Designers don’t respond to culture; they anticipate it, question it, and are responsible for shaping its direction. And at this moment, that role feels more urgent than ever.
In his new book, The Design Loft, Albert Shum reflects on design and design leadership and, as a result, invites readers to reflect, reimagine, and rethink the possibility for design in the future. As the role of design education and design leadership shifts toward cultivating intent and frameworks for questioning, this book shares insights into our responsibilities. I am honored to have been part of writing a brief foreword.
At SVA, Albert had introduced a course on Responsible Design in the MFA Interaction Design program, teaching the first of its kind in the curriculum, continuing to challenge what the concept meant to students. Today, design tools are more accessible than they’ve ever been. The “what” is easy to reach. It’s the “why” that makes the difference.
Creative pursuits hold an inherent need for choice, whether we consider our medium design, music, art, literature, dance, buildings, landscape, or fashion. Each project we choose becomes a kind of time capsule, a reflection of what design values at a moment in time. Each one, a tool that provides new kinds of access: to services, to systems, to stories, and each centering the human experience as we move toward new futures.
Chris Ashworth’s soulful design for the cover
The Design Loft invites readers to rethink the possibilities for the future of design. We build on what came before us, acting out experiments and projects so we too can anticipate and open up possibilities. In order to do that, you have to build reference points and material. Now you have a guide.
Consider hurrying off to obtain a copy for yourself and start reflecting forward.
