…because making is part of things.

Years ago, when Justin and I started putting together the first version of The Match Factory, we had this phrase that we used as an answer to why we are doing this. “…because making is part of things.” This awkward phrase really stuck with me. It captures the spirit of open-ended discovery without heavy-handed goals or judgments.  Why do we make stuff? Because making is part of things.

We both recognized early on that a workaday lifestyle could leave you feeling too focused on measurable goals and results. For the most part, design is about solving a specific problem. Art, on the other hand, can be more about personal expression. In an effort to walk the line between the two, I try to make time in my schedule for random acts of making. The images in this post are examples of time spent messing about. I think of them as design debris, lingering residue from thoughts and projects. Doodles and leftovers or something like that. Nothing really “good,” but then again, making something good isn’t really the point.

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A STORY OF VOLUNTEER DESIGN

Personal pledge cards for our community group Lincoln Green by Design.

This article is part of The Volunteer Design Chronicles appearing on Design Observer.

On a random weekend evening my wife and I decided to sit down and write some lines about environmental stewardship. They turned into personal pledge cards for a community organization I got myself involved with called Lincoln Green by Design. The cards were designed in an eco-friendly way, made out of paper scraps from past print runs. The messages were both sustainable and witty. One of my personal favorites was “I will eat local. Food not people.” Right up there with “I will stop (using plastic sacks) in the name of love.”

Our small effort was just one part of a bunch of other small efforts by a handful of dedicated creative people who jumped in and helped make this loose collection of concerned citizens into something worthy of attention. (more…)

Woman on Webster by Jason Hardy

Over the years we have all adapted to new ways of interacting with media. One area that I have paid particular attention to is my relationship with photography, and more specifically, the actual taking of pictures.

It has changed in a number of ways since my early days of snapping pictures for the yearbook or shots of my skateboarding friends, but one of the most dramatic changes came when I switched from shooting film to shooting digital. All of the sudden I had the instant gratification and unlimited undos that come standard with personal computing, all applied to the way I took photos. And so it changed the way I took photos. (more…)

DESIGN IN THE DEBATE

Design work in the Health Care and Climate Change debates.

There is certainly a lot of shouting these days. From left, right, above and below. It’s a strange thing, those moments when the white noise nonsense sends you spinning. Duck and run for cover. And please, let’s just talk about the latest blockbuster. And maybe that new tech gadget that will make our lives better. Just not the politics that remind us all of the blowhards and windbags. The pundits and politicians, crooks and liars, droners and deceivers. It’s just too painful. And not that entertaining, no matter how many sound effects a corporate news show adds to the discourse.

America’s great debates we’ve seen in the last year have been heated to be sure. At too many times incomprehensible. For the record, I don’t watch all that much of the cable news networks, but what parts I do pick up on are enough to shock me into a coma. The things people will say, and the volume at which they’ll say it. Everybody is supposed to want to have their say. From the all-powerful on one side to the average citizen on the other. Sloppy democracy at work. But it appears a good majority are opting out. Because the point people on our little operation of representative democracy seem to be crazy. I mean, if you want to get in on this debate, it would appear you have to either be really pissed or have just uncovered something so sinister the only thing that will save us all from it destroying every last man, woman and child is to unearth it in a spectacle of patriotic duty. Plenty of outlets will give you a brief glimpse of stardom for your offering. (more…)