Contents page
1- Contents page
2- Introduction
3-12- Main text
13- Conclusion
14- References
This essay will explore how design can be used to influence and help with a person’s mindfulness. This will be done through looking at and researching different techniques that are used within design to achieve this positive mindset, for example the colours used within a piece of work or where the work is placed. This will then lead to looking how effective these design techniques and styles are in response to a person’s mindfulness and whether they can have a great influence on them. The essay will also explore various professionals, artists, designers and curators approaches to this subject and compare whether their techniques or theories have been followed through with or are effective. The aim of this essay piece is to conclude whether the increasingly popular use of design can in fact have a positive impact on a person’s mindfulness and whether the curation of these pieces of work or exhibitions make for an all round positive outcome. The idea of mindfulness, is often referred to as self-care is something which has become popular especially among the millennials, therefore there are plenty of other activities that relate to this and there have been many studies that show if people work hard on themselves, they will become a much happier and positive person, having a much better outlook on their day to day life. The question now is to understand why people look to design to achieve this positive mindset and how their techniques allow the brain to become more calm and relaxed.
Jon Kabat-Zinn is the creator of the research-backed stress-reduction program Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and he explains how mindfulness lights up parts of our brains that aren’t normally activated when we’re mindlessly running on autopilot. He teaches mindfulness, which he says can help people cope with stress, anxiety, pain, and illness. Moreover, the mindfulness based stress reduction (MBSR) created by Jon Kabat-Zinnis offered through medical centres, hospitals, and health maintenance organisations. There are plenty of informative videos available online where Kabat-Zinn talks about mindfulness in lots of detail and the practises he performs to help people, within the video titled ‘Jon Kabat-Zinn Me Me Me’, created for the Mindfulness website, he defines mindfulness as a ‘Way of connecting with your life, something that doesn't involve a lot of energy but involves a kind of cultivating attention in a particular way, so they way I define it is it's paying attention on purpose in the present moment non-judgementally.’ (Kabat-Zinn, 2015) This ultimately means mindfulness can only be achieved when the person is truly focused on himself or herself, whilst still being aware of what is going on around them. Although Kabat-Zinn’s work is not in any form design related, it is still important to consider other insights from professionals about how to practice achieving mindfulness, especially as he has completed immense studies around this subject area. The evaluation of effectiveness of his studies have also shown there is a long term benefit of people struggling with mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety have found the practice of mindfulness beneficial, Kabat-Zinn describes it as allowing us ‘to be in a wiser relationship with things that are going on in our lives’ (Kabat-Zinn, 2015). It has been shown to reduce anxiety levels by 58% and stress by 40%. In a research study by Oxford University into individuals with 'problematic' levels of stress, a significant improvement in perceived levels of stress over the course of the online mindfulness intervention was found (Krusche et al, 2013). The findings of this research were consistent with other studies, which showed that changes in mindfulness 'precede changes in perceived stress' (Baer et al, 2012).Ultimately showing the positive impact mindfulness has on our lives.
Looking at mindfulness through a design perspective is very similar to how Jon Kabat-Zinn has talked multiple times about how it should be practised. Martino Gamper created the ‘Design Is A State Of Mind’ exhibition at the Serpentine Gallery. Gamper’s design practice includes, performance, exhibition making, interior design, specialist commissions and the design of mass-produced products for the international furniture industry and this exhibition was heavily focused on bookshelves and storage units. The pieces that were created for the exhibition represent some of the great designers that have shaped the last century and bring awareness to the ways in which their designs have shaped our lives. The exhibition very cleverly relates to mindfulness and Kabat-Zinn’s definition of it as Gamper had a clear object for this exhibition, as he wanted people ‘to be so intrigued by what they find in the show that they question their perception of design and reconsider how different objects and environments affect their behaviour and the choices they make.’ (Gamper, 2014) Just like the idea of mindfulness allowing a person to be in this wiser relationship with themselves and what is going on around them, designs created with a purpose will make an individual consider the environment around them and what is working in order to release positive energy.
