The New Battlefield

To me, there was once a time when designers were warriors—trained and battle-hardened. They honored their craft, and practiced their bodies and minds to perfect it. The weak died, the strong lived and everyone in between knew that line. Designers, like the ancient warriors, stood with valor and were honored for their skills. I am afraid that mentality will die out, just as they did. Or be overshadowed. Guns, cannons, missiles, bombs and technology destroyed the principals of ‘honorable’ combat, and so will the technologies of our time continue to change our craft. The gun leveled the battlefield then and so the new software and accessibilities of our times will level the battlefield for us—with the average joe, the high school student, the indie band member, etc.

This is the age of accessibility. Voices, ours or anyone’s, echo farther than we can possibly imagine in today’s landscape. Messages travel down unknown corridors and around unforeseen corners. The inter-connectivity of our world is growing so fast, due to the drastic development of technology, that it changes the battlefield. Rebels, guerrillas and mercenaries erupt from shadows to cry their name and play our game. And they are getting good. Piracy of software, accessibility of hardware and affluence of knowledge enables them to stand a chance. No longer will people look to us to champion their cause. They will look instead, to their brethren. They will look instead, to those with the heart and will to rise against the opposing forces and stand arm in arm with them. They will look to their own—people who understand them and know them better than they think we ever can. They will be capable too, everything they need can be found on the internet.

It will begin from the bottom. The accomplished firms, and ‘professionals’ won’t see it, but from where I stand, at the base of this skyscraper, I can see the tension in the landscape around me. Perhaps it will never reach farther than this level, and it would be a long time from now, but I am afraid.

Where does that leave me? I honor the principals and theories I have learned. The methodology and the craft of design intrigue me immensely. I read and research everything I can and will continue to do so, but I question whether this will be enough to survive against a rising force. Deep down I know that the core principals I learn will provide sustenance and sustainability, but for every one of them that fails, a hundred will replace them. Will they overwhelm us? And if so, how will design, and our roles, be affected when everyone becomes a ‘designer’?