michellehenry’s Weblog

The future of Apple is in 1960s Braun

Digital design has gone beyond the screen, and you can’t stuff it back in. Steven Heller emphasized the fact in chapter eleven that with the evolution in technology the opportunities are endless. Interaction in graphic design is not restricted to those places large enough to walk through, or those incorporating mechanical or digital technologies. It is true to say that with larger scale graphics, the opportunities for interaction have increased and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. I thought it was a very interesting but realistic view how Heller mentioned that in the future students would be taking classes in “invisible information design,” “building-sized interface design,” and “really tiny screen design.”

In Heller’s interview with Adam Greenfield, I think he asks an imperative question about ubiquitous design,

“Will we be ready for it? Will designers be ready for it? Can designers make sense of it and turn it into something beautiful?”

When dealing with ubiquitous computing, ordinary objects are being reimagined as places where facts about the world are gathered, considered, and acted upon. It has definitive centralization of accommodating the needs of multiple users in the mediums of both three-dimensional space and time. This realm of design can have both positive and negative effects. The fact that these systems all communicate with each other adjusting them automatically with the user is a level of design that is adapting to new technologies. On the other hand, everything must seamlessly work together and there are few designers who can create this type of system. Adam Greenfield gives a positive outlook when giving advice stating that first we must learn to understand complex systems. “How do cities work?” Why do we live in them?” Why do traffic lights work the way they do?” I think that this relates more that just interactive design. In order to understand any aspect of design we must learn to adjust and master the environment in order to be ready and able to encompass change. As technology becomes more widespread and inevitable, the ability to acclimatize with it will make the difference between success and failure.

Turning pages, refolding a map or filling in a form could all in a sense all be interactive, but it is true to say that with large-scale graphics, the opportunities for interactive increase. It isn’t all in the logic that there is a greater scope for the inclusion but for the embracement of technological software. Interactive design should blend in with human activity, to enable users and viewers to interact with one another, or to respond to the needs of users and viewers. Digital signage and motion graphic design are clearly becoming a preferred format for conveying information, Cavan Huang expresses. He is a digital designer for Time Warner working with an internal network of advanced projection, plasma screens, media walls, and lighting systems integrated throughout the company. Most of the content he creates is digital signage that can be as simple as an animated logo promoting a sponsor or as complex as a short motion-graphics-based narrative announcing an event.  He allowed himself to adapt with the changing technologies and that led him to the prestigious position he now holds at the Time Warner Center. He also mentioned that he gets inspiration and ideas from a variety of sources- including poster designs, modern architecture, films, music videos, and galleries/museums. 

The branding of an interactive identity has its appeal, as long as the idea behind it is strong enough to stand without the sense of being future-focused. I think that interactive design has the opportunity to formulate into a specific genre of design that keeps building on like layers until the day where everything may become paperless. The rapid increase in popularity and interest could stem up opportunities in every field. It is also exciting because no one really knows any answers at this point. Some of the screens and networks don’t even have names today, and in the near future people are going to be working and specializing in them. It is a valid point that Heller makes in the whole chapter that in all the excitement, we must be careful in choosing sides. Interactive design is breaking out of almost every traditional format I have been taught and in order to conform to the industry I am learning and reading to be up to date on new information and technology.