TheGwen

There is one thing to be said about the Japanese culture of design, code, etc etc…. “Kaizen” (kigh – zane) – it is generally interpret as striving for perfection. This process of striving for perfection, or continuous improvement and achieving a level of fine art to the process is the whole philosophy of Kaizen.

just like the video below is describing two symbolic acts that sums this Japanese philosophy. It is important to understand that the modern western way of perfection is no longer what we assume as “perfection”. Americans consider an office job or high paying salary as a form of perfection, but what is ‘it’ that is ‘perfection’ – business deals, lawyering, accountant, broker?????

And this bothers me as a whole. We -western minds- would consider the two videos as an expression of a culture – the Japanese way.Except growing up in an Amish community near by, they had this mental too. All the immigrants that came to America and starting a trade in new york (the garment/fashion industry – which is described in the third video) they all took pride in their skills.

Even in the writings of Malcolm Gladwells’ book Outlier – he researched about this perfection or ‘great mind’ having to do ten years or in his words 10,000 hours to be come a talent or gifted in that skill, mind-capabilities, etc. Even software programmers need thousands of hours to get to the point of understanding the material they are working – a form of a mastery.

These videos represent a uni-skill or process to one specific need. One skill to perfection, but today’s 21st cent we are all about collecting multiple skills. Are we even good at these skills? Does a designer needs to be a business man, a politician, a conspirator, a non-profiter, a service diplomat, a fortune teller, a sales man, an engineer, an artist, a philosopher, a writer, a carpenter, a mathematician - a 21st renaissance man???

Should designers take pride that they, as i call myself, a dabbler of skills???? In this economy i need this ‘dabbli-ation’ to survive, but on the flip side, i feel i am not contributing myself an identity towards one perfect skill. A skill that people will admire and to call for that tiny specific problem. Which is the dynamic stress of today, citizens are not aware about their needs or knowing when to call.

It is also the problem to understand  how much will that need of this perfect skill come into existence. This explains why we can still see the “simpler” trades being continue into the art of perfection – ironing, shoe shining, tailoring – these are needs that will never change throughout the decades of technology immersion and such. Except everyone DOES know a person will do the job better than technology – only we will admit that technology provides an “as-good” for a cheaper price.

Lessons from a Tailor. Directed by Galen Summer from Ed David on Vimeo.