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Second day was a full day packed with provocative speeches and hot taboo topics.
Let’s start with John Maeda, the President of Rhose Island School of Design (RISD).
Design Education
 John Maeda, President of RISD Here is what John said:
Design + Art
= Creating solutions to meaningfully asked questions
Technology + Business
= Using new possibilities for customers
Design + Technology + Business
= Using new possibilities to create solutions for customers
Design + Art + Technology + Business
= Using new possibilities to create solutions to meaningfully asked questions for customers
All the discussion about “design thinking”, designers solving complex problems, designers role in corporations, got me thinking about the definition of design. How do we raise design awareness and the standards of design to the level where designers are treated as true professionals and as equals to other professionals like engineers, programmers, lawyers and doctors?
Maybe designers can’t be treated seriously because there are no standards to define our profession. Should there be standards? And what are those standards? And who determines them? Maybe there is a need for legislation similar to the interior design or architecture profession. If we have such high regards for design and expect designers to “change” the world and designers are the “catalysts” for innovation, then treat us with respect, dignity and as equals.
Continue reading “DMI Conf. Day 2 Recap: Design Education, Empathy, Sustainability, Sex & Sensibility, Health & Coding.” →
I am a HUGE fan of Virgin. I love Richard Branson. His no nonsense yet playful gutsy approach to business has always inspired me to be true to myself, regardless of all the distracting forces of conformity on how businesses should be run.
 Joe Ferry, Head of Design, Virgin Atlantic. Image courtesy of DMI. To see how the creative team of Virgin Atlantic led by Joe Ferry, use design to differentiate the Virgin brand and placed the company as one of the most innovative airline company in the world, is simply remarkable. With a bit of humor and play, the design team carried their brand vision from print to the interiors of the plane, their clubhouses, all the way through their TV commercials, without ever compromising the details, quality and experience of the brand.(Check out this Q&A with Joe Ferry from WallPaper* Magazine)
 An in-cabin shot of Ferry's crowning glory, the Virgin Upper Class deck. Image from WallPaper*.
 The Designers Accord We are honored to be part of The Designers Accord’s mission.
(This is an excerpt from their website. )
Mission
The Designers Accord is a global coalition of designers, educators, and business leaders working together to create positive environmental and social impact.
Adopters of the Designers Accord commit to five guidelines that provide collective and individual ways to integrate sustainability into design. The Designers Accord provides a participatory platform with online and offline manifestations so that members have access to a community of peers who share methodologies, resources, and experiences around environmental and social issues in design.
Continue reading “Mel Lim has adopted The Designers Accord” →
“Don’t let your ego get too close to your position, so that if your position gets shot down, your ego doesn’t go with it,” – Colin Powell.
“Only a life lived for others is a life worth while.” – Albert Einstein.
 Gary Huswit, Director of Objectified Finally, Objectified arrived in SD. Joe and I along with Erika and John from Delphine, went to Museum of Contemporary Arts in La Jolla to watch the premiere, presented by the local AIGA SD and Gary Huswit, the director of the film.
Objectified is a documentary design film directed by Gary Huswit, whom also directed Helvetica.
About Objectified (excerpt from it’s website):
Objectified is a feature-length documentary about our complex relationship with manufactured objects and, by extension, the people who design them. It’s a look at the creativity at work behind everything from toothbrushes to tech gadgets. It’s about the designers who re-examine, re-evaluate and re-invent our manufactured environment on a daily basis. It’s about personal expression, identity, consumerism, and sustainability.
 Movers and shakers on Objectified What we love:
It’s about time that we address product design, consumerism and the responsibilities the impact designers have in our world. I am not going to give away the content of this movie, as I encourage you watch this film yourself. But we loved the part where a really great designer from one of the most innovative companies in the world, questions and ponders how the products he had designed in the past are now probably in landfills. It’s a very rare look at the truth and struggles which we designers have: what to design, how to design, and what impact our designs/products have on our environments and society. The film offers us insightful discussions from various speakers on the need our of greedy society to constantly produce, buy and make; and the definition of good design and the experience it creates.
Continue reading “Objectified: Review” →
What a week filled with parties, events and design. Not to mention food, drinks and designers (mostly dressed in black!).
My girlfriend, Cindy Ng from Origami Bijou, party hopped from one design event to the next, eager to discover THE next hottest thing. There were tonnes of cool products and ideas; but only a few really stood out and made it into my “innovative” list.
 Powerkiss Jazz Chair
An excerpt from Inc. Magazine 30th Anniversary Special Issue, April 2009.
“How do you define entrepreneurship?” Bo Burlingham asked.
“I take a broad view of it. The traditional definition – founding an entity designed to make money – is too narrow for me. I see entrepreneurship as more of a life concept. We all make choices about how we live our lives. You can take a paint-by-numbers approach, or you can start with a blank canvas. When you paint by numbers, the end result is guaranteed. You know what it’s going to be, and it might be good, but it will never be a masterpiece. Starting with a blank canvas is the only way to get a masterpiece, but you could also blow up. So, are you going to pick the paint-by numbers kit or the blank canvas? That’s a life question, not a business question,” – Jim Collins.
“If you are successful, it is because somewhere, sometime, someone gave you a life or an idea that started you in the right direction. Remember also that you are indebted to life until you help some less fortunate person, just as you were helped”.
- Melinda Gates, valedictory speech, Ursuline Academy, 1982
I am so thrilled to be part of Décor 8 guest blog a few weeks ago. You can check out the full blog entry here at Décor 8. I was thrilled and excited to be part of such dynamic design blog!!
 Décor 8 guest blog post by Mel Lim
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