The idea of design being able to shape our lives is key to consider when relating it to mindfulness as this relates to anything we surround ourselves with. Your environment shapes you, which means both the positive and negative aspect of a persons life defines how they approach and relate to the world. Gamper based his designs on influential designers that have had a significant impact within the design world, therefore highlighting the importance of always looking for the great in something and always aspiring to be the best version of you. He wanted people to leave ‘with a sense that design can be much more than a nicely designed chair’ (Gamper, 2014), this can be interpreted that Gamper’s aim for the exhibition was to make people consider making changes to their everyday life’s in order to benefit their state of mind. When asked what he think defines good design, Gamper responds with, ‘good design should combine function, materiality, form and I think it should also respond to behaviour a little bit: what this object does in a social context, how it changes our behaviour, or how it helps our behaviour.’ (Gamper, 2014) If everything that is designed, no matter how big or small, has an influence on the space it is placed in then creating something positive will automatically enable a person to become more mindful, as they will feel comfortable and relaxed within that environment. This again relates to the studies of Kabat-Zinn because it is allowing the individual to consider the present moment and focus on what is happening there and then.
Another philosopher, Guy Sircello, writes analytical approaches to philosophical aesthetics, which led to his essay on mind and art, where again the similarities of positive design influencing mindfulness are shown. When discussing design it gets personified as if it were an object, ‘works of art that express those sorts of things seems to imply that they are very much like persons’ (Sircello, 1972) this is talking about peoples feelings, emotions, attitudes and moods. Connecting to Gamper’s approach of relating design to social contexts and behaviours, allowing a person to be shaped by the design that is around them. In order to achieve mindfulness, a person needs to be open to some change surrounding their daily environment; this is usually where the design aspect will profoundly come into it. Adapting your surroundings usually starts with objects like furniture and if a person is encouraging them to be more mindful, relaxed and calm, it becomes more likely for the person to consider where these objects are placed within their personal space.
The discussion of why and where objects are placed, leads on to environmental design, something which can be explored in relation to mindfulness as it is another means in which to attain it. Every single piece of design that is created has a purpose to it, whether it being an object like furniture or a poster to advertise a new film, nothing is ever created without any meaning. This again automatically encourages us to think about why ‘we constantly try to understand our ever-changing highly complex existence by seeking order in it’ (Papanek, 1971). Victor Papanek’s book, Design For The Real World discusses how we are constantly trying to validate and analyse everything we do in terms of how we live our life. When in fact, ‘design is the conscious and intuitive effort to impose meaningful order’ (Papanek, 1971) and without realising it, people impose it on their daily life in order to seek out mindfulness. Papanek also relates to the idea of design being used to influence a person’s behaviour as ‘design is basic to all human activity’ (Papanek, 1971), whether realising it or not. This is where it becomes important to consider environmental design and what affect this can have on a person if we are constantly looking to what is around us in order for it to benefit our attitudes or behaviours.
Environmental design’s purpose is to help make your space more practical, interesting and easy to navigate in an aesthetic way. The multidisciplinary profession that encompasses industrial design, architecture, graphic design and landscape architecture was established because of the complexity of the environment we move in on a daily basis and the introduction of wayfinding makes sure people can move around efficiently within a space. ‘Environmental graphic design is concerned with the graphic communication of information in the built environment, which is just about anything built by human intent’ (Calori and Vanden-Eynden, 2015), relating to the idea that every piece of design is created with intention and has a purpose. The intention of environmental design is to help a person usually get from one place to another, its put in place to avoid confusion. It can be related to mindfulness and how humans function as behaviours affect how people think, feel and act. This also led to the introduction of wayfinding and signage systems, which orient and navigate people efficiently around usually a built-up area.
Relating the effectiveness of environmental design and wayfinding to mindfulness is not something that is incredibly obvious, but the previous points made about all design having purpose and how design affects human behaviour will influence how an individual can remain calm and relaxed through stressful situations. ‘Signage and interpretive exhibits can create a sense of place, as can gateways, portals, gathering points or landmarks.’ (Calori and Vanden-Eynden, 2015) People often visit calming places or often embark in forms of therapy or relaxing exercises, which will use wayfinding systems to navigate around. This means that the individual can focus on the present, not the past or future, something which Kabat-Zinn explains that is highly common when situations become over analysed, leading to increased stress or anxiety levels.
