"The Evolution of Design: A Look at Past, Present, and Future Trends"

Traditional craftsmanship is perhaps the most visible manifestation of intangible cultural heritage. However, the UN Convention 2003 concerns the knowledge and abilities required for crafting rather than the craft items themselves. Therefore, efforts should be made to encourage artisans to continue producing crafts and to share their knowledge and skills with others, especially within their communities, instead of concentrating on preserving craft artefacts (UNESCO, 2022).

Traditional craftsmanship can be seen in many forms, including tools, clothing, jewellery, costumes and props for plays and festivals, storage containers, objects for transportation and shelter, decorative art, ritual objects, musical instruments, household utensils, and toys for entertainment and education. Many of these items, like those made for festival rituals, are only meant to be utilised briefly, but some may become heirlooms passed down from generation to generation. The abilities required to create craft objects range from delicate, meticulous work, like making paper votives, to robust, hardy tasks, like making a durable basket or thick blanket. These skills are as varied as the items (UNESCO, 2022).

Globalisation offers substantial obstacles to the survival of traditional techniques of craftsmanship. Mass manufacturing, whether at the level of major multinational businesses or local cottage industries, may frequently offer commodities needed for daily life at a lower cost in terms of currency and time than hand production. Many artisans are struggling to adjust to increased competition. Environmental and climatic constraints also impact traditional craftsmanship, as deforestation and land clearing reduce the availability of critical natural resources. Even if conventional artisanship becomes a cottage industry, the greater production size may harm the environment (UNESCO, 2022).

As societal conditions or cultural tastes change, the need for complicated craft production may become less pressing, resulting in fewer chances for artists to express themselves. Young people in communities may find the sometimes lengthy apprenticeship required to master many traditional types of crafts too harsh, preferring to work in IT, factories, or the service industry, where the job is less demanding and the pay is usually better. Many craft traditions include trade secrets that should not be shared with strangers. Still, if the family or local community is not interested in learning it, the information may be lost because sharing it with strangers goes against tradition (UNESCO, 2022).

Design thinking is a cutting-edge approach to solving complicated challenges. It centres on the end user and should go beyond just aesthetic considerations to encompass use and function, equally as significant as an object's visual appeal. Contrary to how craft produces this idea, design thinking is a linear, sometimes strict process for engineers and website designers. The issue is often functional when a predicament is initially identified (Uebernickel 2020).

A person can experience pleasure, happiness, and even satisfaction through design, but it can also annoy them or others. We have the power to alter our worldview. To create a further engaging customer experience that can be more pleasurable and less unsatisfying (Spool, 2013). No matter your profession or industry, according to IDEO's Tim Brown, design thinking can be applied to everything. "Open knowledge sharing can democratise design, ultimately making our industry more inclusive and culturally rich" UX Collective 2021. Utilising the needs of your end-user, the design thinking methodology aids in developing creative solutions. It should dispel their notions of either a deity-like designer who is fixated on things, objects, and balance sheets (Brown, 2021) or a pompous industry insider who talks about design incessantly to maintain their position (UX Collective, 2021).

The Collective believe that human-centred design thinking should put optimism and empathy at its core, employing a hands-on approach and prototyping to explore ideas, improve people's quality of life, and inspire creativity. As a result, design should be shared and democratised.

However, Connie Malamed (2018) questions whether one "should believe in something that is overpromoted and exaggerated." To some extent, this is correct; there will be misused and overpromoted people.

According to Malamed, flexibility has both advantages and disadvantages. Design thinking is represented in many different processes. Organisations that place excessive emphasis on the process, which results in a strict structure that cannot innovate or push creativity in a few brainstorming sessions, might confuse people and hijack their interpretation.

This reduces the time for successful experimentation and failure since we gain resilience by learning from our mistakes (Meadows, 2018). Finally, Malamed notes that artisans are concerned that design thinking would supplant conventional craft techniques. However, the evidence shows this is unjustified and false (Malamed, 2018).

Traditional crafts lack developing scientific approaches like experimentation and testing (design thinking), and the craftsperson lacks the necessary education and expertise. Apprenticeships were primarily used for traditional craft production; nevertheless, it asserts that traditional skill is mainly the consequence of practise and experience accumulation and concludes that it is merely a repetition of tradition. But design thinking improves the craft of building things (Li et al., 2019).

