Design Notes: From Historical Origins to the Third Millennium

The Definition and Philosophical Nature of Design

Design is an omnipresent project-based action that permeates every facet of our daily lives. According to Alberto Bassi, the discipline is not merely about creating bizarre, branded, or unnecessarily expensive products; rather, it is deeply intertwined with human existence and our ways of living. Everyday objects, ranging from the Bialetti moka pot to the latest iPhone, inadvertently introduce new ways of using the body and new styles of thinking. Tomls Maldonado asserted that design is often misunderstood in the collective imagination; it is frequently reduced to specific fields like furniture or viewed as a mysterious entity. To understand design fully, one must distinguish between its external aspects—such as fame and distribution—and its internal mechanisms, which involve identity, development, and the concrete transformation of operations.

Defining design precisely is a complex task, but its linguistic roots provide clarity. The term derives from the Latin "designare," which means to represent figures through lines or to imagine with thought. This is coupled with the concept of the project, from "pro-icere," meaning to "throw forward." This implies an action that goes beyond what currently exists to innovate and anticipate the future. When design is specifically linked to industrial production, the term "industrial design" is used. Its reach is vast, encompassing sectors like car design, fashion design, web design, and graphic design. Two fundamental maxims define the field: "form follows function," coined by Louis Sullivan, and "less is more," established by Mies van der Rohe.

The Ethical and Social Role of the Designer

In the modern era, design represents an ideal synthesis between economy and aesthetics. Aesthetics in this context is not viewed as pure beauty but as the staging of a functional "fiction" that aids communicative efficacy and adds value. Design has always possessed a strong ethical and social vocation, aiming to provide everyone with access to well-priced and well-made products. Bruno Munari described himself as a designer with an aesthetic sense who works for the community. The project operates within complex frameworks of execution, communication, and distribution, which are inherently tied to social and economic situations.

A phenomenological approach suggests that instead of a single, monolithic definition, we should recognize "many designs." To allow these various practices to be fully valued, it is essential to support them with cultural, professional, and specialized tools that make them comprehensible to the public. Design acts as a necessary dialogue on the borders between humanities and technology, and between creative, artistic, and projective expressions. Vittorio Gregotti emphasizes the importance of dividing these components to restore positive value to their differences rather than merging them and risking the loss of identity.

Taxonomy and Classification of Daily Objects

Designers must understand the deep meaning of objects—not just how they work technically, but why they exist and how they relate to people and society. Jean Baudrillard explains that daily things constitute a systematic manipulation of signs, signaling both themselves and human facets like emotions, desires, and sentiments. Gillo Dorfles provides a classification system for these objects based on their use. This includes super-individual objects, collective-use objects (such as an airplane, characterized by maximum functionality), and individual-use objects. The latter are further divided into those with high functionality meant to last over time, and those with limited functionality meant for rapid consumption, often conditioned by fashion and changing tastes.

Ezio Manzini offers another critical distinction: eternal objects (meant for long duration like tools), transitory objects (destined for fast or disposable use), and objects of affection or image (linked to memory and emotional impact). Objects are increasingly viewed as "open works" with non-definable contents, "opaque" because their internal mechanisms are no longer recognizable, and "dense" due to their stratification of values. It is important to note that these reflections on consumption and capital primarily apply to Western systems. The exhibition "Design for the Other $90\%$ " at the National Design Museum in New York in $2001$ highlighted that these discussions often only interest approximately $10\%$ of the global population.

Economics, Brand Identity, and Consumer Desires

The consumerist economic organization relies on the fast and continuous turnover of merchandise. This is fueled by shifting from a system of needs to one of desires. Consumers often seek "status-symbols" to attest to economic status or "style-symbols" to signal cultural prowess. Purchases may also be driven by the desire for unique experiences or gratifying interactions. This has led to the specialization of retail and exhibition designers. Brands have become the primary guides for consumers navigating a crowded market, and in some cases, the designers themselves become brands that reassure customers of quality.

Fashion design plays a significant role here, as it interprets changing behaviors and explores innovative possibilities in production and communication. Design and fashion increasingly influence one another. Design is tasked with projecting both the useful and the superfluous, making the latter attractive. While fast, disposable logic is increasingly questioned due to environmental responsibilities, the "productivity dilemma" remains: prioritizing cost reduction can stifle innovation, while prioritizing innovation can result in products that are not cost-competitive or market-punctual.

