A question of timing: Confronting time-related issues in design

Design practice straddles time; problems in the present, which often exist because of problematic choices in the past, are solved by the foreseen thing that (hopefully) leads to a better future. This linear attitude towards time, largely a legacy of modernity, results in a number of time-related issues. In this paper we address and illustrate with examples some of these issues, including: future as a belief (progress dogma); instrumentalised solutions through the (historical) normalisation of systems and values; stale future imaginaries (robots, smart homes, automobiles); regurgitated pasts (nostalgia). One example of this last issue is a supermarket like Whole Foods, where every detail is designed to create the illusion of a nostalgic country market. Such a dual focus on the past and possible futures often neglects urgent issues in the present (which will happen in someone else’s future). The problem of how to design for the present necessitates a redefinition, a radical change in attitude. We conclude by proposing some experimental shifts, including non-linear approaches to time (counterfactuals, time loops) and a purist’s approach (perfection beyond evolution, e.g. a French cafe glass or a violin).