Photo courtesy of lumaxart
The Many Faces of Design Leadership, by Kevin McCullagh
'What the hell is Design Leadership anyway?' is what I keep hearing people mutter under their breath these days.
It has become one of those subjects that any player in design now has to have an opinion on, but debating it usually generates more heat than light, as self-anointed design leaders rehearse their personal or company agendas. Self-importance, not clarity, seems to be the main concern. At one level this isn't surprising. Leadership is a slippery topic these days: there are more books on Amazon attempting to define the mojo of leadership than that other holy grail, innovation.
The 21st century is dogged by crises of authority: whether they are presidents, CEOs or premier league soccer managers, today's leaders are less respected and less certain of their position than the self-assured chiefs of yesteryear, like Margaret Thatcher, Jack Welch and Bill Shankly.
>> continue
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Tableware on a different axis
Sunny Side Up Cutlery is less flatware and more standupware; the utensils emulate plants stretching towards sunlight. Conceived of by students from Israel's top design schools, the project is part of d-Vision, a product development/industrial design internship under Keter Factories that chooses fifteen of Israel's best and brightest each year. Click here to see more of their ouTable tableware projects.
via inventor spot
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1 Hour Design Challenge WINNER!
Pump up the volume! This month's 1 Hour Design Challenge was a hit! From fur-balls to rockets, Core 77 readers were challenged to design the next "Kick-Ass Speaker." Our guest judge, speaker-design guru Kurt Solland of Harman Consumer Group offered his professional opinion this round (see his thoughts after the jump) and threw in a set of Spyro Speakers as a prize!
Congrats to all the winners. Be sure to check out the boards for a look at all the entries.
First Prize: Peel Speaker by Eric Nichols (above)
Second Prize: Something for Fun (previously known as 900MHz Wireless Speakers)
Third Prize: 1hrdc
Special Mention "Ass-Kicker" Prize: Speakertron
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Whatever 'design-art' is, it's thriving
Alice Rawsthorn profiles the 'design-art' phenomenon in the International Herald Tribune:
"'Design-art' is a commercial phenomenon, not a cultural one. It's a label adopted by auction houses in the hope of flogging limited-edition furniture for higher prices than it would muster if relegated to the unfashionable category of 'decorative arts.' And it has been very effective, commercially at least. A new season of design sales started last week, with the opening of the Design Miami/Basel fair in Switzerland, followed by auctions in New York. Despite the purists' sneers, collectors' interest in 'design-art' is still increasing, and as the market matures, a less ditzy side to it is emerging."
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Berlin Design Festival 2008
"The Sky is Not the Limit" at the Berlin Design Festival, a five day event (May 21- 25) produced by DMY Berlin. Core 77's Aart van Bezooyen was on-hand to snap up some of the best blue-sky finds. Enjoy!
>> view gallery
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Paul Polak demonstrates his $3 irrigation system
Sustainable Brands 08 - Out of Poverty
Longtime advocate for "Design for the Other 90%" Paul Polak's new company, D-Rev, hopes to make "serious profits with multinationals, designers, engineers and business creatives working alongside the 800 million people making less than a dollar a day." He also wants to revolutionize design education by expanding the Stanford program Design for Extreme Affordability to 100 other schools that will send students into the field to "go where the action is."
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Medidome Syringe wins NPSA Award
Christopher Holden's 'Medidome' syringe recently won the NPSA (National Patent Safety Award). Inspired by the band-aid, it's unique patented design prevents needle-stick injuries and cross contamination of blood born viruses while simplifying and speeding up the patient treatment process to mass immunization.
When its sterile cover is removed, an anesthetic antiseptic adhesive is exposed which sticks to the patient's skin before the needle is injected. Designed for single use only, the Medidome reduces the possibility of needle-sharing.
See more images here.
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What is social design?
The Social Design Site is an online platform committed to foster a discourse for social design on a broader level, and to build a community around meaningful projects and dedicated individuals. Social design projects from across the globe are exhibited here to highlight different aspects of our social world, and to sharpen our common understanding of social design in context and practice.
