I’m always the black sheep of the crowd when it comes down to the ethics of design. I strongly believe that there should be some moral issues connected with each designer that make her or him a better professional.
One of the reasons I am writing this is because day-in and day-out I am faced with projects or concepts that are critical to some bigger issues and there should be some thought involved, rather than a simple click on the mouse and a “Save for Web” choice on Photoshop.
Let me be clear and give out some clear examples of what I’m driving at. Say a designer is faced with a client who owns a tobacco company and needs to redesign it’s packaging or a billboard for that matter. The job pays well - Maybe even too well to the point where it gives the designer some profit and three months worth of rent. Should the designer take this job? Someone may give a quick “YES!” with a shit-eating grin on their face while giving you the creeps out of their quick standard(less) opinion.
Why do I feel so strong about this? Well, we all know tobacco is harmful not just for the person who smokes it, but even worse for those around who don’t. The designer’s job is to make nice things that sell something. Someone may say — “That’s your job. You’re getting paid to do something” — “Yes!”— I say — “It’s all reasonable. But, you’re not selling your soul. You’re making a conscious choice where and you’re selling your expertise.” And to be quite frank and extremely honest — The Designer is Supposed to Make things Better — which includes considering the bigger picture.
OK. You like the money. You take the job. But, maybe just to make a compromise, give out a fair percentage from the profit to a non-profit organization who’s fighting through anti-smoking campaigns.
There’s another conundrum that I was discussing with a good friend. Say an architecture firm is hired to design a factory for a tobacco company. The bright side of the story is that this new factory will hire a good amount of people who will feed their families. The dark counter-side is that these people will produce a product that causes cancer and kills members of families that are in numbers higher that those it employs.
From time to time I am guilty myself for designing things that don’t quite complement my ethical or moral beliefs. But, my reasoning has always to do with “Oh, I was pushed into it” or “I couldn’t get out of it” or millions of other reasons that I am ashamed to admit. However, I call not just on myself, but on all designers, architects, producers and everyone else in between to be more conscious of the bigger picture and what matters the most at the end of the day.
Life is beautiful and we shouldn’t do anything that compromises that fact.
be the first one to comment on this post