By incorporating design thinking into craft creation, traditional crafts are innovated and suitable for the modern age. In contrast to rudimentary thinking, craft workers can analyse problems more comprehensively and logically and offer evidence-based methods for documenting work that reflects a thinking style (Fig 2) (Li et al., 2019).

(Fig 2) Using design thinking to improve a traditional ceramic craft

Wen-Tao Li (2019) conducted a study and discovered that design-oriented scientific thinking (Fig 2) might deepen and enhance design thinking and craft-making (Li et al., 2019). For instance, Del Harrow uses CAD software like Rhino, Grasshopper, and parametric applications to merge traditional pottery techniques like hand-building and mould-making with digital processes using CNC machining (Johnston, 2017).

Jonathan Keep, Digital Pots, uses computer software to develop new ceramic forms and is interested in the unseen arithmetic code that underpins all nature. Keep suggests he has developed a working process that draws inspiration from nature and employs the elements of natural mathematical patterns and structures that underline all forms (Keep, 2020).

Keep is a strong proponent of ceramic 3-D printing (Fig 3) and has a background in traditional fine art. He sees himself as an artist-craftsperson and traditional ceramicist. The limitations of ceramic 3-D printing require a high learning curve; in addition to computer skills and technical expertise, ceramic understanding is also needed (Keep, 2020).

(Fig 3)

The Noise Morphology 2012 was created using a Rapman 3-D printer and stoneware clay.

Ceramic printing has restrictions. Its perpendicular orientation makes it helpful in building up but insufficient for creating flat, curving objects. It also has limited precision and can be slow. While he acknowledges that 3-D printing helps create unique, custom items, he advises that traditional mould-making is still the best option for producing large quantities of the same thing (Keep, 2020).

Since the environment is a fragile and sensitive resource touched by human endeavour, Meister Eckhart, a German theologian, initially proposed in the 13th century that designers for new lifestyles should operate in parallel harmony with natural processes and that anything different is a contemporary ill. However, early in the 1800s, the wealthy upper class who enjoyed outdoors were among the first to object to the timber industries' harsh clearing of ancient woodlands; nevertheless, their protests were driven more by aesthetic considerations than by concerns about the local biodiversity or the benefits from the biosphere system and the natural processes that sustain life (Chapman, 2005).

Early links between developing cultures of excess materialism and environmental disintegration were recognised in late nineteenth-century Britain during the start of the decadent Arts and Crafts period. Expensive consumption patterns produced by the prolific pace of post-industrial revolution production were progressively polluting the environment, raising significant alarm among more enlightened industrialists.

These ideals gradually seeped into the work of influential designers like Richard Buckminster Fuller, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Charles Eames. The work of these early revolutionaries, along with that of a few others like William Morris and Marcel Breuer, provides evidence of the design industry's early tentative steps toward a more sustainable future (Chapman, 2005).

For example, resins are beneficial substances and applications, and they are a viral material used in interior design and jewellery making.

There are many types of synthetic resins.

•          Organic resins

•          Epoxy

•          Vinylester

•          Polyester Resins

Resins are versatile and have numerous applications, including interior design and jewellery creation. Each has unique traits, varying in quality and cost, and has a variety of applications and combinations with Carbon Fiber, Fiberglass, and arid (Kevlar), as well as varying toxicity levels and environmental costs.

(Fig 4) Light and Space movement

Since the 1930s and the advent of new materials, synthetic resin has been chiefly employed in industrial applications such as floor coating and adhesives. However, the rise in the light and space movement (Fig 4) popularised by artists such as Peter Alexander (Fig 5) and Helen Pashgian sparked interest in the 1960s art movement due to its substance's versatility and appearance. Furthermore, there is still a lack of consideration regarding the negative impacts of the hazardous compounds leaching into the environment and human Health. Eco-epoxy resin with environmental credentials is available and is trying to fill this gap (Noss 2021).

(Fig 5) Peter Alexander, Wedge with Puff (Polyester resin) 1968

Brutalism was a utopian ideal where function over form was the foundation. Brutalism was also seen as a speedy means to reconstruct Great Britain's urban centres following the Second World War. It was initially utilised for inexpensive social housing, but it quickly expanded to institutions, colleges, offices, and libraries. This created social and economic barriers instead of concentrating on human and environmental issues, centrally focused on cheap and quick development and branded ugly.

The outdated paradigm of thought fails to perceive the whole picture or consider additional present-day considerations or potential future effects. As an illustration, system thinking is an all-encompassing strategy that aims to handle wicked issues (Fig 6). A comprehensive method of analysis called systems thinking focuses on how parts in a system are related and how this synthesis of several elements' interconnection produces a new impact in the system throughout time (Gandhi 2022).