Innovation and the Concept of the "Intellectual-Fox"

Design is inherently tied to innovation, which implies a substantial and lasting change, unlike "novelty," which is temporary and voluble. True innovation often brings a conceptual modification of the deep meaning of a product. A classic example is the post-WWII Italian scooter. Designers like Corradino d\'Ascanio, using aeronautical expertise, projected the Vespa and Lambretta. By placing the engine at the rear and using direct traction (derived from aircraft design), they created a motorized two-wheeled vehicle that was easy to use and sit on, creating an entirely new meaning for personal transport.

Innovation occurs within large technical systems; it can only happen if the economic, social, and productive system is ready to welcome it. However, technology can sometimes overshadow usability if not managed properly. Collaborative innovation is required, involving all actors in the collective design process. In this context, designers act like the "intellectual-fox" described by Cooper Ramo—as opposed to the "hedgehog" who knows one big thing, the fox moves between ideas and disciplines to manage the unpredictability of the contemporary world.

The Project Process: From Brief to Feedback

The design process begins with understanding the context, ranging from global economics to specific client needs. The "design world" involves a network of companies, designers, and corporate functions. Designing for industry differs from artisanal production, though the two can be complementary. A project typically starts with identifying consumer needs through market surveys or noticing a void in the market.

A famous example of intuition-led design is Art Fry and the Post-it. Fry, a choir member, wanted a way to mark his sheet music that wouldn\'t fall out when the wind blew. He imagined a piece of paper with a light adhesive that could be easily detached. This was a product for which no consumer demand existed until its necessity was intuited. Once a product type is identified, a "brief" is created, outlining the requirements and constraints. This leads to a "concept"—the initial concrete starting point—elaborated through sketches, 3D models, and animations. This is followed by a continuous feedback loop of discussion, modification, and formalization until the functional, aesthetic, and communicative aspects of the object are finalized.

Models of Professionalism and the "Toolbox"

Designers can work individually in small studios or within large Anglo-Saxon style firms that handle everything from market analysis to service definition. Some function as Art Directors, ensuring a unified direction for a company\'s entire output. Norman Potter famously claimed that design is $90\%$ hard work and $10\%$ inspiration. Inspiration often comes from "mash-ups"—relating distant things to create new associations—and "coded knowledge" or tacit expertise gained through experience.

Cooper Ramo suggests three roles for the modern designer: Connectors, who link different physical and cultural worlds to spark innovation; Narrators, who build stories and meanings "inside things"; and Gardeners, who tend to an ever-changing, living ecosystem rather than just building static structures. Historical examples of the individual approach include Vico Magistretti, who created classics like the Eclisse lamp and Maralunga sofa, and the self-taught Enzo Mari, who worked with companies like Alessi and Dainese.

The Historical Evolution of Design: Thonet, Wedgwood, and the Industrial Revolution

The history of design is a collection of "design histories" intertwined with economics, technology, and art. The Industrial Revolution marked the official birth of the designer, as the "civilization of tools" transitioned to the "civilization of machines." This led to a division of labor between those who conceive and those who produce. Josiah Wedgwood in the $18th$ century pioneered this by introducing steam power and temperature control to ceramics, creating two lines: the prestigious, antiquity-inspired line and the "creamware" standard for the European bourgeoisie.

Michael Thonet represents the entrepreneur-designer role. In Vienna in $1849$, he developed techniques to curve beechwood using steam. His "No. $14$ " chair is a masterpiece of "doing more with less," consisting of only $8$ pieces that were cheap, serializable, and easily assembled. The $1851$ Great Exhibition in London, held in Joseph Paxton\'s building and championed by Henry Cole, was the first global showcase for these industrial artifacts. However, figures like William Morris and John Ruskin resisted the perceived poor quality of industrial goods, leading to the Arts & Crafts movement, which sought to restore the dignity of manual craftsmanship.

Modernism, the Bauhaus, and the International Style

In early $20th$ century Germany, Peter Beherens worked with AEG to create a unified identity through standardized street lamps and kettles. This era also saw the founding of the Deutscher Werkbund in $1907$ by H. Mauthesius, focusing on the dialogue between industry and artists. The Bauhaus, founded in $1919$ by Walter Gropius, became the definitive school of design. It moved from Weimar to Dessau and finally Berlin before being closed by the Nazis in $1933$. Teachers included Kandinskij, Klee, and Moholt Nagy. Gropius shifted the school toward functionalism: "The form is the function. The beautiful is the useful."

