This article is written by Mrinalini Sardar, Communication Designer from National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, The article was published in issue 08 of the Social Technology Quarterly. Summary: Digital technologies have significant effects on creative domains, especially impacting the relationship among designers, designs and tools, creating a whole new creative culture.

1. 50
Technology and
the Changing
Creative
Culture
Digital technologies
have significant effects
on creative domains,
especially impacting
the relationship among
designers, designs and
tools, creating a whole new
creative culture.
by Mrinalini Sardar
Photo Credit: Wacom
Communities

2. Kuliza Social Technology Quarterly Issue 08
The power of digital design is spreading
like wild fire. The possibilities of creativity
have magnified. From the days of carving
and spreading inks on wooden blocks,
creating letterpress lovelies to using the
web as a medium for social expression
and sharing creativity, the world is moving
rapidly.
Technology is changing perceptions and
thinking. But it is not changing ideas. As
Kevin Kelly, Founder Executive Editor of
Wired magazine proclaims, “Technology is
only a tool driven by human energy” and “it
needs an identity.” In the creative domain,
the identity of technology lies with us, the
designers. As designers, there is a huge
responsibility on us to shape not only the
future of technology, but also the future
of the microcosm as it progresses to face
more challenges and complexities.
For cultures to flourish, they need to re-
invent themselves and keep up with the
times. Similarly, designers have to update
themselves with trends in technology to
develop their designs.
The purpose of design is to solve a
problem. With technology intercepting the
design process at the right phase, it will
help in creating more functional solutions.
An example of this would be the adaptation
by creatives to new age drawing tools and
gestural capabilities of such devices. The
Wacom tablet, foremost in digital drawing
tools, is experimenting with newer ways to
reduce time required to create a piece of
artwork. Integrating the hand touch with the
stylus doubles its capabilities. The attempt
is to bridge the gap between the physical
and digital disconnect which indicates a
paradox between how the physical drawing
tool will be replicated in a digital way to last
longer and be more functional. With the
introduction of the Wacom Inkling, physical
drawings in notebooks can be instantly
converted into vector art. Touch tablets
and smartphones have enabled gadgets
to become sketchpads for creatives. As
drawing tools evolve, so have designers
who are adapting to these tools.
Open-source economics is changing
creative cultures. Open platforms, such as
Open IDEO, ideate on design challenges.
Open IDEO is a global community that
draws concepts from one’s optimism,
inspiration, ideas and opinions in order to
solve problems together for the collective
social good. More and more companies
have begun to tackle issues through this
global network wherein good ideas are
generated to come to the best possible
solution instead of a pre-conceived
solution. Organizations such as Amnesty
International and Barclays have sponsored
challenges to help technology aid people
to uphold human rights against the face of
unlawful detention.
Another important insight is the
information and usage of open source tools
like “processing” for creating unique visual
solutions and new generative art. It is art
that interacts with humans and has the
ability to change the concept of branding.
Photo credit: Knovel

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4. Kuliza Social Technology Quarterly Issue 08 53
Time is a sort of river
of passing events, and
strong is its current;
no sooner is a thing
brought to sight than
it is swept by and
another takes its place,
and this too will be
swept away
Marcus Aurelius

5. Projection mapping is another innovative
method of representing ideas. In this, the
substrate or base for projection changes
to a daily object instead of a screen. In the
future, product projections themselves will
be editable and shared easily for feedback.
Open-source will be a key trend to cluster
creatives to experiment and innovate.
Projection motion is the current trend
in the creative circuit especially among
advertising and branding professionals. A
motion graphic communicates an improved
way of communicating with cultures
and transforming a brand experience.
Building motion typography is also the way
through which designers have adapted
themselves to technology, as they are
not only creating stagnant, decorative or
legible fonts but also are creating radical
ways of interactions through typography
and motion.
Digital and more interactive publications
are changing the publishing culture.
Almost every print magazine has an online
presence and information is being stored at
many levels in these publications. Patrick
Burgoyne, Chief Creative Editor of The
Creative Review recounts about the time
when major design print publications were
shutting down in the U.K. and he managed
to save his own company by having a web,
mobile and touch surface present. Adobe
Digital Publishing suite is a good start to
understand the potential of interactive
publishing wherein ads come alive and
pages turn. Wired Magazine, along with
Adobe, is trying to generate novel ways
of how magazines and publications will be
read in the future. Print will become more
exclusive, limited and customized.
With the addition of HTML 5, the web
culture is undergoing a massive change.
Technology is being used in creating tools
in order to provide designers simpler
and more functional tools. Designers
can best assert their merit and potential
through the way they share their work
on the web. Online portfolio sites and
Photo Credits
Top: Wired
Middle: Gizmodo
Bottom: Emma’s Design Blog

6. Kuliza Social Technology Quarterly Issue 08
a metamorphosis, from print to digital
and from research to prototyping. But it
is important to understand that design
and technology are both powered by
human energy. The functionality of
design to solve a problem will remain,
but what will transform are the tools and
methods through which problems will
be solved in simple ways. Technology
will help transform social structures and
cultures because we have allowed them
to. The more adaptive designers are to
technology the more it will mould their
designs and creations for a more creative
and better tomorrow.
References
Kelly,Kevin.Kevin Kelly tells technology’s epic
story.2010.
Benkler,Yochai.Yochai Benkler on the new open-
source economics.2008.
“HTML,”Wikipedia,The Free Encyclopedia.
Sommer,Ryan.“Q&A: Patrick Burgoyne of
Creative Review on what makes a great
designer.” Econsultancy.22 Jan 2013.
creative communities are thriving through
sites such as Deviant Art and Behance.
Portfolio sharing sites are making huge
business out of customizing and making
the construction of a website simpler,
less time consuming and devoid of code.
Behance Pro Site and Cargo Collective
can be considered as potential platforms
that allow more designers to engage and
showcase their work to the world.
Another transformation in process is in
the way we design and purchase design.
With the advent of three-dimensional
printing, the power to design lies in
the hands of consumers. Trends lean
heavily towards customization and
personalization. Maker Bot brought the
3D Printer to homes and have not only
changed the way designers construct
prototypes but also paved way for people
to customize designs and detail their
experiences with products.
When looking at the way design itself
has changed, one perspective is that of
how technology has brought designers
closer to nature. There are several studies
being conducted in the field of biomimicry.
Designers are coming close to emulating
models closer to nature and building more
sustainable human models.
Another perspective is that of how big
data has influenced design. 2012 was the
year of big data. But 2013 is the year of
nano data: data that has been intelligently
filtered according to recorded profile
information. Analytics and data have
helped businesses grow and understand
user patterns. In the future nano data will
help creatives to make smarter choices
by filtering and focusing on content.
Reliability ratings will help artworks sell.
Cloud services will flourish in the future
where all creative personnel will be digital
nomads working across multiple locations
around the globe.
With the sands shifting in technology,
creative cultures are bound to change.
Every domain of design will undergo