Design Philosophy

Democratic design.

B05/1026/2013

University of Nairobi

Dr. Lilac Osanjo

13-6-2016

Democratic design.

There are many renowned designers in the world, like Shawn Hernderson, Miles Redd, Elissa Cullman and many more, all of whom have different approaches to their designs. Some are historically experts, some are minimal and some go for comfort (Crewe 2012). “Democratic design” is a concept that has been widely associated with Philippe Starck, one of the best designers in the world. Democratic design is simply the concept of designing products that are functional, fun and affordable.

Philippe Starck believes that a product has to first of all be good before it is beautiful. Even in the slow economic times, Starck’s designs continue to flourish with buyers and companies. This is because he believes in design that provides quality at accessible prices which is his definition of democratic design.

In an interview during a Millan furniture fair, Starck said that people are intelligent. They want a high level of creativity, but they will have less money. Collaborated with Italian design company, Kartell, which specializes in plastic contemporary furniture, where he designed his iconic ghost chair.

Although it might ultimately be Starck's design sense of simple shapes and a strong grasp of proportion that keeps his products popular, his decision to produce designs in less expensive materials shouldn't be overlooked. Any of the designers who decide to do collaborations with mass market retailers like Target and H&M are reaching a broader audience. By doing so, they get closer to becoming truly household names.

Why Democratic Design is Important

William Gibson said that the future is already here and it is only not distributed evenly. Whether he actually said it or not is up for debate, but like most famous quotes, the reason it is still around is because there is a fair amount of truth in it (Brown 2013). In addition, the future does not just arrive but it is people who design it. However, it is sad to say that most of the things that are designed with real attention and care is unaffordable to the average people. This means that we are designing a future for a small group of people hence less democratic. It is less equitable as well because things that pass for future-focused, innovative design are often aimed at a few number which is honestly a loss to everyone (Brown 2013).

If people really believe that design is meant to actually help people and improve the world, then there is no point in producing luxurious or wasteful design that only a small slice of the population can afford and hence benefit from it (De Botton 2016). The oil tycoons and the likes of Bill Gates may be living ‘designed’ lives, but what’s there for the rest of us? The rest of us, live in a modern consumer society. Unlike the Victorians, we don’t buy furniture to last generations. Instead, we consume individually: quickly, easily and compulsively. For the most part, design doesn’t present a future vision of how we would aspire to live — it’s a momentary choice between gloss or matte, chrome or plastic. Design’s outstanding ambitions are lost amongst the day-to-day mix of consumption and mass production (Brown 2013).