Industrial Design Or Architecture

I recall when a Friend of mine told me he'd like to Study Industrial Design, the first thing that came to my mind was 'what the hell is that?' Funny enough, he didn't even know what it meant, but because the term 'Design' was there, that was why he wanted to study it.

I had to do a lil Research from Wikopedia to find out the meaning and I discovered that they are very Creative  but 'Inconsiderate' People. Erm, don't get me wrong, industrial design is one  Very Great Course for the Very Creative Person: infact, Industrial Design sometimes, require a higher level of Creativity than Architecture.

A very obvious Relationship exist between Industrial Design and Architecture: this is the Application of Creativity in design.

For the Records, DESIGN is the creation of objects and places having practical functions which are intended to be looked at or used.

CREATIVITY can be defined as the development of ORIGINal Ideas to solve practical problems.

INDUSTRIAL DESIGN can be defined as the use of both applied art and applied science to improve the aesthetics, ergonomics, functionality, and/or usability of a product, and it may also be used to improve the product's marketability and even production. Wikipedia.org

Back to the issue, the Industrial Designer is one who takes into consideration issues we Architects also consider, but the differnence between we and them is the ORDER at which those considerations are taken.

Let me explain, the Basic Issues that MUST be put into consideration before any work is designed are:

-Economics

-Functionalty and

-Aesthetics

 

Both Careers do put into use these Factors but where they differ is in the Order to which they are applied.

For instance, we Architects consider in this order:

-Economics: this comes first because we Architects design for people-most of which are not extra Rich,therefore we need to put into consideration the Budget we are given an Make the best of it.

-Function: lemme put it this way, guys,who will you prefer for a Wife:a beautiful girl with that's not Smart or a 'Not so beautiful' but smart Girl?

The answer is obvious!

So in the same vein, a beautiful building or design that is not Functional is "(@@#%>"<<whatever that means!

-Aesthetics: If Aesthetics wasn't a requirement for Architecture, then Engineers would have more rights to believe that they are better than we Architects.

Aesthetics is Beauty,Full stop! This however dwells on some Boring things tho' known as Principles of Architecture.

So, every Design MuSt be Beautiful, or it's just some other Engineers' work!

For Industrial Design on the other hand, the Order they make use of is:

-Aesthetics

-Function

-Economics

They make use of this order because most of the time, Industrial Designers (obviously) design for Industries, so there is not much of a Money issue.

They design products to be sold, so first, it has to be beautiful so as to attract Customers/Consumers, it then has to be Functional before the issue of Price comes in.

More so, Industrial Designers just design! The effects of their design is the Headache of the Developers. For example, an Industrial Designer can design a Car, but the Mechanical Engineers will them have to Brain storm do as to see how the Engines and the rest fits into that design.

So if you have industrial Design in mind as your Career Choice, I'd say you should go ahead-if you're sure it's you're calling.

...and yeah,you're Welcome.

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The Usefulness Of CAD

Computer Aided Designs (CAD) refers to the use of Softwares in a computer to produce drawings / designs.

Before the Advent of CAD, Good Architects have been making good drawings, but the problem was that it took a pretty long time to have that drawing completed especially if it's a work that involves a lot of Details.

This posed a challenge as no Construction work can start except he architect is done with his design. More so, the use of Repetitive patterns can cause a problem because there is a high possibility of Inconsistency being revealed as such patterns if being drawn.

So, Generally, there have been Limitations in Hand drawings; for I instance, if an Oil Rig is to be designed, how in the World does the Architect want to archives that-hand drawn??? It will take 'Forever' before he will be done with it.

The advent of CAD however, has brought a drastic Change to the World of design on its own: instead of one having to waste 2-3 days working on a Design for a Residential Building, he can have it completed in a day with a 3-D Rendering image of the Design to Complement!!'

That came out recently tho', because it can be said for CAD or any other thing whatsoever that hasn't undergone improvements before reaching the level of development and Flexibility when it comes to human use that it is now.

Not withstanding, the issue is, one has to first learn the Software before he can make use of it. The good thing however is, the softwares are related to the Architectural field, so all one has to do is to find that tool with the ability to do that job he'd have done with his hands, and use his mouse-instead of his hands- to perform that operation.

I usually told my Students while I was instructing them on the use of AutoCAD, that CAD generally is a 'Lazy Tool'. The Laziest Of them I know of is ArchiCAD.

