On my Radio

One of the tasks through which I am meant to explore my design process was "project one and three quarter" which asked me to listen to the programme "From Our Own Correspondent" on Radio 4 for one week. That´s not too bad, considering that the list also had things like the Shipping Forecast or Woman´s Hour on it. I was asked to listen to it on an analogue radio. I don't even own an analogue radio. Is this like trying to take photographs with an analogue camera? Or using a pencil instead of a computer? Is this meant to teach me the oldschool method? It´s a bloody radio!

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The rationale apparently was to stimulate my awareness of how I engage with the medium. Having to make an effort, overcoming technical hurdles, tuning into the radio programme, trying not to miss it and listening to it in presumably bad audio quality would change my mentality of how I approach design. Design apparently works like that. My design response depends on how the audience consumes my design. In order to understand that, I need to go through a similar process.



So in order to understand my design process, I have to listen to a radio show for old folks or people that like to maintain an old fashioned attitude to life. I need to be aware that beyond my comfort zone there are other things out there (no, really). I need to experience these things, even if I don't like it because—and this is the point—I might have to design for audiences that do like it. This is about the awareness that my design goes beyond my peers and myself. It´s the experience of a different lifestyle and helps to break down barriers with my audience and most importantly:

It makes me a better designer because I know who I'm communicating with.

Hands up who thinks this is bollocks. This is actually what we were told in our sermon lecture. It makes me a better designer when I leave work early and miss out on wages or throw around my entire day and listen to this radio show that consists of an hour long waffling and waffling and waffling about an economic crisis in Beijing, the Wild West in America, infertility in Italy and other things that I could have skimmed in a fraction of that time on the internet when browsing through various blogs as part of my daily routine. It makes me an even better designer when I do that in exactly the same way, an 80 year old granny would do it. Because I might have to design for 80 year old grannies some time in my life and then I can break down all the barriers between us and create a piece of really useful design. Yea, sure.

Vorlesungen erzählt. Ich werde ein besserer Designer, wenn ich früher von der Arbeit nach Hause gehe, Arbeitsstunden verpasse, meinen ganzen Tag umkrempele um dieses Radioprogramm anzuhören, wo eine Stunde lang gelabert und schwadroniert wird über eine Wirtschaftskrise in Peking, den Wilden Westen in Amerika, Unfruchtbarkeit in Italien und andere Dinge die ich locker hätte überfliegen können wärend meiner  täglichen Blog-Lektüre. Ich werde sogar noch ein besserer Designer, wenn ich dies auf genau dieselbe Art tue, wie es 80-Jährige Omas tun. Denn, es könnte ja sein, dass ich irgendwann in meinem Leben für 80-Jährige Omas gestalten muss und dann kann ich super die Barrieren zwischen mir und den Omas abbauen und ein wunderschönes und nützliches Stück Design kreieren. Ja, sicher.

I know that not only old folks listen to Radio 4 and I am well aware that I design not for myself but for other people. That´s the whole point of why I design stuff. I am also aware that other people are into pretty random stuff that I'm not particularly fond of and that I can't design something relating to that stuff if I have no knowledge of this stuff. But do I have to? Do I want to?

If I have to be prepared for clients or audiences that listen to Radio 4 (and yes, I know I'm exaggarating and that this wasn't entirely the point of this exercise, but still) then please take my business card.

I have nothing to do with Radio 4. It doesn't bother me, because I don't want to and don't have to listen to it. I don't care if my audience potentially listens to Radio 4 and I strongly disbelieve that my design is affected by anyone listening to it. I don't judge people on their radio taste.

Please take my card.

PS: What do I do if I wanted to design drug awareness publications? Do I really have to inject heroin to understand how this audience would consume my design?