"Design is Everybody's Business."

With the festive season comes a chance to chill and soak up some inspiration... and sherry.

I passed by Margaret Howell's store the other day and had my nose pressed up against the window in awe. I love Howell's style - simple, elegant and undeniably British. I did some homework on Howell and it was nice to discover some commonalities: a passion for mid-century design and a strong belief in the importance of good design in the World in which we inhabit. Her ethos reminded me I must get a copy of Form, Function & Design by Paul Jacques Grillo, a great read which really made me think about the importance of design. Grillo's open and honest intro that addresses young designer's is really motivating and makes readers warm to him instantly. Although about architecture, this book has some interesting perspectives about design that I feel are appropriate to graphic designers. Here's a peek at some of Grillo's wise words which I'm sure will inspire you to read more.

"Design is not the product of an intelligentsia. It is everybody's business, and whenever design loses contact with the public, it is on the losing end. For the first time in history, there is today a total disconnection between art and the people. When I say that design is everybody's business, I don't mean that design is a do-it-yourself job. I mean that it affects everybody , at all times , in our lives . Unless we gain a better understanding of design, we shall witness our environment getting steadily worse, in spite of the constant improvement of our machines and tools."

I won't natter for much longer but talking of inspiring reads, I came across this website Quotes on Design which was fun to flick through. There's some good quotes on there from the likes of Paul Rand to David Ogilvy and I've just had a gander and picked up the following quote which is quite appropriate to what I've been wittering on about!

"I love designing, it is something which permeates my whole living, whether it is simply choosing the colour of my clothes in the morning or organising my household. Design to me is akin to beauty, an externalisation of my inner process regarding beauty & contentment with life." Martine Moeykens

Anyway, the reason I want to share these references is because the importance of design often gets lost in the clutter of mediocre, functionless design that gets outputted. It's important that good designers try to resist poorly paid, fastfood style design briefs and both realise and endorse the value and importance that good design plays. I learnt this lesson recently with a goodwill job I did for very little money and it's made me realise not to undervalue my service and not be tempted to thrash out designs for a quick buck.