McLuhan in his work explains the strain technology has left on the era of our transition and the ways it influences design. It seems as though he was saying that the immediate shift between the tech-free world to the tech-run world left a mark on us, our families, job, government, etc. Since design from the start can be understood as an extension of anything, it’s completely accessible to everything and ambiguous making it harder to stand out. That causes an issue because it means that you can no longer be the only one providing your services, nothing distinguishes you from the rest. All the world’s private matters can become public with one click. The appreciation for visuals have lost meaning due to the rapidness and large intake of design and content through technology. Although technology has spread everywhere, the same classic loyalty to a position still exists. I understood this by thinking of students, who go to school for a great portion of their lives just to start another long dedicated journey to their jobs for another great portion of their lives, which is quite miserable if you ask me. It is how the world is run and technology fosters this cycle, making it much more complicated. People have grown more distant, yet connected intangibly through technology.
There will be no change without the use of media. I think the media’s ability to change everything as he says is a good thing. There was no surveillance back then. Receiving information through the newspaper was a private experience. Everyone lived in their own worlds but now it is so easy to be involved or at least educated on societal matters. It was mentioned before that technology connects people yet distances people at the same time, however we are more connected with the rest of the world than ever before, as technology not only provides information but also has broadened our horizons and removed the limitation of physical distance. It is true that it is more difficult to stand out as a designer, or as a creator in general, when there is so much content on the internet already, but without it many people would not have such an accessible outlet for their creations. Anyone can post their designs online, and anyone in the world can perceive it. This was not possible before technology. The entire field of digital art would not exist without it either, and digital art has removed the limitations of physical art.
It is evident that technology has both positive and negative aspects to it, and it is interesting to think about the aspects in regards to the field of design. Yes, it has made life more complicated, and there are definitely many pressing issues with the modern day internet, but it has truly done wonders for creators all around the world. I believe the positives greatly outweigh the negatives, as technology has provided many opportunities both for design as a field and for designers individually, in addition to alleviating the many limitations of the tech-free world. Regardless of my opinion, the truth is that technology has become a fundamental part of all our daily lives and has changed our society significantly and it will only progress even further from here.
Leave a Reply