Design is changing. There seems to be a movement towards slowing down and taking a more considered approach to design. Not everyone agrees on what to call this shift but they recognize that something is happening.

The shift that has been most visible to date has been within the food industry.  The Slow Food movement has forced us to step back and take a hard look at our relationship with something as basic as food.  Slow Food started as a backlash to the way food was being grown and processed (quick, high volume production with low costs). It emphasizes local sourcing (buying from farms & markets near your home), and bringing a back-to-basics approach (organic farming, staying away from pesticides, genetically-modified food and additives, etc) and a renewed focus on our health and how what we eat affects the health of our planet.

Those ‘slow’ principles have also made their way into design (the latest GOOD magazine was dedicated to the topic of ‘slow’).

People are beginning to realize that it’s no longer enough to design something that is aesthetically beautiful and lasts only months instead of years or generations.  The new call is to create Heirloom products (made responsibly, out of quality materials and designs that transcend the now). The idea is that if we design products that last, the environment benefits (fewer resources are needed) and, by extension, so do all of us (fewer toxic materials released into our air, water and surroundings).

It’s a basic concept…and one that has driven our work and designs since the beginning of Q Collection Junior.  Slow Design is gaining momentum and its fingerprint can be seen in many corners.  Like Slow Food has with food awareness, it is our sincere hope that slow design will help to achieve the goal of leaving our planet in better condition for the next generation.

This year’s TED Conference will focus on ‘What the World Needs Now”.  Slow Design will be front and center. Cool links, if you’d like to learn more:

- Carlo Petrini (Slow Food founder) talks about the ideas behind the movement he founded:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwnFALSbBME

- Michael Pollan (food writer):  http://www.michaelpollan.com

- Food Inc (movie):  http://www.foodincmovie.com

- Slowfood:  http://slowfood.com

This entry was posted on Monday, February 1st, 2010 at 9:00 am and is filed under Designing, Green Living, Health & Wellness, Trends. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.