Drucker's comprehensive introduction to the theories and formal design systems through history showcased the driving forces of universality, principles of composition, and industry need as primary influences. At the precipice of a turning point in history where we are experiencing (or soon to be) driverless cars, artificial intelligence, internet of things and connected devices in our every day lives- one can't help but consider if our current design systems and standards are prepared to handle not just the evolution into such terrain, but the sustainability of such ambitious endeavors.
Walter Crane's "Line and Form"*, according to Drucker, was meant to "train the eye and mind at the same time, providing cultural references and analyses as well as formal means for production." In another sense, Crane was evolving the graphical forms of visual elements in preparation for physical application. "Crane explained in Line & Form, that the shape of a fruit would in turn decide the shape of the leaves surrounding it and the shape of the stem and tree holding it." The evolution of this synthesis stems from the basic elements of the circle and square from which all others evolve. In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't seem simpler than that, yet often times bad design is to blame for the failure of new and emerging technologies.
Drucker's introduction to the various ways in which design adapted to industry need, has me interested to explore further what design systems of today are poised to lead us into the next century, and what makes a design system successful for sustainability. Is it simply that at its basic form it follows principles of composition and form that relate back to the alpha omega parents, circle and square, that Crane so simplistically presented as explanation?
Modern design systems and standards will need to be adapted for a multitude of mediums to accommodate interpretation at both the individual level, and the collective. As we incorporate more digital technological experiences into our lives and industries, so too will this move into the physical spaces we occupy and transverse, whether tangibly or by means of increasing augmented and virtual reality experiences. Consistency of those designs systems to flow visually without introduction nor explanation from space to space will be an integral part of adaptation and evolution.
Drucker's journey through visual graphic practice, design theory and systems evolution leaves us with the notion that "the book of the future won't be a book at all, it will be a multi-sensory multidisciplinary, evolving mechanism that we experience as a myriad of senses and via multiple mediums."
Questions
Visual graphic standards attempt to create universal interpretation and understanding regardless of cultural reference, language, and a myriad of other intangible differences. What would the universal icon for translate look like? Does one already exist, and how do we apply it to not just web-based experiences, but adapt it- and any notion of a universal design system- to fit the ever increasing merged experiences like augmented and virtual reality?
If we truly "know that the affordances of our senses and the capacities of cognition together construct the impression of the visual world", can we successfully design anything without imparting inherent meaning and symbolism?
Are the circle and square still deemed the alpha and omega of today's visual design systems as Crane proposed, or does another pair now exist? Would we consider the programming elements, "0" and "1"?
*While I chose to reference this source, I could not help but note the way in which Drucker described this work specifically with high praise > remarkable, exemplary, masterful, superb, dynamic, gifted > were all words to describe Crane in the space of two paragraphs. I couldn't help but note that perhaps Drucker's own unconscious bias rubbed off on my interpretation of some of the relevance of the work.