Design Feast Series: Quotes

“We improvise daily. Every time we come across a baffling product or service, we start the process. Without understanding intended use, we cope our way through it (often with pride), not cracking open the user manual the technical writer crafted so carefully, choosing instead to invent our way through the experience. These improvisations, at times, lead to the accidental new uses of products, just as improvisation on the creation side leads to the intentional development of products.

Improvisation has interesting implications for us going forward when we look at ourselves not as creators, but as consumers. While a tweet, a status update, or a flickr upload may not be a design contribution as we define it, a Blurb book or a fully funded Kickstarter project might be. At a time when we’re beginning to become comfortable with co-creating content, we need to become comfortable with improvising. Not for a societal construct, but in the interest of creating meaningful and engaging experiences alongside of everyone who wishes to engage in creating them. The challenge will be to sustain the quality in real time.

We’ve always been part audience, part creator. The world around us shapes our experiences. The more we can be active participants in observing our experiences, being critical observers in our surroundings, the better creators we will be. We’re just becoming comfortable that the role we have is part consumer, part creator, and full-time improviser.”

Liz Danzico, Co-Founder and Chairperson of the MFA Interaction Design Program at the School of Visual Arts