Core77

Jon Kolko, just back from the IDSA Conference in Miami, has some provocative ideas about the future of industrial design and the IDSA. Here's the start:

I've just returned from the IDSA conference in Miami, and I'm both convinced that, in ten years, there won't be an IDSA conference to go to - and that isn't a bad thing. I don't mean this in a disparaging sense; I enjoyed the conference, caught up with old friends, made new friends, and learned a bit. But a trend that I've observed at past conferences is only more evident this year, and it's patronizing to continue to skirt what is becoming increasingly obvious: the IDSA has served a valuable role in the evolution of design as a professional discipline, and has helped advance the field to a point where the IDSA is now essentially irrelevant. Design has outgrown "Industrial Design", and a professional organization cannot exist only in the form of self-maintenance.

While there are a number of valid points in his article, perhaps his conclusion goes too far, too fast. Certainly there is a greater need for integration with interaction, experience and service design, as virtually every electronic device has a web site or subscription model behind it these days. But to claim that the business of artifact production is so commoditized that every business should simply outsource it to the cheapest provider is doing a disservice to a specialization that has many facets to it.

The need to evolve the definition of industrial design as a profession is real. And programming a high-profile annual event is one of the biggest opportunities to do so. So before the rumors of the death of an organization become too widespread perhaps a more important discussion to have is to how to best do this? What are the topics that should be discussed in a gathering like this? Are these topics being discussed in a more meaningful way elsewhere? If so is there a need to replicate those discussions? Or can the organization bring something new to the table? If so, what is it?

Read Jon's full entry the at frog's DesignMind. Got another take? Comment away.