agIdeas
Trends in 2010:

• Origami
• Graffiti
• Conceptual immersion in a design experience
• Beautifying the threat of terrorism
• Indigenous Design
• Beauty for beauty's sake
• Self Determining Design
• Textures
• Humour
• Minimalism
• ...

Trends and designers:
Environmental Design:
More and more in modern times it is recognised how important it is that our designs do not affect the natural world in an adverse way. Some designers are approaching this issue in unorthodox ways.
1)Dan Formosa - Smart Design, USA
Designed a console display for a hybrid car for Ford which encourages the driver to drive more efficiently. It was found that although the cars were potentially extremely efficient, they were not achieving the milage they should have been capable of. A display which showed plants which became more dense and lucious when the car was driven efficiently was developed. Standard displays tell the driver how the car is behaving, but this was the first that would effectively comment on the behaviour of the driver and encourage better habits. The tendency of drivers was to try to care for the plants, which were very noticably in their hands. One person who tested this system said that not only had he been trying to drive more efficently, but it had made him stop using the drive through at McDonalds because he was losing leaves with the car idling. He had since been sitting down with his kids at the restaurant to eat instead of eating in the car and was having a better relationship with his children as a result. This goes to show the side effects of living a greener lifestyle.

2)Moose (Paul Curtis) - Reverse Graffiti Artist
The street art Moose creates is just the opposite of vandalism, it is a public service. To long have we been content to sit idly by as our great cities are slowly covered over by layers of grime and filth. English artist Paul Curtis creates beautiful designs as well as banners conveying political messages by selectively cleaning areas of dirty walls and footpaths. The technique is referred to as Reverse Graffiti since it is literally the opposite of applying a design to a surface and yet it is somehow the same. Part of the genius of this is that it is not really illegal (although there are still those in authority that try to stop him). Also all that can be done to remove the designs is to clean more of the wall and so it forces the powers that be to either clean up their act or else the message stays visible.


Self Determining Design
It is becoming a feature of the modern landscape that not everything is decided on by people.
1)Theo Jansen
This remarkable artist from the Netherlands has, with the aid of computerised genetic algorythms, given rise to new forms of life. The Strandbeests live in herds on the beaches, generating energy from the wind and are now performing the useful task of combating erosion by ferrying sand from the shoreline to the dunes. Their bodies are made from plastic tubing and elaborate networks of valves and manifolds. Before they ever took on a physical form they had already been under development in a digital form, evolving more efficient motion and walk-cycles to the point that they are now far more efficient than organic life-forms. These creatures are still at an early of their development but are already semi-aware of their environment. They can tell when they are venturing too deep into the water, where they might drown, or too far onto the soft sand of the dunes where they can become bogged down. They survive best on the partially wet sand not far from the water where they can gain a better footing. They are able to store energy in the form of compressed air so that they can still get to high ground if the tide rises after the wind dies down. Some of the more elaborate species work in teams, a larger "parent" animal can generate the power while the small "child" animals scout around the local area to map out their surroundings. At present the capacity of these creatures is very limited, their brains being composed of simple pressure valves, but as they continue to evolve there is no limit to how complex and intelligent they might become.

2)Resn - Rikki Campbell & Steve Le Marquand
This creative digital agency, based in Wellington, New Zealand are well recognised for their drive and ability in pushing the boundries of emerging interactive technologies. One of their creations is the Shapeshifter online audio visualiser which creates in real time an ever changing, ever moving artwork using an image bank and programmed agents. It is amazing to thing when watching the Shapeshifter crawl and morph across the screen that similar images could be the product of hours of work with Photoshop or other software and yet here it is being made purely by an Artificial Intelligence which has developed its own distinct style and is a master of performance.

Concept Evaluation:
"The Colourbond Garden"
Amanda Henderson, Gloss Creative for Bluescope Steel
When asked to design a display for Bluescope Steel with an Australian theme, and constructed from Colorbond Steel it would have been very easy to create something boring or cliche. What happened instead was the amazing "Colorbond Garden" featuring hundreds of lasercut plants and creating wonderful, comfortable environment from a material that one would not expect would give a cozy feeling.
The concept is that Colorbond is part of the Australian Landscape. As such Amanda Henderson has had the sheet metal cut into branches of Grivillea, Wattle and Eucalyptus which have then been individually attached to the walls to create this lovely textural surface. The colours used are Woodland Grey, Shale Grey and Surfmist and have been chosen to reflect the misty dawn of the Australian bush setting.
The end result is highly effective and a truly unique use of the materials. It shows the versatility of the product more than the manufacurers could have hoped for and has now also served as inspiration for many more applications.



Bibliography:

• agIdeas International Design Conference
• agIdeas brochure
• Design is difference, 20 years of agIdeas
• http://www.smartdesignworldwide.com/work/project.php?id=166
• http://inhabitat.com/files/reversegraffitti1moose.jpg
• http://www.strandbeest.com/mGallery/index.php?s=y&id=strandbeest__animals_at_the_beach_5
• http://www.nextnature.net/tag/dynamic-architecture/page/5/
• http://ideonexus.files.wordpress.com/2008/01/strandbeest.jpg
• http://www.screenshine.net/blog/1478_strandbeests-von-the-jansen
• http://www.screenshine.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/strandbeest-theo-jansen-2-468x311.jpg
• http://www.transform-mag.com/permalink/artandculture/the_art_of_creating_creatures
• http://www.changethethought.com/shapeshifter-resn/
• http://www.shapeshifter.co.nz/
• http://www.stoppress.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/ShapeShifter_09112213225067.jpg
• http://www.indesignlive.com/articles/people/gloss-a-lesson-in-brandscaping
• www.bluescopesteel.com
• SteelEdge28December2007.pdf