This article was written by Lee Parkinson, Strategic Director at Strategy Christchurch for Kātoitoi.nz
Much has already been said by many (including myself), about 2020, the year that was. In my earlier essay, I spoke about the impact that the year of COVID19 had on design in Aotearoa. We saw a changing of attitudes, cultural shifts, an emerging interest in regenerative design, more focus upon inclusivity for all, and actions towards doing less harm.
For this discussion, I won’t go over previous ground except to say that 2020 also introduced new ways of working and a whole new vocabulary to most people. One such word within this new lexicon was ‘pivot’.
While I’m not a fan of how ‘pivoting’ became yet another part of the business world’s need to ‘jargon-ise’ everything, it is significant in this discussion about innovation in design.
To ‘pivot’ is to fundamentally change the direction of a business or the products you make and sell when you realize that your current products or services aren’t meeting the needs of the market, or in the case of tourism, travel, and hospitality, where those markets have (temporarily) disappeared.
In a business sense pivoting could be viewed as agile innovation – by necessity.
So, let’s be clear about what innovation is, as opposed to Invention.
Simply put, when you’re creating something completely new or novel, that is an invention, while an innovation is improving upon something that is already there.
But what of innovation in design? Did the hardships and new realities of life in a Covid 19 world herald a new crop of innovative ideas and provide new ways to improve on what has gone before, or is ‘innovation in design’ a part of the DNA of all designers? Is innovation hard-baked into everything designers do?
Well, innovation is a broad church, as this year’s honorees have shown.
The creators and curators of Katoitoi describe 3 categories of innovations in the following way:
Technical (work that is innovative or experimental in its production)⠀
Methodological (work that deviates from the expected/normal/routine design process)⠀
Philosophical (work that challenges expected ideas, work that deviates from the normal design thinking or that might signal a shift in the way we think about things)
However, what pulls these together is a clear understanding of the problem each entry is attempting to solve – through improvement, not invention.
Technical innovation
Work that is innovative or experimental in its production.
Nowadays, any discussion about technical innovation will lean heavily toward digital design and technology. We can see many examples of this around us in everything we do – however, in this essay we are discussing technical innovation in the widest way, not just technological innovation, because technical innovation is present in many ‘non-digital’ projects.
We should never be seduced by ‘tech for the sake of tech’, instead, we need to look at technical innovation in the widest possible way, and its role in improving upon an existing idea.
In effect, doing something better than what came before.
The increase in global connectivity enabled by smartphones contributes to this decline. So, it was decided to put the technology to work to help people explore and learn our native language. Rather than a mere dictionary, the user can use the Kupe app to take a photo of any object around them and Kupe will translate the name of the object into Te Reo Māori, both visually and audibly.
My hooman – this is not only a great piece of technical innovation, it is also a great demonstration of an understanding of human behaviour, and of cognitive biases – framing being one such bias.
Making sure that the human is right for the dog has, until now, not really been part of the adoption equation, and yet getting this right means the relationship should mean a successful adoption, and a friend for life.
This was another project beset with issues due to the COVID19 lockdown, meaning that Joseph had to push on without access to the technology. So, Joseph pivoted and pushed on with developing the concept of voxel printed images, with no prototyping!
The outputs, far from just being ‘novelty’ ask some questions and in part answered what role is there for the production of 3D printed images
The arts, craft, design and research debate has gone on for a century now, and this work aims to present a solution that binds all those disciplines into one unified body of work.
It will be fascinating to see Joseph’s works in real life as it is hard to fully appreciate them through viewing 2d photos of 3D images on the archive page.
Methodological Innovation
Work that deviates from the expected/normal/routine design process.⠀
Design projects that begin with a well-written brief, and follow the principles of design thinking tend to be tested and researched at every step. This iterative process ensures the outcome of the project is most likely to solve the problem it was set up to do.
Nest – Financial well-being. New Zealanders are notorious for making unwise financial decisions.