ArchiCAD is an Architectural Software that aids the production of Architectural Drawings with great ease! Insomuch as you are creating your plan, a Section, Elevation, and 3-D view of your drawing is automatic created for you!

The commonest CAD software is AutoCAD and it is commonly called the Mother Of All CAD Softwares: this is because most users of other CAD softwares ( not restricted to Architectural CAD Softwares)sometimes move their drawings to AutoCAD for Finishing Touches.

In Summary, CAD has generally proven to give a Better end result to our designs than Hand Drawings. This is because it(CAD) eliminates errors in the process of producing your drawings.

It's Obvious: CAD use is Better than Hand a Drawings...You're Welcome.

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Embracing Psychology In Our Designs

It's really interesting how oft time, Architecture tends to bring together contrasting Concepts-even from other fields- to form a singular concept. The topic that I'd like to discuss is one of such Brought-in concepts.

Like I always say: Design Is Everything; Meaning, every good work(not only Architecture) are Designs.

So by Definition, Design is the Creation of Objects and Places having Practical Functions which are intended to be looked at or used.

Psychology on the other hand, as defined by Simon Norris,

(a design consultancy that combines psychological insight with design) is “the science of behavior and the mind". When design and behaviour match, the design will be superior,” he explains.

So, from these two definitions, one can easy conclude that Psychology of Design has to do with the way design relates with Human Behaviors.

However, today’s use of psychology in design needs to go beyond those basic theories learnt at college, believes Andy Budd, founding partner and managing director at digital design consultancy Clearleft. Understanding of cognitive behaviour, for instance, can hugely affect a design, and tools such as Stephen P Anderson’s Get Mental Notes card deck can help designers apply psychology to the creative process.

“To be a good designer in today’s society, you need to have an understanding of psychology, human behaviour, and the little shortcuts, the little quirks, in the way people operate,” he says. “Then you can use them to make it easier for people to engage with your products.” 

From the Audi A3 Advert, the designer intentional placed the text using that particular Font style so as to force the Viewer to slowly read each words instead just glossing around it. This advertising concept tends to leave a more lasting impression concerning the product in the viewer's mind.

Great design requires great psychology, agrees Simon Norris; I am also in agreement to this fact in that we design mainly for Humans but before we design, we have to understand the way Humans will relate to that design. If we can get that understanding, it will make it easier for us to design what Humans will like.

Paul Davies, who was a psychologist before becoming a designer, runs psychology-led design consultancyBehaviour, also believes that an understanding of behaviour can make design more effective. “Psychology has a huge impact,” he argues. “Unlike artists, designers have to make something for effect; an artist can start a project without a brief, but a designer has to have a purpose and they have to do that for a particular audience.” 

Overtime, Psychology has played an important role in the design of Structures. For instance, a Credible Example will be James Lind's Article on Designing for Autism(Autism is a Psychiatry term that some individuals possess that involves the absorption with the self, an inability to treat people as people.)

In his article, he puts off the ideologies that the Royal College of Physicians and the British Academy thought was the cure to Scurvy and made them understand-after conducting his test- that Fresh Fruit was indeed the Cure.

More importantly, through his Article, we were made to understand that in our design, we are made to understand that design truest affects behavior, sensory regulation, and/or social integration.

Another instance will be in the Health Sector: 

Hospital walls are usually covered in colors such as white, green and blue. There is an explanation behind these choices and it has to do with the psychological effects these colors have.

White is the most common color to be seen on a hospital wall. And that is due to the peaceful and calm mood it provides. Other reason for choosing it is the fact that it denotes cleanness. It implies sterility, which has the effect of making patients feel reassured. This is also why doctors and nurses wear white uniforms.

Blue and green are considered to be the most relaxing and refreshing colors, promoting peaceful atmosphere which encourages concentration. Designers, psychologists and feng-shui experts, they all tend to consider that shades of blues and greens make us fell calmer, more balanced and less emotional. Because green has a calming effect on our nerves, hospital waiting rooms and even psychiatric wards are painted in this color. And surgeons wear green scrubs for the same reason. As for blue, it has often been noticed that children in pain are put in hospital rooms painted in light blue due to its healing effect it conveys.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/4526498

One of the common features in The Design of Churches, which is under Christian Architecture, is the use of High ceilings which creates this Feeling of Humility or Reverence before God. That's Psychology and Design in an Inter-play here.

Many More instances exist in the use Psychology in Design...so next time you want to design, think of how Human will relate to your design: if the Relationship is Positive, then you're on the right track.

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