E4
<http://uerj.academia.edu/Jo%C3%A3odeSouzaLeite>
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