Illegal/Rogue Design

Design is a culture that infiltrates everywhere around the globe, into the homes and lives of every country, culture, religion, political affiliation or belief. No person is safe from design, for as a human being, one is constantly creating and being influenced by the creations of others. From the smallest functioning tool to the industrialized and mass produced economy of the modern world, design has its place in every life. Sometimes, certain designs are banned or looked down upon. For example, the illegal and rogue cultures existing in many modern adolescent populations. Specifically, I would like to focus on drug culture. It is interesting to discover that drugs inspire people even more than sobriety, especially in the realm of design.

Things like piercings and tattoos are often seen as unneccessary elements of design, things that display an attitude of disregard or disrespect for the rules. Drug culture escalates this same idea, yet many musicians, actors, and various other categories of artists are only socially approved of once their designs have been inspired by the illegal. This does not come as any sort of surprise to those immersed in that culture, for the drug culture is often about blocking out the bad in life and experiencing an otherworldly happiness or state of understanding. Altering one's state of mind often results in a higher state of art as well, with greater appreciation for color, texture, and idea. Also, the same attitude of drug culture in its disregard for rules must come to apply to the rules of design, for drug immersed designers are more likely to take risks in their art as well as in their lives. So, if this type of drug culture is so looked down upon that it is deemed illegal and highly punishable, why is it that the rest of society sees the products of such a dangerous way of life as some of the greatest works ever created? Is this a reflection on the human race's inhibitions against rebelling, while we all still harbor an innate desire for these "out of the box" experiences?