Abstract

Design is the physical manifestation of the limitlessness potential of the human imagination. It’s a means to question, probe, and contemplate. Design drives a cycle of investigation and discovery, revealing insights into an ever-expanding world of possibilities that lie on the horizon.

Ideologically, my two guiding tenets (not only in design, but in life) are the concept of multipotentiality—the ability and preference of a person, particularly one of strong intellectual or artistic curiosity, to pursue and excel in different fields—and makeability, or the Dutch concept of Maakbaarheid—the idea that the world around us is inherently shaped by humans, physically and psychologically, and design is the essential factor in that shaping. Philosophically, I adhere to the malleability of life, the idea that everything can, and will, change—it’s simply a matter of how you choose to change it.

On a broader level, design is egalitarian and accessible. It provides a means of empowerment on a personal level, to reinvent yourself whenever and however you like, and at a societal level, to remake the world we live in to fit the needs of the community. Philosophy and theory re-imagine what could be. Design creates concrete forms, structures, and language that bring ideas and conjecture into reality, for an audience of one or the whole world.

I am naturally averse to ambiguity in life, but in design I prefer it. If something is nascent or nebulous, it’s waiting to be shaped. Design invites exploration, and it imbues people that practice it with a constant motion to improve and learn. I find that what I’m mostly learning is how much more progress there is to make and how much more I want to try. Design doesn’t become easier as you improve; it’s simply an expanding horizon as you grow.