The Economic Design Value
Many architects and industrial designers often dread the financial and business side of architecture and industrial design practice, as their focus is often geared towards achieving successful design quality rather than achieving successful economic expectations.
This is the basis for a design value that can be characterised as 'voluntarism' or 'charrette ethos'. This value is commonly found among practising architects and designers. The 'volunteer' value is founded in the belief that good architecture and design requires commitment beyond the prearranged time, accountant’s budget, and normal hours. Implicit in the 'volunteer' value are elements of the following claim present:
- Best design works comes from offices or individual designers which are willing to put in overtime (sometimes unpaid) for the sake of the design outcome.
- Good architecture and design is rarely possible within fees offered by clients.
- Architects and designers should care enough about buildings or products to uphold high design standards regardless of the payment offered.
The 'volunteer' design value can be seen as a reaction to and a rejection of the client’s influence and control over the design project.
Read more about this topic: Architectural Design Values
Famous quotes containing the words economic and/or design:
“The idealist’s programme of political or economic reform may be impracticable, absurd, demonstrably ridiculous; but it can never be successfully opposed merely by pointing out that this is the case. A negative opposition cannot be wholly effectual: there must be a competing idealism; something must be offered that is not only less objectionable but more desirable.”
—Charles Horton Cooley (1864–1929)
“Nowadays the host does not admit you to his hearth, but has got the mason to build one for yourself somewhere in his alley, and hospitality is the art of keeping you at the greatest distance. There is as much secrecy about the cooking as if he had a design to poison you.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)