Check the 7 minute presentation video
via CPH127
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Peter Wege, founder of Steelcase, Tony Cortese from AASHE and Grand Rapid's Mayor, George Heartwell of Grand Rapids at the new Grand Rapids Art Museum
ACUPCC - Two Eco-Icons in Grand Rapids
"We get so late old and so smart" said Peter Wege using the accent of his immigrant germen grandmother. Wege, founder of Steelcase, welcomed the group of 100 university and college presidents who have gathered in Grand Rapids Michigan to discuss the greening of college campuses and curricula. He applauded the group's willingness to lead the nation in the formation of "What needs to happen." Wege's own environmental philosophy "economicology" seeks to balance nature in the finite world. Wege has led Steelcase's environmental vision for over 40 years.
Ray Anderson, self-described as a "radical industrialist and lover of profits" described the re-invention of Interface over the past 14 years in seven key steps: examining whole systems, waste as food, climate neutrality (which is chemically broader that carbon neutrality), dematerialization of the entire supply chain, bio-mimicry, thinking upside down and thinking in the round. Anderson reported that the company was halfway to its "Mission Zero by 2020" goals and linked each step to innovative products and services that have reduced GHGs (Green House Gases) at Interface by 82%, reduced water usage by 72%, reduced waste by 52% and has resulted in the shut down of 50% of the company’s smoke stacks. Quoting scientist Amy Levin, Anderson suggested that "We just need to stop having the bad ideas."
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Aligned for Sustainable Design
Business for Social Responsibility and the design firm IDEO just released a free 48-page report showing how companies are infusing sustainability into their design processes in ways that have led to innovative products that offer value to consumers.
Press release - Synopsis - Report download
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A Cellphone Accessory That Could Save Millions (of Lives)
Even if you tricked out your cellie with a Bedazzler and a crapload of charms, it's nowhere near as cool as this. The CellScope, still in its prototyping phase, is an attachment for camera-enabled mobile phones that turns them into microscopes. The attachment would allow any user with rudimentary training to diagnose malaria in the field, and transmit the image directly to a clinic or lab. Developed at UC Berkeley, the researchers involved have already attracted participation by Microsoft and Nokia, and expect a mass-manufactured version to sell for less than $100.
Given the rapid proliferation of cellular technology in parts of the developing world where malaria is the leading cause of child mortality, this could represent an enormous boost in the race to defeat the wily parasite.
via The Economist
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The digital wild stylin' Wii
PSFK has the lowdown on Wii Spray, a prototype using the Wii controller as a virtual spray can. The project is part of Martin Lihs final thesis at Bauhaus-University in Weimar, Germany and we're hoping he gets a chance to update his site with some samples pictures soon.
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Creative Economy Report 2008
The Creative Economy Report 2008 - The challenge of assessing the creative economy towards informed policy-making (also available in French and Spanish) is the first comprehensive study to present the United Nations perspective on the creative industries. This policy-oriented analysis is intended to facilitate a better understanding of the key issues underlying the emerging creative economy at national and international levels.
The development dimension is the guiding principle of the 350-page report which aims to assist developing countries to harness their creative economies and to maximize trade and development gains by recognizing the creative economy as a feasible development option for linking economic, technological, social and cultural development objectives of our contemporary society.
If you like numbers, check the tables as of page 260 of the report (284 of the pdf) which lists the top 10 world exporters by a range of product groups.
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Brad Pitt with Ambra Medda, Director of Design Miami/ (Photographer: James Harris)
Shopping with Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt picked up 2 of Max Lamb's Bronze "Poly Chairs" and a "Family Lamp" by Atelier van Lieshout at last week's Design Miami/ Basel in Switzerland. 55,000 people were expected to attend the annual cultural fair.
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Special thanks to Mark Vanderbeeken for his contributions to this weeks newsletter!
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