Skip to main content

Designing Design Character

 Designing Design Character by Melis Senova:

 

https://pages.thishuman.com/products/design-character-course-pwyc

 

The importance of the focus of this class on Design Character cannot be overstated. Designers are agents serving the interest of others through their personal actions and  therefor good character counts in design. 

 

As you know an exceptional scientist does not need to be of good character to make great discoveries. Artists do not need to be of good character to create great works of art. They can be miserable human beings without compromising their professional work. Designers on the other hand must be of good character because they have a fiduciary relationship with others who they work with and on behalf of. 

 

The relationship between good designers and those they work on behalf of is a two way relationship. Unlike empathy – a one-way relationship – the service relationships involved in designing are vulnerable to poor character on the part of the designer because they are two-way relationships. 

 

The seminal question then is how does good design character get designed into designers? Typically, formal education in design does not touch the challenge of character designing or building at all. Academic programs in design avoid any focus on character design including the military, governmental and other organizations. Most often courses or training in character design are pejoratively dismissed as ‘self-help’ or ‘naval gazing’. 

 

The ability to design your own character is necessary and essential for good designing, particularly on behalf of stakeholders. Courses like this need to be elevated — not just for design professionals but all professionals.  

 

Melis is an excellent resource in this regard. She is a master guide in character design.

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

the 'learning way'

  the 'learning way' Mastery-Learning in Systemic Design Shuhari Aikido master Endō Seishirō shihan stated: "It is known that, when we learn or train in something, we pass through the stages of shu, ha, and ri. These stages are explained as follows. In shu, we repeat the forms and discipline ourselves so that our bodies absorb the forms that our forebears created. We remain faithful to these forms with no deviation. Next, in the stage of ha, once we have disciplined ourselves to acquire the forms and movements, we make innovations. In this process ,  the forms may be broken and discarded. Finally, in ri, we completely depart from the forms, open the door to creative technique, and arrive in a place where we act in accordance with what our heart/mind desires, unhindered while not overstepping laws." Shuhari  (Kanji: 守破離 Hiragana: しゅはり) is an evolving Japanese martial art concept that describes the stages of learning leading to mastery. It has also been applied to other...
Post a Comment
Read more

educational trends

  As I work on starting a new school in 'systemic design' I have discovered that the trends against serious professional and scholarly endeavors are quite real—an extension of the American anti-intellectualism that fuels some of the political agendas in the US nowadays—probably not the best time to try something like creating a new educational experience. Still... This substack by Ted Gioia is an example of some of the trends against investing in serious educational/professional ventures: https://lnkd.in/gxSbniAg The challenge is to find those who do not want to participate in these trends. Gioia and others claim that they are out there. I believe that to be true. The question is how to network with them. They do not, by definition, reside in echo chambers.
Post a Comment
Read more