“Whatever you’re doing, someone somewhere has probably done it and done it better.”
A quote that a naive undergraduate architecture student would probably hear once in his/her career in school, what is potent about this thought is NOT that one should just stop trying to design, or reinvent the wheel, or that a student’s work in design is futile. On the contrary, if digested from an objective position, this quote illustrates a thought which suggests that a part of a job of a designer is to observe the world intently–built and natural world alike. It suggests, that the world which we inhabit, built by people of different thoughts, backgrounds and ideologies has the ability to inform and influence our own thoughts, backgrounds and ideologies, despite the superficial differences. If taken beyond the literal meaning–can liberate a callow and amorphous mind of a young designer burdened with the desire to reinvent and stake out his/her creative individuality.
More importantly, this quote suggests that such intellectual and observational voracity can fuel true creativity…and ultimately, as designers, isn’t that what we are constantly in search for?
In the spirit of a highly networked mind, here’s an interesting RSA Animate video titled “Where Good Ideas Come From.”
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