Ideally, industrial design aims to address numerous, often contradictory issues at once. It is a domain that, throughout history, has been stimulated by advances in technologies and production materials. Between 1790 and 1900, more than 600,000 new product patents were issued... [more]

Ideally, industrial design aims to address numerous, often contradictory issues at once. It is a domain that, throughout history, has been stimulated by advances in technologies and production materials. Between 1790 and 1900, more than 600,000 new product patents were issued -- with these new ideas came prerequisites for both simplified shapes that address production requirements and for styling that is dictated by product efficiency and consumer tastes. Many of the first products to feel the hand of the industrial designer included transportation-related items, such as automobiles and trains; household appliances, including the refrigerator and washing machine; and mass-produced furniture. When considering the movement's growth, we must not skip lightly over the motivating force of sales figures, which has ever been a sacred vanguard of the hallowed halls of capitalism. The industrial designer of today is in much the same position as that of his predecessors -- serving the multiple masters of commerical viability and artistic innovation. The changing moods and trends of industrial design are initiated and facilitated by various factors, including historical context; political, sociological, and cultural factors; and to a greater degree these days, corporate marketing efforts. The field is obviously closely associated with the onset of the Industrial Revolution, but once again, this did not happen overnight -- bit by bit, products were becoming more designed, more intentional in either visually articulating their functions or in concealing those functions. Raymond Loewy is generally recognized as the father of industrial design and thankfully, as flamboyant and self-aggrandizing as he was, his clout generally benefited the field more than it hurt it. Though his name may not be familiar to the average consumer, nearly everyone has come into contact with at least one of his products. Bring to mind the ubiquitous Lucky Strike cigarette pack, with its simple target design; or the 1961 Avanti automobile, whose streamlined shape increased the company's stature far beyond its relative size in the industry. Think of the Greyhound Bus Lines logo, its graceful dog racing along the miles of quickly expanding American highway system. Go back a little earlier in time, and recall the S-1 Steam locomotive that Loewy designed for Pennsylvania Railroad. With each passing decade, the new materials and technologies that develop at an exponential rate have brought with them new questions for the industrial designer. What should be the expected life cycle of a particular product? Should it be made to last indefinitely? What material should it be constructed of? Is it recyclable after its useful life? Who is responsible for it after it is manufactured and sold? Is it better to look toward the past for style inspirations or to jump headfirst into new possibilities? Some of the cutting-edge designers and manufacturers of today -- including Philippe Starck, Apple Computers, and frogdesign -- have not simply embraced new materials and concepts, but have held their work out at arms' length for critical viewing, offering us designs that suggest even more questions. [show less]