What is the true meaning of design, what can we learn from function, aesthetics, and the wisdom of nature?

The essence of design is the harmonization of function and form, and the examples of airplanes and automobiles are used to explore the importance of technological progress, aesthetic values, and the wisdom we can learn from nature.

 

The fundamental concepts of design are function and form. These two elements serve opposite purposes, and it’s not always easy to find harmony between them. If you emphasize function, you sacrifice form, and if you emphasize form, you sacrifice function. Especially in the modern world, the role of design has expanded beyond mere aesthetics to include user experience, emotions, and even social responsibility. Therefore, harmonizing function and form becomes the most important task for designers.
Consider modern airplanes and cars as examples of how to achieve desirable design. Airplanes are said to have been inspired by birds flying in the sky and fish swimming in the ocean. The first airplanes were able to fly by imitating birds. But as airplane engines became more powerful, the lift of a bird’s wings became less important. How to harness the power of the wind was a big problem in early airplane designs, but in more advanced airplanes, the question of how to fly with less wind was a major challenge. This is where the squid’s propulsion principle comes in. The squid uses a powerful spray of water to propel itself through the water, and the design evolved by making the wings of the airplane smaller and placing them at the back.
Since airplanes are meant to stay airborne, the designers had no choice but to stick to function rather than form, so even the small wings of airplanes were designed to be strictly functional. This doesn’t mean that current airplanes are ugly. On the contrary, by ignoring form and sticking strictly to function, airplanes have achieved a unique and beautiful design. It’s a case of the simplest, most refined forms being created in the pursuit of efficiency, not fashion. It’s important to note that this design of airplanes is not just a technological advancement, but also succeeds in pleasing the human senses through aesthetic elements. For example, the sleek and sleek exterior of an airplane, which can be recognized from a distance at an airport, is not just for efficient flight, but also for aesthetic value that impresses the viewer.
The automobile, on the other hand, is said to have been designed to mimic the shape of a carriage drawn by two horses. We take it for granted that the driver’s seat is at the front and that only two people should sit in the front seat, but it is questionable whether this is the only possible structure. Perhaps this is due to the preconceived notion of the automobile as a type of two-horse carriage. One design researcher criticized the design of the automobile as being stuck in the conventions and relics of the horse-drawn carriage era. He argues that the fact that cars have two headlights and the fact that the driver’s seat is tilted to one side of the front seat are also relics of the horse-drawn carriage era. In fact, to see well to the left and right, a car’s eyes might need to be attached to the sides as well, and modern lighting technology might be able to treat headlights as a single flat beam of light, illuminating only what is needed on the road without dazzling the driver.
However, current car designers don’t seem to be looking at these basic issues. For example, even when a car imitates a horse-drawn carriage, what if it imitated a four-horse carriage instead of a two-horse carriage? Perhaps the driver would sit higher up in the front of the car, with a better view to the front and sides, and could grip the steering wheel, but we have yet to see an example of a car borrowing the structure of a four-horse carriage. Furthermore, there is a growing consensus that today’s car design should not only rely on functional factors, but also take into account social changes and environmental factors. For example, technological innovations such as the advent of electric vehicles are not just about solving the problem of fuel, but also about changing the entire design. The lack of an engine in an electric vehicle allows for a different type of design than the traditional car structure, which provides an opportunity to pursue new forms of aesthetic and functional innovation.
Good designers pay attention to natural phenomena. For example, when designing machines that rely on speed, such as airplanes and cars, it’s important to pay attention to how animals gain speed. Wouldn’t you say that airplanes have successfully achieved speed and shape, while cars have failed by clinging to conventional wisdom? Without realizing it, we become accustomed to certain design schemes and fashions and gradually align ourselves with them, thinking they are the way things should be. How about this analogy? What if we look at a flower and think it’s beautiful, like an artificial flower? What we really need to learn is the beauty and flexibility of nature. Even if we admire artificially designed works of art, they can never compare to the power of nature. Therefore, we should learn wisdom from nature. It’s not just beauty that we can learn from nature. It teaches us about sustainability, balance, and the importance of diversity. These elements are even more important in modern design, and designs based on natural principles can convey greater emotion and meaning.