(Fig 6)

The development of Bio-design, a new technique for producing new materials from sustainable sources, results from system thinking. For instance, creating a miniskirt out of mould or garments from mushrooms is a reaction to the fast fashion industry's extensive use of chemicals and water, which causes pollution, effects on the environment, and climatic events like floods or heat waves, leading to poverty, degradation, et cetera (Gandhi 2022).

Future designs and companies will increasingly focus on environmental centricity and sustainability; for example, Clever and Smith, a family-owned and -operated company, is a creator and designer of handmade pewter. Items are produced by hand. The pewter uses low-energy manufacturing processes that have won honours (Fig 7), is environmentally friendly, non-traction, recycled metal, and is safe for use in food (2019, Trends).

(Fig 7) Certification and Awards

Numerous strategic approaches to sustainable design, from the strange to the banal, have circulated the most innovative creative minds throughout the previous 40 years. The sheer variety of tactics available in the sustainable designer's toolbox demonstrates the multidimensional character of the environmental paradigm and the wide range of options available today. Many of these approaches primarily focus on specific product life cycle stages, known as Design for X (DIX) strategies. DIX concepts, such as design for disassembly, design for recycling, and design for reuse, are increasingly used by the white goods, electronics, and automotive industries, where legal pressure to reduce waste is increasing (Chapman, 2005).

Alternative energy sources, such as solar and human power, local material and process sourcing, foldable objects to save landfill space, supply chain management, zero emissions, compostable products, and a growing interest in edible packaging are a few more unique solutions. The modern sustainable designer also has access to a wide range of low-impact materials, including metals like steel, aluminium, and brass, as well as recycled polymers like polyethene and polypropylene. Further materials include textiles made from plant fibres harvested sustainably, energy-efficient cardboard for structural applications in architecture, biodegradable plastics made from vegetable starch, and a variety of strangely alluring substances to help shape the future (Chapman, 2005).

A new generation of design thinkers with strong environmental agendas is emerging, including Victor Papanek, Nigel Whiteley, Ed van Hinte, and Fritz Schumacher. These designers are aware of their power to stop ecological deterioration through beautiful, ethical solutions (Chapman, 2005).

Many voices are rising from the design community in response to changes, pushing for expanding human-centred design to encompass the environment, the entire product lifecycle (from material extraction through product disposal and breakdown), and the people impacted by that lifecycle.

Life-centred design goes beyond human-centred design to examine the effects on the environment and all individuals involved in the supply chain and product lifespan. This broader view of the entire product lifecycle broadens our understanding of who the stakeholders are. Life-centred design is still in its early stages, and different methods have slightly varied focuses—some are only concerned with sustainability, while others also strive for inclusivity and diversity (Lutz 2022).

Design is not simply constructing an item with a lifecycle defined by human use as designers and product developers. We are releasing something into the world that will impact several ecosystems throughout the product's full existence, from the procurement of its various materials to the production, maintenance, life of use, and final breakdown (Lutz 2022).

Life-centred design has begun to alter our mentality, moving away from merely human-centred design and toward consideration of sustainable economic, environmental, and social solutions (Lutz 2022).

(Fig 8)

All future design stakeholders should consider people, all non-humans (Animals), all plants, and target users and non-users (individuals, communities, and staff members of organisations working during the product's lifetime). Additionally, design stakeholders should also consider Invisible Humans (individuals and communities not involved during the lifecycle but affected by it) and all people (Lutz 2022).

(Fig 9)

All lifeforms (including amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals), insects, and microbes, whether 'proven' sentient or not; on land, in the sea, the air, or underground; domestic, livestock, in captivity, or the wild, should be given further attention. Furthermore, all plant life and ecosystems on the earth should be included (Lutz 2022).

(Fig 10)

The need for sustainability is becoming increasingly urgent and will only worsen with time. Over the past few decades, an industry-wide attitude change toward sustainability has gradually gained momentum. This attitude change can, of course, be ascribed to society's growing ecological consciousness. The industry is altering its procedures to meet the shifting consumer demands due to the predominant influence of legislation on corporate attitudes. The majority of companies only adjust when necessary. As a result, people are becoming more conscious of their purchasing effects on society, the environment, and themselves.

