No.14
Feature
Commerce, community, skills and credit, where does collaboration come into design? Words Ilsa Parry
Coming together ‘Collaboration’, ‘in collaboration with’; terms that are loosely banded about in many design articles, journals and press features today often with no real contextualization or true meaning. It seems to be another buzzword that has come about recently in reference to exploring the creative process but what does it really mean for designers, consumers and the industry as a whole? Does a collaboration come about as a result of a clear need for skill exchange to boost innovation? Is it indicative of the economic climate where a “credit or recognition” is given rather than financial reward in exchange for work done? Could it be that it is seen as a way to raise profile by publicising the endorsement of an individual or organisation with a global brand or
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strong reputation? Perhaps it exists in places we may not have considered…? By the very nature of the design process, we are all collaborators. With our clients, when services are enlisted; with our suppliers, when materials and resources are required; etc. But in what context does an exchange become a collaboration instead of a partnership or initiative, and furthermore, what is the currency? Initiatives, collaborations, and partnerships Italian lighting manufacturer Flos have recently been working with an attention-grabbing list of well known designers and this has been frequently cited by industry media as a great example of collaboration. Each
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