RWDC

An every day pleasure, the wake up view on Sineu/Mallorca

Day 1 of a 15 days North Spain trip. By ferry from Palma de Mallorca to Barcelona.

SUNDAY MORNING DESIGN THOUGHTS

I'm sitting in Hanover right now and thinking about the question of the expectations that design has to fullfill in the current crises.

In times of crisis, the demands on design increase once again. Then design and designers are faced with a challenge that probably can't be met at all. In our German language, we have the old term "eierlegende Wollmilchsau" for this - no idea how to translate that. In my not entirely serious list, I'll try to capture at least some of the tasks.

What expectations must the design and here products meet for the next few years, among others? What do they definitely need to meet? Let's see:

Is there movement in target buyer groups?

- A majority of people have to save money or have little or no money = so it has to be affordable or "worth the price".

- The middle class, which has not been hit quite so hard by the crisis, may have a guilty conscience about wearing or using too obviously expensive products - so a certain understatement would be good.

- The really rich people don't restrict themselves or restrict themselves to the highest level of luxury. However, the number of designers who are allowed to design for these target groups is limited.

Are there any changes in the group of employers or clients?

- Hey, designers, it's the crisis, money is tight and we can't save on engineering and marketing.

- So as much innovation as possible, please and a maximum profit margin - that's why your fees have to be cut back a bit. But you "artists" earn too much anyway.

And what do the products have to be and be able to do:

- Products must be ecological. In the best case, they should be self-disposing so that users don't make any mistakes in the process.

- The products must not look cheap under any circumstances! None of the target groups wants that!

- The products should of course be beautifully designed.

- They should be made of very good materials. If this conflicts with ecology, the designers must please solve this! After all, that's their job!

- Provided that a software, interaction or AI is present, please a lifelong cost-conscious update! What, that is against the interests of the users? Come on...

- Do not forget the breaking points! We keep the warranty nice and short - not as long as with Korean cars. What they give away in money...Please? As a designer, you strive for the best possible quality? Good joke, humor you have...

- Functionality and usability are more important than ever.

- This also applies to after sales service - but it is so damn expensive.

- Of course, the products should also win design awards. Which awards? Stupid question. Any one of them, which marketing will then ignore anyway. But maybe better a really valuable marketing award! It's a great way to promote the company - or rather the marketeers?

This list can certainly be extended…

Dear designers, please stay true to the original idea that design should solve a problem and serve people. You have already mastered aesthetics at the highest level. You do incredibly good work and the value of your designs for your company and clients is probably many times higher than admitted.

The target group with the highest current constraints may not be the group for the highest value creation for companies, but probably more than others they need well-designed, reliable and inexpensive products, which in the best case also convey an additional emotional value to them. We would call that the social rather than the value-creating task of design. But that can also be a very good investment in the future, can't it

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SUNDAY MORNING DESIGN THOUGHTS

Ich sitze gerade in Hannover und denke über die Frage nach, was Design in den aktuellen Krisen eigentlich leisten muss.

In Krisenzeiten steigen die Anforderungen an das Design noch einmal. Dann stehen das Design und die Designer vor einer Herausforderung, die vermutlich überhaupt nicht mehr zu bewältigen ist. In unserer deutschen Sprache haben wir dafür den alten Begriff der "eierlegenden Wollmilchsau" - keine Ahnung, wie ich das übersetzen soll. In meiner nicht ganz ernst gemeinten Liste versuche ich zumindest einige der Aufgaben zu erfassen.

Welche Erwartungen muss das Design und hier Produkte für die nächsten Jahre unter anderem erfüllen? Was müssen sie auf alle Fälle können? Schaun wir mal:

Gibt es Bewegung in den Käufer-Zielgruppen?

- Sehr viele Menschen müssen deutlich sparen bzw. haben kein oder wenig Geld = also muss es preiswert sein oder eben "den Preis wert".

- Die von der Krise nicht ganz so getroffene Mittelschicht hat vielleicht ein schlechtes Gewissen, allzu offensichtlich teure Produkte zu tragen - also ein gewisses Understatememt wäre gut.

- Die wirklich reichen Menschen schränken sich nicht oder auf höchstem Luxus-Niveau ein. Allerdings ist die Zahl von Designern, die für diese Zielgruppen gestalten dürfen, auch überschaubar.

Gibt es Veränderungen bei den Artbeitgebern bzw. Auftraggebern?

- Hey, Designer, es ist Krise, das Geld ist knapp und am Engineering und Marketing kann schließlich nicht gespart werden.

- Also möglichst viel Innovation und eine maximale Gewinnmarge - da muss eben euer Honorar ausnahmesweise mal stärker gekürzt werden. Aber ihr "Künstler" verdient ja ohnehin zuviel.

Und was müssen die Produkte denn nun sein und können:

- Produkte müssen auf alle Fälle ökologisch sein. Im besten Fall sollten sie sich selbst entsorgen, damit die Nutzer dabei keine Fehler machen.

- Die Produkte dürfen auf keinen Fall billig aussehen! Das will keine der Zielgruppen!

- Die Produkte sollen selbstverständlich schön gestaltet sein.

- Sehr gute Materialien sollen es sein. Wenn das im Widerspruch zur Ökologie steht, müssen die Gestalter das bitte lösen! Das ist doch schließlich ihr Job!

- Sofern eine Software, Interaktion oder KI vorhanden ist, bitte ein lebenslang kostenpfichtiges update! Was, das ist gegen die Interessen der Nutzer? Come on...

- Die Sollbruchstellen nicht vergessen! Die Garantie halten wir schön kurz - nicht so lang wie bei koreanischen Autos. Was die an Geld verschenken...Bitte? Als Gestalter strebt man bestmögliche Qualität an? Guter Witz, Humor hast Du...

