From newly constructed buildings in large urban areas to the latest websites, design is pervasive. Indeed, we live amid the most design-intensive times, whereby form and content are inextricably bound, and the possibilities for self-expression and innovation is seemingly boundless.

With further innovation in communications and technology, the future of design will likely reflect the ever-expanding pluralistic and democratic cultures around the globe. Amid such profound diversity and possibilities, more than 30 designers, critics and thinkers from around the world came to the University of Michigan in mid October to discuss and ponder the FUTURE OF DESIGN.

Conference segments, including the round-table discuss are available on YouTube, visit: www.youtube.com/umtaubmancollege

Among the participants:

“We think it’s the right time to take a stock of our history. . . to speculate about the future, and the relationship between design and culture at large, to understand the boundaries among the disciplines and how they enrich each other.”

Monica Ponce de Leon
Dean of the A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture
and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan
& Principal, Office dA (Boston, NYC, Ann Arbor)

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“Design is part of the popular consciousness.  It’s forcing us to be more pluralistic. The individual is becoming more of a designer with the breaking down of notions of authorship.

Stephen Burks
Design director, Readymade Projects (Brooklyn, NY)

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“The future of design is a question of designers. We need to look at the people who are involved. We need to have a global view.”

Nicola Delon
Architect, Encore Heureux, Paris, France

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“If you design things that provide an open platform, people will find ingenious uses for products and technology….Hierarchy is breaking down. Access to self-expression used to be for only a few people. Technology and design are fueling this interconnectedness among people that we’ve never had before.”

Margaret Stewart
User Experience Manager, YouTube