MOMA Reflection: Violence and Design
Yeqian Zhao
The Design and Violence exhibit opened my eyes to all the opportunities and issues for
design. It highlights many social issues where design plays a significant role in altering the
functions of the individual, the context, and society as a whole. This exhibit broadcasts the
cynical reality of violence in association with design. It animates it in order to distill it and
pronounces it as a way to mute it permanently. Here, we receive an immunizing dose of what
might come of unethical use of design. There is a thin line between ingenuity and iniquity, form
following function, and function following manipulation. Indeed, the goal of a designer is to
resolve a problem, but the existence of this "problem" may be the real issue for investigation. As
designers, we are called to innovate the way of things for the improvement of life. This calling
often confines us to tunnel vision on the project at the surface level. Regardless of the brilliance
in satisfying the design criteria, if the true problem still exists then the "design" has failed.
This concept is demonstrated in the Thomson Correctional Facility Center. Indeed, all of
the criteria for a fortified prison are met but the bigger problem still stands: crime and prisons.
The designer ought to make it his mission to design a system that improves this social issue
rather than simply designing a facility. Even if his task was that of designing a facility, he must
ask, "Is the design aimed at rehabilitating the criminals or is it just a bigger animal cage?" The
concepts of ethics and design are difficult to define as each person holds a different set of
convictions. Regardless, such ethics must be utilized when approaching a project. Designers are
not mere workers for hire; we are catalysts for change and anchors for civilization.
This exhibit is uniquely inspiring because it gave me a glimpse into the world in need and
highlights real world issues to which I can contribute my attention and skills. I must first
understand the world around me if I plan to bring change to it for the better. This gave me a
retrospect on the impact of "good" design: its ability to flourish and ability to destroy. Design is
not just a commercial tool but also a tangible medium upon which our world is embedded. It is
an understanding of the world we live in and the individuals we serve. Just like a superpower, it
can be used for evil or for good; for others or for my own purposes.
This exhibit is ironically placed in NYC: the center for human prosperity and first world
self-indulgence. The contrast between the exhibit and the city outside of the MOMA is the
epitome of global ignorance. There is so much need existing in the world but the immediately
gratified city fails to acknowledge such needs with action, thus contributing ignorance. To me,
this exhibit was a call to action. What can I do about this? What problem will I tackle with
design? As I weaved through other exhibits, I began to find more tools to answer these questions.
The materials, contents, forms, and processes of many works are collected in my mental record
for future reference. As a brush holds the potential to a painting, these mental records hold
potential for future inspirations to be had. I truly wish to use these inspirations as tools for my
designs that will one day change the world.