NoMATERIA 2020 | Balance

with the concept of open source design, allow for a massive mobilization, participation,
and solidarity like we have never seen before, drawing a large map of three-dimensional
demonstrations: minimal, efficient, and ingenious variations on gadgets to minimize
contact; design for necessity —for many, the nemesis of digital manufacturing; business
opportunities for companies that capitalize on ideas for health prevention and personal
hygiene, coming from either necessity or popular ingenuity. But also, many design
“mirages” bring noise into the many efforts to disseminate this discipline.
How will we be facing everyday situations to connect with people is a main part of our
concerns regarding the future. We find ourselves surrounded by ideas for which we were
not prepared. Take, for instance, “social distancing,” a term coined in the nineteenth
century, originally related to racist actions. But physical distancing refers to contact
with people, whether carrying or “receiving” the virus, and with the surfaces of things.
The notions of confinement and quarantine are as old as the 14th century, already
conceived as preventive measures against the spread of plagues. In the sixties, the
anthropologist Edward T. Hall coined the notion of “proxemia” as part of his theory on
the use of personal space. With the arrival of COVID-19, we now question the ideas that
once broadly promoted the reflection on our how we relate with the world through our
interactions with objects.
We still believe that design has an important role in the construction of a new world. But
what kind of a mark will COVID-19 leave on the beauty and efficiency of future products
and the culture of design? There is still much to figure out regarding the true impact
of a situation that took the planet by surprise and that will surely define, for several
decades, a good part of people’s lives. While large numbers of Venezuelans actively