Technology used to be the exclusive domain of techies, which made it very difficult for other disciplines to really engage with technological opportunities. Technology was a black box. Out would come a new technology, which was then pushed to the product designer to try work with. As a designer you had to somehow fit that technology into a product design. And often you weren’t really addressing a human need; it was more about the technology itself.  You were creating a gadget.

 

The success of open source and the emergence of technology platforms have made technology far more accessible to practically anyone. You don’t need to understand code anymore to develop new applications.  In fact, you can find answers to practically any technical issue on the web.  As a result, designers are now starting to interact with technology much more proactively.  Designers and technology people are working more closely together, exploring relationships between different materials and technology, to create products that address real human needs.  A common language, or common canvas, is emerging.  It isn’t necessary to separate the two disciplines so strictly.  And as a result we are seeing more products emerge where the technology is much more embedded, or hidden, and where the creators have been able to focus on the form and function of the product. Moreover, it enables a better understanding of the emotional aspects of technology and its implications. In my opinion, this is where art plays an important role as a way to explore further this emotional side, to create better experiences around the products and services we design. The understanding of the way we think, feel and behave, and the way we interact with our surrounding is also of interest to an interaction designer.

 

Interaction design is a young discipline.  Sometimes it is difficult to define what we do.  We’re probably not the best coders, nor the best engineers or designers.  Instead, we’re at the intersection of technology, design and art.  We are trying to pull these disciplines together by combining technology with different materials, including organic materials.  In the process we’re coming up with new objects, some of which are interesting from a functional perspective while others are more playful or even artistic. By mixing things up we create new ideas and opportunities.  The intersection with art can be very inspirational.  It is here that we can let go completely, to go a little crazy and explore really new territory.  If you look at the relationship between the three domains—art, technology and design— each of them is a source of inspiration for the other two.  It is a fascinating field, one where the line between the three disciplines becomes increasingly blurred. What is design? What is art? What is technology?