After watching all of the lectures and reference material, it has become apparent that globalisation is enabling new ideas and local approaches to make their way into mainstream design. Global design can mean different things to different designers. The world has physically become much more accessible through cheap flights and travel connectivity. It’s easier to book a meeting and proceed either face to face or online, You don’t ever have to meet the client in some cases. The economy allows for this globalisation and encourages interconnectivity and creativity. Visual culture has surely become more uniform across the world even with context and language barriers. There are more opportunities than in the local area, meaning moving to another country to work is within expectation. The 21st century has given rise to a less traditional business model. It’s become more common for companies to set up shop from behind a laptop at home or in a coffee shop. Its convenient for sure but there are always cases where face to face transactions will be more personable and professional.
Successful global companies are the ones that bring a range of creeds and cultures together. It’s also easier to recruit internationally as you aren’t locked in to the local area. Giving you a much wider pool of talent to choose from. Being able to source design partners from anywhere in the world means that you will be gaining a knowledge and expertise that is different from your own. I love the idea that the more local designers you get together from different areas the less local it becomes. Harriet Ferguson of Pearlfisher uses a wonderful quote “Think Global, but act local”. This encourages you to start a project with global intentions in mind. Telling an authentic local story is what really matters, local stories can really resonate on a global scale.
Harriet also goes on to ask the question “Can you tell where something was designed?”. This is an incredibly difficult question to answer. As long as the story told is an authentic one, does it matter if the design is locally made? I loved Harriet’s presentation, she mentions a lot of things that I wouldn’t have thought of. It’s amazing to be one click away from an entire world of references, this however can be a blessing and a curse. If you’re looking at it, chances are that your competition is too. Design trends a way easier to spot because of this. You want to replicate what makes something good so you do, so does someone else, this goes on for a while and then you’ve got yourself a trend. Add the internet into the mix and this can happen very quickly and be easy to see. Take memes for example. I’m no expert but they all go through cycles and themes. Baby Yoda is cute, explodes onto the internet, everyone goes gaga for a while until the next thing.
Going back to global design, I’ve discussed how great it can be for a company but I haven’t thought about the disadvantages it gives. Harriet in her infinite wisdom explains that colours and words mean different things in different countries and cultures. I want to make this logo red because in my country it means speed and passion, but in another country it might be offensive. Local designers have never had to think about this. A great example of a company doing a brilliant job globally is Apple. They don’t have to make drastic changes to their marketing campaigns to make them effective. Their branding and ethos is simple and communicates well. Top of the line electronics. Their entire being has been carefully curated to be recognised and be successful. Their stores are iconic throughout the world as being sanitary and bright. Their online shopping experience is the same for everyone. If you make something simple and appealing, you don’t need to market it differently. In different places.
The most important take away from all of the lectures and materials is to be genuine, authentic and true to yourself, and the story that you’re telling.
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