Hypothetically, if one of your design's would to be build, what would be the Thank-God-my-teacher-saved-me-from-making-this-mistake mistake? We all have made some bad choices in design and deeply regretted afterwards and blamed them on our lack of sleep or focus while putting it on paper/screen. Lucky for us, most of us are still students, so we're allowed to make mistakes with the twisted aim of actually tripping over them and in the end: improve. However, not everyone is getting these second chances, and before they know it their mistake has become a real life attribute in a rouring city, where it is admired by the everyday reproving eye of the analyst in the crowd, judging: ''you had one job''.
Sometimes the mistake is a cover-up for something even worse. Or, someone was just not having their day. So let's try not to judge, and approach these mistakes as lessons and blessings to become a better designer, thanks to the failure and growth of others.
With the academic year coming to an end, the editorial team is inviting you to reflect on these past months to recognise and appreciate things that we might overlook on a day-to-day basis, as we are all waiting impatiently for the summer break!
We all know about it. It’s in the news every day. We know we should change our behavior and we know we don’t have any time to lose. Yet we still don’t manage to give up on the simplest things. We don’t want to lose our privileges and for sure not relinquish our way of life. We all know that we live in abundance, that overconsumption is not good for our planet with limited resources. Our habits are draining the Earth of its energy. So the question remains how can we change? How can we let go? And will this help us to finally enter a phase where we are not exploitative to our home anymore?
I have been walking amongst the neighborhoods and downtowns of American suburban communities and am noticing the frequency of cracks, potholes, and aging-in-place of infrastructure. These are things we (the user) view as mistakes or imperfections, but the manufacturer and maintenance crew expects. They are known obsolescences which come with time, yet we are surprised anew when we trip on a crack or drive over a hole. I am curious if these have a purpose beyond the physical phenomena which shaped them.