Underneath It All

When people view design, they view function. It is the end-product which is seen by the world, the end-product and its function which citizens pass judgement on. Whether it is the efficiency of some kind of kitchen appliance or the beauty of a painting, the viewer is only able to judge the surface, the final result. This one-way view into design is somewhat unfortunate; it robs the viewer of the true feeling and process that went into the design that they must judge on its superficial qualities.

Why, then, is it uncommon for a designer to present his/her work in a way that allows their viewers to see the inspiration and understanding of a design? Some will say that design, as a process is more important that the resulting design itself. Therefore the process must be much more complicated to understand than the end-product. The process of design, as experienced by a designer rather than a viewer, is intricate and extremely emotional. Inspiration and idea come naturally from anything and everything, flowing straight from emotion into a structured design. However, this raw, natural emotion is almost always edited nearly beyond recognition. The designer covers up the initial feeling and inspiration in order to create a presentable design that will be relatable to viewers.

Because design involves such powerful inspiration and raw emotion, the initial process is often covered up by the designer and the resulting design is presented in an edited state, rather than a natural one. However, for some reason, this editing allows viewers to experience design without too much complication; their reaction to the design is nothing near to the emotion felt by the designer, yet it is easier and simpler to understand, and so the representation of design is misguided. The designer can only know the true, overwhelming feeling put into his/her design.