Introduction

What is design? According to Answers.com, it is many things, including five definitions as a verb and nine as a noun. But is design limited to dictionary meanings, such as number 6: A basic scheme or pattern that affects and controls function or development: the overall design of an epic poem. (http://www.answers.com/design) Really, though, why does it matter what design means? Isn’t it enough that it is?

In many ways, design is like the air we breathe; it’s all around us, and we really couldn’t live without it. Architecture, the layout of your house or apartment, every logo and corporate ad you’ve ever seen, both cinema and theater (or theatre, if you’re really clever/European) wouldn’t exist without design, your clothing, your fridge, the way food looks… It goes on. And on.

The logical thing to do with topics as immense and/or confusing as design – including, but by no means limited to, space, life, death, luck, how to effectively use chopsticks, and whether or not the Loch Ness monster is real – is to ignore that they exist. Just keep living day-to-day life. However, when one can hold their breath no longer, and must take their head out of the sand, they should acknowledge the existence of these big issues. Then they should promptly subcategorize them: graphic design, interior, design, fashion, exhibition, architecture, appliance design…

In the following weeks, this blog will try and cover a small piece of the pie that is known as design. Good thing it’s a tasty pie…