Design Philosophy
Read about my creative process, values, and design philosophy
Intentionality
Creating safety through listening and dialogue is vital to developing and sustaining relationships with mutual respect and trust. Relationship is the heart of the human form. Fully embodying our form transforms the process of design into a collaborative act — becoming a conduit to a more expansive and abundant way of being. Opportunities are discovered and created in collaboration with one another in the space of challenge. Design is an inherently collaborative, co-creative act, bringing something new into existence through the exchange of language, experiences and ideas. This posture of design is about being “with” rather than designing “for” in isolation. Ignoring the relational core of our being leads to disembodied making — robbing the joy from being.
Agency
Design has the potential to subvert traditional hierarchy, redirect power, elevate voices, and create agency, which is the feeling of being in charge of your own life. At any time, individuals can take greater ownership of their lives and change the way they participate in a system. We have to challenge and expand the accepted modes of thought by valuing an individual’s unique sight and experiences that no one else has. Much like IDEO’s concept of citizen experts, those closest to the heart of a challenge hold valuable insight that can be activated to create a space of opportunity. You are the answer. Knowing personal values and living from a place of alignment is like a single match with the power to start a wildfire.
Values
Living in alignment with personal values creates security, positively affecting the confidence with which I carry myself and make decisions. I hold a strong value for safety, as well as honesty in communication and form. Being true to form feels honest, and this looks like refining an element to the simplest version. Responsibility and independence are important to me and agency is repeatedly a theme in my work. I am anchored by making work that has an impact. This is carried out through research-informed design that is meaningful and focuses on the individual while simultaneously taking the larger system into account, and analyzing connection points for improvement.
STRATEGY
As Randy Pausch says, “We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the game.” By changing our relationship with ourselves and our time, we can go into the spaces we occupy empowered. Changing patterns in thought changes the way we live, expanding opportunities for innovation. We do not have to be passive consumers of systems that do not positively affect our well-being. The quality of our lives can significantly improve by creating order out of our systems and engaging in flow activities that strengthen our relationship with ourselves and others.
CONNECTION
Design can create opportunities in the space between what is disparate. Seeking understanding through the synthesis of researched informed findings can aid connection and growth. Where there is a space of challenge, design can bridge the disconnect and inform a new way of doing and being that is meaningful and honest.
CRAFT
My dedication to craft postures the entirety of my creative practice. I can see what does not exist and work to bring a redemptive future into existence. I have put away my hobbies, letting my camera get dusty on a shelf for months at a time. Coming back to what I’m passionate about developed new insight to form about the way I see the world. My perspective seeks beauty, especially in the people around me. Embracing this individual perspective, made rich with experience, informs a valuable way of seeing.
IMAGINATION
Imaginative design itself is a hopeful, radically optimistic act. This posture of design embodies reformative justice, subverting hierarchy and challenging oppressive structures of power. By questioning system design assumptions, there is potential for a richer, more expansive world. As Randa Hadi says, “Dreaming is a radical act, it defies all current realities to build a reality where we see ourselves existing and coming into being.”
Balance
Making a ritual of rest is invaluable to sustaining a creative practice that is life-giving. Design takes grit and the human spirit is resilient and holds great tenacity but life is not meant to be lived white-knuckled. Boundaries protect our capacity to work productively and spaces of rejuvenation can provide nourishment to show up more fully and presently in every aspect of our lives.
chance
As much as I love organization, a strategic plan and follow-through, some of the most impactful moments in a project have seemed a result of chance. Exploring curiosity and leaving room for the unimaginable continues to serve me well.
My childhood was spent documenting everything interesting in my world with a little waterproof camera, chattering away making up stories, and creating scenarios from my imagination. Creative expression has been a vital part of my life with SD cards filled up with photos of my mom’s flower garden, videos recounting stories from friends, sunsets, and skies. In high school, my DSLR camera went everywhere with me as I began shooting events, portraits, and the world around me.
My favorite part of the design process is the synthesis of research. I love making connections and creating an impact in the space of opportunity found in the gaps between desperate things. I feel this is the space of greatest impact.