DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY - Essay Example

? DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY By 8th, May, In the modern world today, there is a vast influence of modern designs. Different countries are adopting new types of designs from other countries, at a higher rate. Nonetheless, this has all been made possible through the process of globalization, which allows countries to come into close contact, interacting with one another at a higher level, thus enabling borrowing of various aspects from one another. Therefore, like the social, economic, and political elements, which countries borrow from one another, design forms are considered part of a country’s culture, and countries borrow these or elements of these when they come into contact through the process of globalization. This has therefore, resulted in the globalization of designs today (Eldemery 2009). Nonetheless, the globalization or internationalization of designs is not wrong, neither is it disadvantageous to any country in major ways. However, various concerns have been raised today with regard to the globalization of designs. Primarily, some designs are distinct, and only identified with specific countries. These therefore, act as a kind of cultural identity of the countries. Therefore, when such designs are globalized, the country loses a part of its cultural identity, since the design will also be identified with other countries (Eldemery 2009). Therefore, despite the globalization of design forms, it is important for countries to uphold the cultural, regional, national, and local aspects, as these remain of great importance. This essay will, therefore argue the case for these factors being included as influences on design processes and outcomes. According to Kim (2010), the processes of globalization and internationalization have influenced different forms of designs in different countries, including the architectural designs. However, this was witnessed since the eighteenth century, especially among the East Asian design forms, which were highly adopted by most European countries. The various designs from East Asian countries that were adopted in Europe included fashion designs, architectural designs, and art designs, among others. For instance, the popular American architect Lloyd Wright is known to have adopted various elements from Lao –Tzu, including other design elements of the Japanese architecture. Nonetheless, only the outstanding designs by a country are most likely to be adopted by different countries. For instance, although Korea belongs in the same region with China and Japan, its designs, including architectural designs, have not attracted interest from outside countries, and this therefore reveals something about Korean designs, which might be unattractive to (Kim 2010). Nonetheless, the first factor, which is considered important to a country and its design amid the high level of globalization today, is mainly the cultural factor, which also includes the historical element. Culture is specific, as each community or society has its own culture, which is distinct, and might not compare to culture from other communities. On the other hand, culture of any community dates back to the historic times, although several components might show great changes today. Furthermore, the culture of a community is responsible for the identification of its people. Members of a community are identified by their cultures, including the various components therein. Architectural designs are components of the culture of any community, since each community has its distinct way of designing their buildings. Since this is crucial, countries need to preserve their historical designs, as these give meaning to their cultures, and help countries to restore their originality. An illustration of the cultural aspect might focus on Korea. The architectural designs of the Korea highly borrowed from the country’s philosophy, which is a cultural element. Kim (2010) notes that the Korean, “pungsu,” which was the Korean philosophy, contributed to the traditional architectural design, since the architectural designs of past Korean buildings were based on this. This therefore, shows that the cultural element of designs is important, as this identifies a country, since Korea could be identified by this cultural element in their buildings. With regard to trends, which fall under the locality factor, this might involve the development of designs, using the materials and knowledge that is available locally, which other regions might lack. Therefore, a country should consider incorporating trends in its designs, so that this differentiates the designs from those of other countries. For instance, in Korea, during the past decades, the Korean buildings were built basing on “fengshui.” This was an ideology that was present in Korea, therefore qualifies as a localized trend, since no other country could claim to own this originally. Nonetheless, in this case, Korean buildings faced south, and were constructed on a flat and slightly lifted area. A wood frame would be used to form the skeleton of the whole building structure. Additionally, the frames that offered support to the roof had important meaning to the Koreans. The roof was either thatched or tiled, and the doors and windows were made with wooden lattice (Kim 2010). Therefore, these among many other aspects showed how the past architectural design of Korea based on the country’s location, materials, and knowledge in order to develop a distinct design, which no other country could come up with. Nationalism and the political factors are also vital in designs. According to Mentula (1978), nationalism is a major factor in design. Although the designs in the world today are highly internationalized, it is crucial to embrace national identity, and integrate elements of this in a country’s designs. For instance, it is necessary that the national identities of American, European, Finnish, and Scandinavian, among others, be felt or reflected in the international designs, including the architectural designs. This will help a country’s design to be distinguished from other designs, therefore, serving as an identification of the country. Additionally, Mentula (1978) emphasized the importance of the regional element in designs. Internationalism today has almost succeeded in erasing and excluding the local, national, and regional factors in designs. Mentula (1978), felt that internationalization of design is wrong, as this has fully taken upon itself to form the basis of design, instead of allowing the regional aspects to form this basis. For instance, Al-Kodmany & Ali (2012) have addressed the issue of skyscrapers, ad their internationalization. Skyscrapers were mainly dominant in the region of North America, before spreading to other regions. Nonetheless, skyscrapers that were constructed in the North America observed both the functional and aesthetic value. Therefore, the skyscrapers in the North America region had integrated some of the elements of the region into their architectural design. For instance, the people in the region of North America like and appreciate aesthetics, and this can be experienced in the level of aesthetics employed in skyscrapers. Additionally, most parts of the North America regions are still undergoing increased levels of urbanization and industrialization, thus resulting in increased population in urban areas. Therefore, space in urban areas was a major challenge, and this prompted the construction of skyscrapers to accommodate large numbers on a small space (Al-Kodmany & Ali 2012). Nonetheless, skyscrapers and their architectural designs are highly internationalized, and spread to different world regions. However, most designs of skyscrapers are today customized to fit and integrate different elements of the country that adopts it. This has therefore, led to the loss of the original identification of skyscrapers as originally hailing from the region of North America. In conclusion, the rate of globalization today has resulted in the internationalization of designs. Different countries borrow certain designs from other countries. Although globalization is a good thing, the internationalization of designs might result in negative effects, especially in the case where a country loses its identity with design, because of multiple adoptions by various other countries. Therefore, the cultural, regional, national, and local factors remain important in designs, as these help a country to have an identity through its designs. Therefore, it is important for countries to emphasize these factors in their designs Works Cited Al-Kodmany, K. & Ali, M 2012, “Skyscrapers and Placemaking: Supporting Local Culture and Identity,” International Journal of Architectural Research, 6 (2): 43-64. Eldemery, I 2009, “Globalization Challenges in Architecture,” Journal of Architectural and Planning Research, 26(4): 343-354. Kim, H 2010, “The appearance of Korean architecture in the modern West,” History, 14(4): 349-361. Mentula, P 1979, “The Role of Nationalism and Internationalism in Design,” Journal of Interior Design, 5(1): 28-29. Read More