About Good and Evil Design - The end of a debate

Let's focus on the fine arts related design for a bit.

We, humans, don't get along with freedom very well. Or with evil as a matter of fact.

Designers, whether you like it or not, if you are working in a corporation, you ARE doing commercial design. Period.

There is a clear confusion between pure art and applied art.

By its definition fine art design is art with a purpose or applied art.
If you are doing commercial design then your purpose is commercial. And here you can add your own ethical touch.

Design as art is not good nor bad, but its uses are.
The art depicted in a design is bound to the aesthetics of the time. So it cannot be good or bad. It can nevertheless help sell a product.

The purpose of the design, the ethics of it, on the other hand, can be good or evil. If we are taking a utilitarian stand.

A design as art with purpose can only be good and ethical if: the product sold is good (healthy, fairly priced and produced) for the consumer AND the consumer buys (uses) it because your design is appealing. In which situation your client makes money and you are a superstar.

In all other situations, the design as art with purpose is either bad or unethical.

So there you have it.

Commercial design only for the sake of art is bad if it does not sell.
And you should be fired.

Commercial design that is good and sells, if combined with a bad product, it's unethical (or evil).
And you should fire your client.

Now either live with it or do something about it, but stop wining.

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Octavian Mihai