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Bibliography

Chapman, J. (2005) The Progress illusion. In: Emotionally Durable Design. Routledge, pp. 5, 6, 7, 175.

Johnston, L. (2017) Digital Handmade. LONDON: Thames & Hudson

Meadows, M. (2018) From Failure to Success: Everyday Habits and Exercises to Build Mental Resilience and Turn Failures Into Successes. New York: Meadows Publishing., p. 39.

Papanek, V. 1972. Design for the real world. 2nd ed. London: Thames & Hudson ltd., pp. 3, 4.

Spool, J. (2013) Design Is The Rendering Of Intent. Available at: https://articles.uie.com/design_rendering_intent/ (Accessed: 15 October 2021).

Uebernickel, F. 2020. Design Thinking: The Handbook. Singapore: W S Professional., pp. 16, 17.

Li, W.-T. et al. (2019) A Design Thinking-Based Study of the Prospect of the Sustainable Development of Traditional Handicrafts. 11(18), p. 4823. Available at: 10.3390/su11184823 (Accessed: 14 October 2022).

References

Brown, T. (2021) IDEO Design Thinking. Available at: https://designthinking.ideo.com/ (Accessed: 5 March 2021).

Gandhi, S. (2022) How Does Systems Thinking Help Design Thinking? Available at: https://bootcamp.uxdesign.cc/how-does-systems-thinking-help-design-thinking-4553a7133e38 (Accessed: 4 December 2022).

Keep, J. (2020) A Guide to Clay 3D Printing. http://www.keep-art.co.uk/index.htm. Available at: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/viewer.html?pdfurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.keep-art.co.uk%2FJournal%2FTest_Six%2520Clays.pdf&clen=1075403&chunk=true (Accessed: 19 October 2022).

Lutz, D. (2022) Non-human And Non-user Personas For Life-centred Design. Available at: https://uxdesign.cc/non-human-and-non-user-personas-for-life-centred-design-c34d5ddb78f (Accessed: 9 November 2022).

Malamed, C. (2018) A Designer Addresses Criticism of Design Thinking. Available at: https://learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/a-designer-addresses-criticism-of-design-thinking (Accessed: 5 October 2022).

Trends, A. (2019) New Trends Of Pewter Products - Blog. Available at: https://www.pewterworld.co.uk/blog/1_new-trends-of-pewter-products.html  (Accessed: 21 October 2022). 

Noss, H.L. (2021) Is Resin Environmentally Friendly? | SustainabilityNook. Available at: https://sustainabilitynook.com/is-resin-eco-friendly/ (Accessed: 28 October 2022).

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UX collective (2021) The Guide To Design. Available at: https://start.uxdesign.cc/ (Accessed: 15 October 2022).

Figures

Fig 1, 2. Li, W.-T. et al. 2019. A Design Thinking-Based Study of the Prospect of the Sustainable Development of Traditional Handicrafts. 11(18), p. 4823. Available at: 10.3390/su11184823 [Accessed: 14 October 2022].

Fig 3. Keep, J. (2020) A Guide to Clay 3D Printing. http://www.keep-art.co.uk/index.htm. Available at: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/viewer.html?pdfurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.keep-art.co.uk%2FJournal%2FTest_Six%2520Clays.pdf&clen=1075403&chunk=true (Accessed: 19 October 2022).

Fig 4.  Light And Space Movement Overview. (2022) Available at: https://www.theartstory.org/movement/light-and-space/ [Accessed: 9 November 2022].

Fig 5. Peter Alexander | Wedge With Puff (1968) | Artsy (2015) Available at: https://www.artsy.net/artwork/peter-alexander-wedge-with-puff [Accessed: 9 November 2022].

Fig 6. Sarkar, C. and Kotler, P. 2019. The Ecosystem Of Wicked Problems By Christian Sarkar - Global Peter Drucker Forum BLOG. Available at: https://www.druckerforum.org/blog/the-ecosystem-of-wicked-problems-by-christian-sarkar/(Accessed: 4 December 2022).

Fig 7. Trends, A. (2019) New Trends Of Pewter Products - Blog. Available at: https://www.pewterworld.co.uk/blog/1_new-trends-of-pewter-products.html  (Accessed: 21 October 2022). 

Fig 8, 9, 10. Lutz, D. (2022) Non-human And Non-user Personas For Life-centred Design. Available at: https://uxdesign.cc/non-human-and-non-user-personas-for-life-centred-design-c34d5ddb78f (Accessed: 9 November 2022).