Material Driven Design (MMD)

When I discovered Dr. Elvin Karana ‘s Material Driven Design theory, I realized that I have found the theoretical and methodological backbone to my own design approach. Reflecting on my own design process, it very much echos majority of what she wrote in her published paper Material Driven Design (MDD): A Method to Design for Material Experiences.

Elvin Karana is Professor of Bio-based Art and Design at the Centre of Applied Research for Art, Design and Technology in the Netherlands. Elvin’s work focuses on material-driven design, which takes materials and material understanding as a departure point in the design process. Which is exactly what I am doing in my practice.

“You start with a material at hand and explore its design potentials by incorporating technical and experiential (what people think, feel and do) understanding of materials in the design process.” she said.

The material experience design she mentioned in the paper is what’s missing in my biocondom project. I spent most of my time focusing on the material experimentation and not user interaction with the material. If I had more time, that would have been another focus in my research. What would people think or feel when they use a bioplastic condom during sex? Do they feel like they are protected? Do you feel they are having a good time but also saving the plant? What kind of reaction people would have if you tell them this condom is made from algae? These are the questions I need to think about when I design my products. End user research is important as it validate the idea as a real need instead of a problem designers created in order to “realized one of their ideas”. Some times, we as designers jump into a issue without critically evaluate the real problem. We think what we have to offer is the real solution just because our ego got in the way.

ok this is a business problem. how do you solve it with a design solution? Would a business solution be a better option to solve the problem? Understanding what role design plays in the problem solving process is critical to delivery the proper solution to the problem.