While doing the dishes today, I washed the spoons and forks and realised something, their design were simple, smooth forms without unnecessary details and that made for easy washing. Just a few weeks ago we were using our fancy sliver cutlery, because we thought why keep them in the cupboard? Best to use them instead and feel like royalty having a silver spoon in our mouths (pardon the pun, just had to say it!) But after repeated washing up, now more often then usual as we stay at home, we started to see how their intricate fancy details made them more difficult to clean! We swapped them back to our good old plain cutlery sets. Ahh… A simple change to add ease to something we do daily. I learnt from this the importance of simple design.
Simple design makes the object something you want to handle and use every day.
In fact, when I was a graphic design student, it was something that lecturers used to tell us too. Good design should be like a clear vessel – It should look so natural that you no longer see the design but the message only.
I am drawn to nature and this appears a lot in my work too, be it in subject matter (botanical, floral and fauna), style (organic forms) or even type of material (cotton, linens in my work with textiles) . Maybe it is because I also see the idea of ‘Simple’ in nature. How a leaf is shaped to be effective in its work. Nature finds the most straightforward way of getting things done, that is the definition of simple.
This is a good reminder for me when thinking of designs, don’t overwork it and learn to let go once it is enough. Simple is beautiful too.
When time slows, we get the chance to enjoy the simple everyday life, and the subtle changes in nature.
ramblings. 