Third Year Design

Manifestation 

FINAL MANIFESTO

Reference:

Cantu, D. (2011). From trash to treasure: Recycling scrap metal into steel. Technology and Engineering Teacher, 71(1), 14-21. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.helicon.vuw.ac.nz/docview/889324076?accountid=14782

The world we inhabit today has changed and evolved from what we know as the past has paved the way for the present and it will eventually lead us towards the future.  We must learn from our mistakes and failures as lessons from the past and head towards a better tomorrow; one with less pollution and wastage. I believe it starts with us, as designers to craft the way forward with more environmentally friendly design that has less impact on the place we all call home. Whether we like it or not, we are partially responsible for creating wastage and pollution, therefore we must not deny and ignore our responsibility. Instead we must acknowledge the issue and provide viable solutions. One must alone, cannot change the harm that we have created towards this planet; us as a collection, we must pave the way for our future. We live in an age that presents us with more innovative ideas and developing technologies which allows us to see, try, learn and gain more than ever before,  why must we not grab it with our both hands. Better tomorrow starts today, a future that appreciates and embraces the pure quality and usefulness of the material. We cannot distance ourselves from the environment as we are interconnected with one another; it is a part of us, a way of life. Therefore, we must use our skills and knowledge to craft and design in a manner that it can be used and reused with little impact on the planet.

Reference:

Cantu, D. (2011). From trash to treasure: Recycling scrap metal into steel. Technology and Engineering Teacher, 71(1), 14-21. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.helicon.vuw.ac.nz/docview/889324076?accountid=14782

Theme:  Design + Culture

Thesis statement: Consumer culture has a strong influence on self-identity in contemporary society.

Consumer culture, modernity and identity

The article by Thakur (2015), focuses on how what we consume in our daily lives, build who we are as individuals. The article gives brief overviews of thirteen essays on consumer identity. These essays present analyses of peoples’ articulation of consumer culture in five countries: the United State of America, India, Turkey, the Czech Republic and Russia (Thakur, 2015). The article illustrates how in some countries, consumption is about socialising and is seen as a meeting point, whereas in other countries consumption of luxury items gives the individual self-respect and self-confidence, where without these good one’s dignity is under threat (Thakur, 2015).  This article is relevant to my critical perspective as it supports the idea of consumer culture influencing self-identity and how it has an effect on people daily lives.

Thakur, M. (2015). Consumer culture, modernity and identity. Decision, 42(1), 105-107. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s40622-015-0076-2

Consumer culture and crisis of identity

The article by Chengbing (2011), looks at how people identify themselves through clothing, food, music, technologies and other goods. We are attracted to the things we buy, not necessary for its functional purpose, but rather to keep-up with fashion and to keep ourselves updated with social expectations (Chengbing, 2011). The article further addresses how through consumption, we lose our self-identity and  we are constantly consuming more and more to figure out ‘who we are’ as an individual. Also, it emphasises how consumer behaviour changes when one is in a personal setting verses one in a public setting (Chengbing, 2011). The article is a relevant source to my critical perspective as it emphasises how consumer culture has a significant influence on self-identity in the modern society.

Chengbing, W. (2011). Consumer culture and the crisis of identity. Journal of Value Inquiry, 45(3), 293-298. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10790-011-9292-y

Culture and design emerging markets: The case of mobile phone in Russia

This article examines how old and new cultural shift has a significant influence  on consumer culture and consumer preference (Salmi & Sharafutdinova, 2008). The article states that cultural, political, economical and personal changes and shifts create more opportunity for consumption. The product we publicly consume such a clothing, cosmetics,  food  and other goods act as a symbol of our self-identity and provides a social value; the product transmits information about the owner and the relation to others (Salmi & Sharafutdinova, 2008). This article is a relevant source to my critical perspective as it provides an interesting perspective on how consumer culture influences self-identity.