Materiality and Form – Kirsty Ross

We had a talk from Kirsty Ross on the materiality and form of design, and how one can influence the other.

One specific case study was Nokia, where Kirsty worked. The reinvention of their products recently was largely due to their product range becoming stagnated and bland. They wanted to become more ‘youthful’ by introducing a more bold, confident aesthetic.

To introduce this new aesthetic, a lot of time was spent looking into the form, colour and materials that would be used. To represent these ideas, the Nokia process was split into three different areas; now, next and then.

The ‘now’ is the Nokia Lumia, which they have looked to create a bold, interesting product that is well engineered and refined. They have utilised the CMYK colour scheme as those available, which have the connotations of being bright, confident and bold. The use of gorilla glass means the screen doesn’t scratch, which fits in well with the durable perception of Nokia’s products.

The ‘next’ looked at how the future of the Nokia product line will be changed. By working with craftspeople, they are looking to bring interesting textures and materials to their products. This will allow new forms and totally change the aesthetic of the phone.

The ‘then’ looks at the digital world, and how it will advance. Experimenting with behavioural transitions, materiality and character will give insights into how people react to certain changes, and the prospective paths to follow.

This way of looking at products was extremely interesting in terms of looking beyond what currently exists, and exploring what people will want and need in the future.

As an additional task, Kirsty asked us all to bring in a product that we felt had strong links between materiality and form. There was a large array of products and it was really interesting to see everyone’s interpretation of the task. I brought in a wooden spoon purely because the design of it hasn’t changed for thousands of years, it is a functional product which is entirely down to the materials used to make it, the wood allows hot liquids to be stirred with no conduction, and almost every household owns one.