How has design changed since you graduated?
One of my colleagues recently asked me this question, and it certainly threw up some interesting answers. Design is defined by听a changing society, but I think the reverse is also true:听throughout the years, design has challenged society and proposed new solutions and concepts. Since I graduated in 2014, these key trends have continued to influence design.
Technology has become a big part of today鈥檚 global society and it鈥檚 not hard to see why;听smartphones and other portable devices have become so integrated into our lifestyles that听they have changed the way we communicate with one another. Now that we can stay connected anywhere and at any time, it has enabled us to work flexibly, effectively changing the physical workplace environment and working culture. Open-plan layouts have become popular to accommodate a hot-desking policy, supported by co-working spaces such as project areas and informal meeting areas.
Sustainability
As听society has gradually become more aware of its impact on the environment, there has been a continuing shift towards achieving sustainable design. Maximising natural light, incorporating nature themes, repurposing existing buildings and using furniture made from sustainable and recycled materials are some common examples of this trend found in workplaces. Most recently, technology has helped to take this further 鈥� employees at The Edge in Amsterdam can using an app on their smartphone. And at Alphabeta, workers can cycle , encouraging green commuting while bringing cycling into the work experience.
Vibrant wall graphics, astro-turf flooring, gaming areas and an 87-ft spiral slide were just some of the playful elements in an office that I once visited whilst at university. Five years later, this trend of playful design remains popular; companies realise that it brings greater comfort and happiness, fosters creative thinking and breaks down social barriers among employees. In today鈥檚 competitive business world, playful design also helps to express company culture and an employee鈥檚 sense of identity. At , internal partitions built by colourful pipes playfully reflect what the company does while an interactive exhibition upstairs invites both staff and visitors to learn more about the company鈥檚 history.
To get more insight into how design trends and the process of design has changed from a designer鈥檚 point of view, I asked Terry Gunnery, director at Strategy Plus London,听for his views on the subject.
Sarah: How has the process of design changed?
Terry: Technology was very primitive in the 80s; much of the design was drawn out using drawing boards and only then were PCs just starting to come in. AutoCAD enabled the delivery of projects to speed up and become more efficient, saving time and money for both designers and clients. It was being used as a production tool rather than a design tool.
Although we still continue to use the RIBA design stages today, projects have a higher demand for delivery now that we鈥檙e so connected via emails and portable technology听鈥� everything is instant and we need time to design. There鈥檚 also more competition; initially there were more architectural practices than specialist companies such as DEGW (now Strategy Plus at 91影视) because interior design wasn鈥檛 deemed fashionable. Now there are many more specialist practices, contractors and furniture designers that we are competing with.
Frank Duffy, one of the DEGW founders, was influential in how buildings are now designed; he brought modern concepts and flexible ideas to the profession.
Sarah: Is sustainability going to get more or less important in the future?
Terry: Sustainability should be more important. Thirty years ago, the thinking was there but sustainability wasn鈥檛 always incorporated into projects as there was no 鈥榙river鈥� for it. This wasn鈥檛 always the case however听鈥� we completed a project for BP鈥檚 office in London, where we incorporated reclaimed timber floors, tables made with recycled coffee cups and听recycled furnishing fabrics.
Sarah: Do you think technological progress is going to slow down or speed up, and what does that mean for how it’s incorporated into design?
Terry: Technology will speed up, although it鈥檚 a double-edged sword for designers. It has allowed us to create more sophisticated concepts, such as what you might see in a typical Zaha Hadid Architects project; however, it should be used to realise design and not to design听鈥撎�finding that balance should enhance creativity.听
Having read a lot about this subject, and particularly after my conversation with Terry, it seems听certain that flexibility is going be a key theme in the workplace design of the future. It鈥檚 been that while technology continues to provide more and better flexible working possibilities, the workplace will gradually become a network of places and people, rather than one set location. Will meetings become holographic? If so, does this mean our work will all become virtual?
If sustainability is going to become ever more important, with further expectation from governments, businesses and consumers alike, buildings will need to be designed to be durable, ergonomic and flexible, so that they can be readily used for other purposes. Writing for Green Building and Design, Brian Barth says, .
Although some may shudder at the thought of playful design in the workplace, designers now use this trend in a more refined and personal approach to convey the client鈥檚 heritage and values to employees and visitors 鈥� for example, vintage artefacts and graphics were used to decorate Coca-Cola鈥檚 London headquarters, bringing to mind their brand鈥檚 long history.
Playful design, as mentioned earlier, helps to express a company in a competitive business world. Now that networking tools provide prospective employees a wider range of opportunities, the relationship between the employee and employer has been reversed听鈥� 鈥溾�� says Tom Brialey in Workplace Insight.
While more Gen Y and Millennials 鈥� the generations who can relate and adapt best to today鈥檚 office trends 鈥� begin to dominate the workplace,听 I believe that we鈥檒l see these themes continue to develop and influence the future of workplaces.
Sarah Bowen is a graduate designer at 91影视鈥檚听Strategy Plus听practice in London.听