This became an even more significant issue for people as the COVID 19 pandemic took hold around the world. This difficult time opened up new discussions about how, in times of economic volatility, we handle money, as we faced the prospect of mass unemployment.
The brief, if well researched, should carry an insight, something that is not only interesting and relevant, but that can in itself create an avenue for exploration, and shine a light upon the real problem to be addressed. An example of this is the insight posed in the project overview; “In times of uncertainty, it can be challenging to navigate the complex financial systems when one is plagued with guilt for not having managed one’s money in the past”
Unfortunately, guilt rarely changes people’s behaviour. Instead, they tend to opt out and carry on the way they have always done.
The goal of this student project is to help young New Zealanders create good financial habits that will help them to achieve their financial goals and ultimately, to promote financial well-being.
One of the research conclusions of this design project challenged the conventional norm that financial literacy should be the standard,and instead moved towards a greater focus on what people actually do, rather than what people know.
Usability research and UX testing techniques were conducted to get feedback and guide the decision-making process and design of the mobile application at each stage of the journey.
This is an excellent piece of design driven by a methodological approach based on sound research, and if any bank or financial services organisation is reading this and looking for a new tool to help young New Zealanders into financial wellbeing, I’m sure that the curators of this archive would be happy to connect you.
As needed, as possible – A design project that sets out to explore the value of the arts is an interesting idea in its own right.
Tāmata Reo -This example of methodological innovation demonstrates how the past, present and future are intertwined – Kia whakatōmuri te haere whakamua
Work that challenges expected ideas, work that deviates from the normal design thinking or that might signal a shift in the way we think about things.
There were seven accepted submissions in this Kaupapa. Each deserved to be there, however I have picked just three to provide a flavour of what philosophical innovation in design looked like in 2021. They are each very different, but they all carry a strong thread of reflection and craft.
As found – A fascinating graphic design project inspired by examples of brutalist architecture in New Zealand.
This is a prime example of philosophical innovation in design. The exploration of something architecturally designed and built for one purpose, but finding a new use as the inspiration for a unique series of graphic patterns and motifs to help create a new visual language.
Ngā Mata A Te Ariki A Tāwhirimātea – A beautiful project, especially as it was a spiritual response to how we felt after the COVID 19 lockdown and the uncertainty we were now facing.
The need for a reset coincided with the sign of the Māori new year, Matariki. And this mahi celebrated Matariki by speaking of traditional themes of renewal, reflection and reconnection.
A design project crafted for print and digital media, a beautiful outcome weaving together art, craft, artifact and gift, a chance for those exposed to elements of the project to learn and explore an astronomical event that is not only of huge importance to Māori everywhere, but as we continue on our bicultural journey, a chance for us all to learn.
In my opening comments I wondered whether the hardships and new realities of life in a Covid 19 world had created a new crop of innovative ideas, providing new ways to improve on what has gone before, or whether ‘innovation in design’ is a key part of the DNA of all designers?
Without doubt, some of the mahi in this kaupapa (innovation) have been driven by, or were in direct response to the events and upheaval of 2020, but there was more happening than that.
The work and context discussed here seem to demonstrate that innovation is ‘hard-baked’ into the DNA of our designers and others in the creative industries, and that we rely upon them to rise up in times of uncertainty and change.
This essay by Lee Parkinson and illustration by Carol Green is part of a commissioned series of essays, interviews and artworks commissioned by Creative New Zealand for our 2020 pilot of the Aotearoa Design Archive.
By Karl Wixon. Ngāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Waitaha, Moriori, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Pākehā. Co-Chair Ngā Aho Inc. Kaiārahi & Managing Director ARAHIA pathfinders. For June & July we are focusing on […]
Kia ora Friends! We’re back from the summer holidays feeling fresh and excited for what’s in store this year for our Design Assembly community. Here’s the events and workshops we […]
With the Spring Conversations events coming up across all three cities in the next few weeks, we’re taking a moment to shine a light on each city’s featured speakers. This […]
