Into The World Of Design

To enter the world of design,
we need a key.

In fact all the great world beg a key,
be it microbiology, programming, astrophysics, or even world expeditions.

The key is a simple thing,
but before I explain what it is.

I must yet again, quickly note,
that this key cannot be found among grades or tests, not to mention cramming.

The key is an authentic desire,
not because job, or fame, or GPA, or career, or showing off, or looking smarter.

An authentic desire,
a reason to design, doubles as a scaffold that will keep us moving forward.

Learning computer programming to graduate and get a job,
only works for a little while.

But a true hunger for art,
lasts a lifetime.

It does not end,
when the career ends, or one does not get accepted into a brand name school.

Of course, we all have this within us,
but often times our paths become entangled and we end up moving in directions that don't help us grow.

We have to, look into our hears, and discover what it is,
that seems fascinating, inviting, what will eventually end up as a stepping stone towards greatness.

The synthetic is when for example a parent demands that her child becomes a doctor,
and an authentic urge, is when we follow what calls to us.

Schools nearly fraudulently sell the promise of accessing some career field,
but normal people don't even use the words career-field.

Within us is a very delicate system of curiosities,
that is all to easy to ignore in haste of life.

It works like this, when young, we notice something at a museum,
as we grow our curiosities slowly take us towards computers, programming, 3D modeling, hardware, 3D printing...

And all the while we are shuffling it all together, like cards,
to see which of the things we like may fit together.

Well, it just so happens that with museums uploading 3D scans of their treasures online,
anybody can own a miniature copy of the 3,500 year old Prudhoe Lions (right), here is is shared by the The British Museum.

It is not just about technology, in fact it is better to study the 3D model,
and make a replica by hand, in air dry clay for example.

Making these kinds of connections, is not just about neat trinkets,
but learning the art style, mastering various ways with which similar figures can be created...

And exploring and expanding such designs through galleries and exhibitions,
and even commercial products, where once could either sell molds or complete concrete casts as outdoor decorations.

It is not design, when someone says "I am going to sell concrete statues and statue accessories",
design, is driven by an authentic personal curiosity and passion for some dimension of art.

And while design schools can teach how to use tools, and how it is done,
nothing can be done, until one starts by pursuing their art interests.

At which point, figuring out how to use tools,
is pure joy, and not homework, or any kind of work.

No matter how far we have progressed in life, or how busy in life,
the artist and the designer within us, is always waiting for us to slow down, so that the world of art can become relevant to our existence.