Brief Introduction to Industrial Design Aesthetics

中图分类号:TB47 B832.1 文献标识码:A文章编号:1673-0992(2009)12-100-02

Abstract:The paper proposes the idea that in the primary stage of industrial product design, the aesthetic nature of the product should be grasped. In addition, the paper poses two questions about aesthetic nature industrial design: first, what is the object of industrial design aesthetics? Second, what are the characteristics of design aesthetics of industrial products?

Key words: industrial design, aesthetics

As an emerging subject, industrial design aesthetics started to flourish after the Second World War. It first appeared in UK, and then spread across the whole Europe, and then to US and Japan. Unlike traditional aesthetics, industrial design aesthetics goes beyond philosophical abstract discussion, and centers on the practical field of industrial production, operation, construction and management, etc, dealing with laws of product design aesthetics of the industrial sector. To understand what product design aesthetics is, we first need to understand what industrial product design is.

As we all know, design is an inter-disciplinary subject which involves many aspects such as society, culture, economy, market and technology, and the aesthetics standards also vary with changes of these aspects.

In 1983, the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design defined the industrial designer as follows: “an industrial designer is one who is qualified by training, technical knowledge, experience and visual sensibility to determine the materials, mechanisms, shape, colour, surface finishes and decoration of objects which are reproduced in quantity by industrial processes.”

1. Object of industrial product design aesthetics research

Each discipline has its own object of research so that it can become an independent branch of science, so does industrial design aesthetics. The focus of industrial design aesthetics research is, of course, industrial product which undertakes the material and spiritual functions of design. However, such research should not be done in isolation, as products will be used in life and society, so research should include people who design and use industrial products, markets where industrial products are in circulation, relationship between industrial products and environment, etc.

1.1The first object of research into design aesthetics of industrial product is the relationship between industrial products and consumers. As products are consumed by people, so design of industrial products must take account of target customers, and their physical, psychological, aesthetical, economic and cultural needs. The design of a product should give comfort to people, and be affordable to people of different income levels, different ages. Therefore, the products should also be divided into different levels, made of different materials, in different colors and shapes. In this sense, product design can never separated from study of target consumers.

1.2The second object of research into design aesthetics of industrial product is the relationship between industrial product and market. The purpose of any product design is to make it popular in the market and secure a market share. Therefore, analysis and research of the market is also indispensable in industrial design so that the product design can lead the direction of the market.

1.3The third object of research into design aesthetics of industrial product is the relationship between industrial product and environment. Industrial design is a purposeful creative activity that coordinates relations between product and people, product and environment. Industrial design also involves function, shape, technological application, type and color of the product.

1.4The fourth object of research into design aesthetics of industrial product is the relationship between industrial product and management. As far as industrial design aesthetics is concerned, it is vital

to improve ability of managers of various levels to appreciate and create beauty so that production management, design, manufacturing and information processing can be consistent with principles of aesthetics.

Through research of the above-mentioned four aspects, we can balance functional design and spiritual design of product so that the product function, material, technique, shape, color, surface, decoration and the like can all be processed through social, economic, technological, aesthetical and cultural perspectives.

2.Aesthetic features of design aesthetics of industrial product

Design aesthetics of industrial product is in contrast to traditional aesthetics, which only studies beauty from non-material perspective, such as nature, form, scope and creation of beauty, as well as appreciation, feeling and experience of beauty. However, industrial design aesthetics focuses more on aesthetical problems of production and sale of industrial products. So we can see that aesthetics of industrial design, which is an applied subject, is different from beauty of art, life, nature, which are basics of aesthetics.

2.1Functional beauty of industrial design

“All the products are the result of processing or transformation of natural materials by mankind according to laws with certain purposes. When a product has become functional and consistent with human purpose and laws, men will gain freedom. The typical form that can reflect unified product, or in other words, the form of its freedom, will show beauty, which is functional beauty.”

Functional beauty, in substance, is a unification of use value and aesthetic value, applicability and beauty. Thanks to functional beauty, material forms can typically reflect texture and configuration of this type of material to highlight rationale behind its function and technology so people can take delight in it.

2.2Formal beauty of industrial design

Formal design is the abstract shape of functional beauty, and refers to natural attributes of material components (color, shape and sound) and aesthetic features shown by their combination laws (such as neatness, proportionality, balance, repetition, rhythm and diversity). Different shapes, patterns and colors of same products will make different cultural and aesthetic impression on people, and then determine people's choice of buying or not buying. Therefore, we can see exterior beauty of industrial products is always shown by their function, shape, pattern and color.

2.3Technological beauty of industrial design

Modern technology not only changes production itself, but also the way people exist. It has also changed people's perception of beauty, and allowed people to re-perceive and discover beauty in technology, which is of unique value.

Technological beauty is between natural beauty and artistic beauty, and mainly refers to beauty of mechanic technology. Although different from functional beauty, it is also closely related to it. According to Japanese esthetician Toshio Takeuchi's perception of technological beauty, the factors that constitute value of technological beauty are as follows:

? Technology is a valuable vehicle of beauty, which can be felt by mankind. So technological beauty should also be consistent with beauty standard, which unifies content with image.

? Function must be shown by form, which should be tangible and specific. Harmonization between function and form constitutes what there is in an industrial product, and technological beauty is the beauty of combination of substance and form.

Technology exists in production as process and tool, and its existence can only be reflected in concrete goods, so does its beauty. Specifically speaking, technology can only be shown by means of materials, forms and functions. For example, function occupies the most important place in design of medical apparatus, bicycles and backpacks, etc. However, in a complete functional design, designers also pay attention to beauty of forms. In today's era of rapid progress of technology and design, it is possible to reach balance between function and beauty.

In recent years, both consumers and manufacturers have started to place premium on design of products. However, when we look at the domestic products, we can see no principles in their design, but mixture of different styles. As a matter of fact, this problem is prevalent in China. Only after we have grasped the essence of design aesthetics of industrial products, can we design, in the real sense of the word, industrial products that are real Chinese, and add competitiveness to the products.

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* 作者简介:李晓(1982)湖北人,天津科技大学艺术设计学院设计艺术学专业2007级研究生,主要从事产品设计和无障碍设计的研究。