An excerpt from my MA Learning Agreement; a statement of intent for the Final Major Project.
My
research during the Material and Emotional Values of Product Design unit led me
to explore my initial design ethos of passive and humble products through
investigation into the ageing timepiece
- a product that adapts or changes over time, allowing personal reflection on
our individual perceptions of time.
Through the initial idea development of the previous unit, I began to
consider our own relationship with the world around us and our inner
sensitivity to the natural world.
My ambition
for my future professional practice is to continue to develop products that
echo the human condition. I believe that
the reflection encouraged by a product and the interaction we have with it
allows us to build sustainable relationships with products, relieving the
environmental pressures of consumerism while promoting a deeper connection with
our own personal environments. To better
understand these concepts, I will be supplementing the design process of the
project by studying a range of philosophical theories encompassing humankind’s
spiritual connection with the natural world, and our perceptions of the passage
of time.
My product
focus is to produce a range of objects to reflect my interest in producing
functional products that reflect the human condition. These products may also include digital and
mechanical technologies, utilising the strengths of my own background in
Mechanical Engineering.
Though my aim
is to ultimately produce domestic products, I am also interested in producing
pieces that would be suitable for gallery exhibitions, and as such I will be
targeting this market to identify an external professional collaborative
partner.
Due to the
philosophical nature of my research, I believe my ambition for my Final Major
Project aligns with the MA learning outcome.
Undoubtedly, due to my engineering background, any functional products I
design will be analysed in-depth technically, but I believe that the deeper
meaning to the product is the more important factor and so I will be striving
for an MA classification, as opposed to the MSc.
It is my
intention to submit a range of functioning prototypes that encourage reflection
on the human condition and thus meet the conditions of the MA learning outcome.
