The designer today is asked to solve the seemingly contradictory themes of globalization and individualization. Design originally served to satisfy the sociocultural functions and needs of a region. But in this post-industrial age, information and material things from around the world fill every home, street and city. As such, design today is required to equally meet the needs of people's lives on a global level.
Meanwhile, the increasingly sophisticated consumers in this age of abundance are eager to create their own individualistic life-styles, while at the same time expressing concern for environmental problems bedeviling this planet. They have the sense to preserve a harmonious balance between their individualistic self pursuits and a greater ecological concern that affects the whole globe.
For instance, people will now look carefully at the philosophical stance of a corporation before deciding to purchase its products or use its services. In response to the rising social demands, it has become highly important for industries and business to assert their identities with a clear vision of their social responsibilities.
In reviewing this duality, the realm of design today has exceeded the capability of an individual designer and must now adopt a multifaceted viewpoint. Under this situation, design must not just provide things of physical beauty but to develop and create comprehensively attractive product images while consulting on the very nature of the client corporation.
Design is like medicine. And in recent years, the tendency in Japan is to adopt methods comparable to Eastern medicine, where time is taken to treat the patient through a fundamental review of the patient's overall constitution in order to create a truly healthful and beautiful body from the inside.
The role of design today has expanded to such a point that it necessitates an overall and harmonious viewpoint from an even higher level than before, including ecological, social, anthropological, mental and physical concerns on a global level.
In this age where Western medicine is commonly practiced, ancient traditional medicine developed in China and India is being rediscovered. Design was introduced to the Orient from the West and firmly took root. And it may now be well worth considering the holistic methods and practices developed in the East in seeking the future of design.
Think Visually, Act Graphically!