Organic Design - some thoughts on how to proceed and things to avoid
Do's
Ingredients rather than concepts
Flow, rather than discrete units
Emergence, rather than planning
Do Not's
No perfectly straight lines
No cubes
Never completely symmetrical
Not always logical
Not always efficient
Not always solid colours
Pattern rather than purity
posted by John Dutton @ 4:35 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Great site! Although it shouldn't be - to many it will seem a novel idea that we take lessons from nature and incorporate them into our daily life.
Although I agree with some of your notions and thoughts on how to proceed, if you look closely at nature, there really are no do's and do not's. Nature engineers the correct form and function for all of its creations. For instance, the slow cooling geologic process that results in a quartz crystal forms straight lines as its end result. The structural rigidity derived from the cube form lends strength to plant cell walls allowing them to hold their shape. And while to most Nature certainly is not logical, it is usually efficient.
As you have inferred, it is a shame that we try so hard to separate ourselves from the very thing that created us. Perhaps that notion is what makes us human? Like yourself, I too rejoice when I see a bend in the road, a unique pattern, or something all together unexpected which leads to the brief sartori that puts me back in touch with the oneness of it all.
- Brandon
Good point, Brandon, though my reason for preferring organic structures, forms, colours and patterns is that the human brain evolved in an organic environment, and therefore human beings feel happier seeing organic design in the modern environment. You are right that straight lines and cubes exist in nature, but they are rare in the everyday environment of the African savannah, where the human brain developed.
MYO is part of my belief that modern life is often at odds with the human brain, and therefore has negative effects on our wellbeing. This applies also to food, violence, shopping and sex, to name some other major aspects of our lives.
This is why academic, trend-oriented, or canonical critiques of design are irelevant to me; it's like saying that designer food which tastes like plastic would be cool. Maybe it would (if you're a design geek) but if you're an average person, you won't enoy it.
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