The Museum of Awe
By Jordan Davies
After watching the presentation NASA’s David Delgado + Dan Goods at 2015 AIGA Design Conference, I became more informed on how the design process takes place in more complex environments. From the start of the video, I was very interested in the stories that Delgado and Goods were going to tell about their design journey. I was very intrigued by their work done for NASA. Specifically, the Hi Juno project. It’s interesting and eye opening to see examples of design work done for such a notable company like Nasa. We so often see examples of work in areas such as branding, web design, product design, etc. It was really facilitating to see the process behind their projects and proves to me that design is so much more than aesthetics.
Something I admire about these designers is how impactful their design is. They are working to help design things that humans never thought they could experience. I think they really set the bar for designers as to where the limit is: there is none. Their work is so much larger than them in the sense that they are designing essentially for the pleasure of millions of people.
New information is the reorientation you go through to adjust to the world after learning new information. This is something we as designers constantly go through. Whether that’s when we are learning more about design, technology, or both, we constantly must adjust our habits and skills in order to keep up with the fast-paced world we live in.
As far as connecting with a project, I think the Hi Juno was the one I connected most with. The reason for this is because watching the video and explanation behind the process of this project made me feel emotional. You can tell this project was designed with the intent of connecting with the audience being their main priority. The use of empathy is astonishing and really inspired me to remember why I love designing. I think creating with the sole intention of making someone or a group of people feel something is so empowering and inspirational. Design is all about storytelling, which is something I feel like they do so beautifully through such important and complex work.
I’ve had a handful of moments of awe in my life. The first that comes to mind is seeing the Eiffel tower in person when I was traveling abroad a few summers ago. It was such a memorable moment because I never thought I would see it in real life, and it’s such a beautiful, grand landmark that I will remember forever. Other moments of awe for me are always sunsets, specifically when I’m driving on I-5 towards downtown, and you can see the sun setting over Queen Anne with the Puget behind it. Watching sunsets is my way of regrouping and relaxing, and is always such a beautiful, calming experience.