- Funktionalität und Bedienbarkeit sind wichtiger denn je.

- Das gilt auch für den After Sales Service - aber der ist so verdammt teuer.

- Designpreise sollen die Produkte natürlich auch gewinnen. Welche Awards? Blöde Frage. Irgendeinen, den das Marketing dann ohnehin ignoriert. Aber vielleicht doch besser einen wirklich wertvollen Marketing-Award! Damit kann man super Werbung fürs Unternehmen machen - oder doch eher für die Marketeers?

Diese Liste lässt sich bestimmt noch sehr gut verlängern…

Liebe Designer, bleibt bitte der ursprünglichen Idee treu, dass Design ein Problem lösen und den Menschen dienen soll. Die Ästhetik beherrscht ihr heute ohnehin schon auf allerhöchstem Niveau. Ihr leistet unglaublich gute Arbeit und der Wert eurer Designs für eure Arbeit- und Auftraggeber ist vermutlich um ein Vielfaches höher als meistens angenommen.

Die Zielgruppe mit den aktuell höchsten Einschränkungen ist vielleicht nicht die Gruppe für die höchste Wertschöpfung für Unternehmen, aber vermutlich braucht sie mehr als andere gut gestaltete, verlässliche und preiswerte Produkte, die im besten Fall auch noch einen zusätzlichen emotionalen Wert vermitteln. Das ist dann eher die soziale als die wertschöpfende Aufgabe von Design. Aber das kann auch eine sehr gute Investition in die Zukunft sein, oder?

Merry Xmas everyone and fingers crossed for a more peaceful year 2023 including a booster for the global (design) economy!

Ralph Wiegmann on LinkedIn: Merry Xmas everyone and fingers crossed for a peaceful year including a… Merry Xmas everyone and fingers crossed for a peaceful year including a booster for the global economy;

MOST URGENT DESIGN CHALLENGE

Design teams or individualists, who dares to redesign FIFA? A global task in the interest of probably billions of soccer fans, soccer players, clubs and organizations - and in the interest of human rights!

Money is abundant there, fair play and cosmopolitanism less so.

The easy part of this task is the appointment of a new president, because probably really ANYONE could fulfill this role better than the actual one.

Seen in Toulon. Not super but much better than many other existing systems.

People are hungry for the new old behavior.....let's hope for the best

Hildesheim, an ancient City with a beautiful market place. My son grew up in a village near by - and I still visit my dentist in the City....

The iF Design Foundation created my own wine selection as a farewell gift.
I appreciate that at lot! Thanks so much!

The final countdown starts tomorrow. 14 last iF days! Thanks so much for your nice book comments. It was sent to 4,000 friends and partners. As it is not offered via bookstores, we will publish a free download version on our Website coming week. Now I am excited if new challenge will come up.

Some of you know that I am a watch enthusiast. I will build my own in future and ordered all components and semi professional tools. But 2 mm tiny screws to fix the movement are really challenging. I need more practice...
What do you think of my no. 1? Of course it's a hobby but as a brand I would use " from time 2 time".

RWDC updated their information in their About section.

April 1998, iF exhibition@HANNOVER FAIR. In 7 days we welcomed 125,000 guests those year.

December 97, Jury iF DESIGN AWARD 98, wonderful jurors, serious discussions but always fun to watch and listen.

April 97, iF award ceremony FAIR

April 1997, iF exhibition FAIR

April 1996, iF DESIGN AWARD ceremony, still more "intimate with 150 guests. Prime Minister Gerhard Schroeder, later German Chancellor, honored the winners - among them Richard Sapper.

Today we have a short break before I go on with my iF review. For the book more than 80 friends and partners shared their memories or messages with me - some are really emotional touching. Three of them had this specific idea: Christopher Boeninger, Karim Rashid and Achim Beine with Anne Jager.

Dezember 1995, jury iF design award 96. I started 2 months before and this was my first experience with designers and the question how to identify and judge on "design excellence". And this is the beginning of my farewell book as well. My 25 year design journey on 260 pages.

1994, iF award ceremony and exhibition at the HANNOVER FAIR. Sottsass, de Lucchi, Colani(!)....still one year for me to join the "family".

December 1994, Jury iF design award 95. See Dieter Rams and Michele de Lucchi.

iF design award Jury in 1992. That was still before my time. Among others we see Dieter Rams, Herbert Lindinger, Herbert Schultes and the wonderful Mai Felipe from Spain.

Dear friends, in the coming weeks and months I will take you on a journey - on my exciting design journey. That is the title of my farewell book. Originally we planned to present it to you at our award night in May in Berlin. I just received the final German layout and the translation is already in progress. Printing is planned for March. 25 years with iF and for design on 260 pages. A combination of my own stories and memories and those of friends and partners from all over the world. More a magazine than "design theories" and plenty of fotos of those 25 years. It helped me a lot to prepare for my farewell and while I was writing, so many amazing moments were freshed up.

Today I start with the very first iF exhibition in Hannover in 1953, the year when iF was found. The unique recovery of the German industry after WW2 had started and the Hannover Fair was the annual place to meet - and design (at that time the German word "Gestaltung" was still used) became a regular part of it. The Spokesperson of the German Industry Association, the porcelain maker Philip Rosenthal, was the driving force behind it and he was supported by Bauhaus Pioneer Wilhelm Wagenfeld. That was probably a lucky moment for design and designers.

In the past 12 months we have worked intensively on creating a new software for online juries. We did not know that Corona would make it necessary so quickly. More than 90 jurors will use it for the very first online preselection AND in step 2 for the final jury of the iF DESIGN AWARD 2021 as well.
Welcome in a different way this year, dear jurors! We look forward to share this new experience with you!

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