Manifesto objects of the Bauhaus include Marcel Breuer\'s Cantilever chair, made of tubular steel—a material transition from technical use to modern domesticity—and Wagenfeld\'s geometric glass and steel table lamp ($1924$). At the same time, the USA developed "Streamline" design, influenced by aerodynamics and sheet metal stamping for planes and trains. Raymond Loewy and Henry Dreyfuss were key figures; Dreyfuss designed the Bell Model $302$ phone ($1937$), while Loewy worked on the Coca-Cola bottle redesign and Polaroid cameras. Architects like Alvar Aalto and Le Corbusier personal philosophies involving organic elements and bourgeois comfort provided alternatives to rigid functionalism.

Italian Design: From the Compasso d\'Oro to Olivetti

Italy reached industrialization later than other nations, but its design was catalyzed by Futurism and the polytechnics of Milan and Turin. Significant milestones occurred in $1954$: the first "Compasso d\'Oro" prize by La Rinascente, the launch of "Stile Industria" magazine by Alberto Rosselli, and the first RAI television broadcasts. Italian design is characterized by a mix of large industry (like the Fiat $500$ and $600$) and flexible family-run small-to-medium enterprises.

The Olivetti case is an emblem of the dialogue between industry and culture. Adriano Olivetti pursued an ethical approach, commissioning high-quality architecture for factories and employee services. He collaborated with designers like Marcello Nizzoli and Giovanni Pintori for both products (typewriters/calculators) and visual communication. The Olivetti New York showroom on Fifth Avenue allowed passersby to test machines on the street, emphasizing user service and aesthetics. By the mid-$1970s$, Olivetti\'s decision to stick with mechanical solutions rather than pursuing electronics marked a shift in its trajectory.

Radical Design and the Crisis of the Object

The $1960s$ and $1970s$ brought a crisis for functionalism. Designers like Ettore Sottsass and groups like Archigram and Metabolism challenged capitalist limits. This period produced "Pop" design like the Sacco beanbag ($1968$) and the inflatable Blow chair ($1970$), made possible by new plastics. In $1972$, the MoMA exhibition "Italy: The New Domestic Landscape" celebrated Italian design but also signaled the end of an era. The $1973$ oil crisis signaled the end of the "plastic civilization."

The $1970s$ and $1980s$ saw the rise of the Alchimia and Memphis groups, focusing on poetic experimentation and research into meaning. Objects like the Carlton bookcase became icons. Conversely, Richard Sapper\'s Tizio lamp ($1972$) and the Tolomeo lamp ($1966$) by Lucchi and Fassina represented high-tech functionalism. This era eventually transitioned toward minimalism and neo-rationalism, as seen in the work of Alessi (collaborating with Graves and Rossi) and Cappellini, who opened Italian manufacturing to international designers like Morrison and Dixon.

Design in the Third Millennium: Digital and Immaterial

In the third millennium, design has evolved toward the immaterial. Global brands like Ikea, Zara, and Muji have changed the market, while Apple, under Steve Jobs and Jonathan Ive, pioneered "design-driven" innovation. Apple\'s focus on "touch usability," smooth sculptural forms, and non-technological colors redefined the standards for user experience. We have transition from the physical machine to digital spaces like Wikipedia, YouTube, and Facebook.

Miniaturization and Wi-Fi technology have changed our relationship with space, moving toward permanent connection. Design now balances the "genius loci" (local identity) with a globalized system. There is also a shift toward "non-objects"—things we use without paying attention to their form, like vending machines, smart cards, or signage. In many cases, the service has become more important than the product; for instance, a low-cost printer is sold primarily to sell the service of replacement ink cartridges. Increasing trends like sharing, the cloud, and "zero-kilometer" products suggest a world where "access" is valued over "ownership."

Sustainability, Open Source, and Human Design

Modern design must confront the "economy of the limit" and post-growth society. The focus has shifted from "doing" to "thinking" meaning. This is reflected in "crowdsourcing," "open source" projects (where source code or design files are public), and digital fabrication. A designer\'s toolbox now includes a sustainable approach, analyzing the full life cycle of a product and aiming to "do more with less."

Usability and "extension of the user" are central, ensuring products work for people with different abilities. John Maeda suggests that good design instills a sense of familiarity and simplicity. This "Human Design" prioritizes human happiness and aspirations as the ultimate focus. Ultimately, design serves as an interface between humans and the world, capable of addressing concrete reality while aspiring to improve the cultural and psychological context of our lives.