Page 170 - The Design Thinking Playbook

Until the 1960s, design was defined by the actual function. Many designers perceived the relationship
between the consumer and their products primarily through their actual use. It was only in the 1970s that
some designers challenged this paradigm. They added “nonfunctional features” and artistic elements and
ornaments to their objects. This showed that the relationship to an object can consist of more than merely
its primary functionality. Since then, functionality often has not taken center stage. A more holistic rela-
tionship with the object emerged, with a deeper meaning for the consumer. Without this deeper meaning,
a product is not perfected in the eyes of the consumer. This means that the consumers became the actual
designers. They create the meaning of an object through the intimate relationship they establish with it.
Lilly has observed this behavior often in her younger students, who have such a close relationship with
their smartphones that they give them pet names.

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