Illustration by Maytal Bach
California has a very well-established reputation. It’s the ultra-chill sunshine state that’s brimming with movie stars and beaches. In fact, this sense of identity is so strong that it can often overshadow California’s other accomplishments. However, people are beginning to recognize our state as a designing superpower. The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art’s exhibit Designed in California, which runs until May 27th, is dedicated to representing the state as a focal point for creation.
The exhibit features over one hundred cutting-edge and socially conscious innovations. The objects highlight the diversity of design in California. Some of the featured works are well-known, if not ubiquitous, like Apple’s iPod. Others are more obscure but equally critical, such as D-Rev’s ReMotion Knee prosthetic, which is designed for a client who lives on as little as four dollars a day. The differences between the curated objects underscore the sheer quantity and diversity of innovations in California, and exemplify the impact that our state’s creators have on our society.
Designed in California focuses on gadgets from the 1950s up to today. The recent boom of Silicon Valley has popularized the idea of California as a state that is the birthplace of world-changing innovation. The exhibit emphasizes the fact that California has been the home of ingenious brainchildren for generations, including the likes of Walt Disney, Charles Ginsburg, Steve Jobs, and many other inventors from the California.
One video component of Designed in California focuses on the creation of computers in California. The video explains the technology behind computers by comparing it to everyday human scenarios and emphasizes the fact that growth in this direction is not something to be afraid of but rather something to be embraced. The works show the rapid growth of design over the last decades as well as the history of innovation that persists throughout California.
More than anything, the exhibit is a reminder that California sets an example for the rest of the country to follow. Whether it be technological advancement or political views, it seems that California is always a little ahead of the curve. A perfect example of our state’s inherent progression is the popularization of design thinking. Unlike traditional forms of design production, design thinking is centered around the needs of the user. Design thinking is the tool that pushes designers to utilize focus groups, fieldwork, and interviews to determine what the user genuinely wants and how to best promote the products best qualities. Basically, the popularization of design thinking made technological inventions vastly more user-friendly environment, and we have the golden state to thank for that. In relation to the exhibit, many of the pieces came into fruition thanks to this process, exemplifying the impressive results that design thinking has attained over it’s short history.
The exhibit makes it obvious that California has been and will continue to be a hotbed for invention. It seems that open, creative, and fearless visionaries are drawn to California to produce new designs, resulting in ground-breaking innovations that shape the course of our ever-changing world. Designed in California methodically displays artifacts of design history and makes it obvious to the viewer that California plays an integral role in the evolution of technology and art.