Furthermore, designing an environment to encourage mindfulness has become increasingly popular as individuals are acknowledging the need to focus on themselves in order to be happier. A popular Danish theme, Hygge, it is a mood of cosiness and comfort, with feelings of wellness and contentment. Hygge originates from a Danish word meaning to give comfort, courage and joy, which are moods that are often associated with achieving mindfulness, it refers to a psychological state of feeling safe within yourself. People often incorporate Hygge into their everyday life so ‘it becomes a natural extension rather than a forced or stressful event’ (Hygge House, 2014). There are plenty of Hygge tips that you can access online or in books, they often encourage you to first start of with taking simple steps of introducing Hygge into your life with things such as, candles, going for long walks, reading a book or making your home more Hygge. These steps are similar, if not the same to help a person become more mindful, therefore having a much more positive mind-set and outlook on life.
In a recent news article written about Hygge, it portrays it as something incredibly positive and encourages people to take part in it. It is also described as ‘the absence of anything annoying or emotionally overwhelming; taking pleasure from the presence of gentle, soothing things.’ (Russell, 2015) Incredibly similar to how people want to feel when being mindful, and design has a huge part to play in having a Hygge feeling, as it is all about whom and what you surround yourself with. Denmark has been voted one of the happiest countries to live in; therefore their practise of Hygge must be beneficial to a person’s quality of life. ‘Studies show a clear link between gratitude and wellbeing. But another important thing to remember when it comes to understanding Hygge is that it’s about experiences rather than stuff.’ (Wiking, 2015) Meik Wiking is the CEO of The Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen, he says the Danes ‘appreciate low-cost activities and the simple things in life, like having a coffee and lighting some candles to create a cosy atmosphere’ (Wiking, 2015), relating to Kabat-Zinn’s recommendations on how to achieve mindfulness.
When thinking about design and Hygge, it’s clear to see that to live a Hygge life you have to adapt your living situation into something much more comfier, which means a person will be thinking about how they can create a space and how each object now has a specific purpose rather than it just being placed there because it looks nice. Their environment becomes more comfortable, making it easier to relax and learning how to be kinder to ones self. In addition, Hygge ultimately boots a person’s mindfulness, ‘research shows that people who are able to be kind to themselves rather than harshly self-critical tend to have a better mental health and higher life satisfaction.’ (Dr Williamson, 2015). As Director of Action for Happiness, Dr Mark Williamson speaks highly within this article of a more Hygge way of life as it boots ‘our own wellbeing leaving us better placed to contribute and help others.
To further back this argument of mindfulness benefiting every aspect of a person’s life, the practises of mindfulness also encourage a greater focus, empathy and creativity. There is a clear link of having a clear and focus mind leading too much more productivity in completing work, when designing; it requires an abundance of analytical thinking. Learning various methods and practises in order to carry out the design process, this is something that takes an individual a lot of concentration and energy. It is significant to remember that ‘objects and environments affect their behaviour and the choices they make,’ (Gamper, 2014) which can also be applied to a workspace environment. When considering how a person may work best, take into account that ‘focus, empathy and creativity are all skills that can be learned and there are concrete things you can do to become better at all this’ (Au, 2015), most pieces of design start with a problem or task that the designer will have to solve, having a clear mind is key in reaching any form of solutions for this and to produce a piece of work to be proud of. Often, designers are faced with creative blocks and struggle to know what direction to go in, the article ‘How yoga and meditation can help people become better designers’ discusses various techniques to encourage designers to take when they encounter this problem. As part of Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction programme, individuals take part in mediation, an activity used to clear ones mind and help them focus on the things that matter. When applying this to design, consider the scenario of working hard on a problem, when taking a small step back from the problem and letting the mind relax, it will become easier to reach some insight and find a solution. The article encourages hard working designers to consider activities such as yoga and meditation to help with creativity,’ mindfulness practices are techniques that allow us to drive within the mind and intellect and transcend that so we can experience that deepest level within ourselves, that treasury.’ (Au, 2015) It is worth noting that the article highlights that ‘companies as diverse as Google, General Mills and the insurance company Aetna offer meditation and yoga classes’ (Au, 2015) furthermore highlighting the importance of a clear mind in order to work at the highest of capabilities within design.
When relating this back to the Design For The Real World exhibition, there are similarities involving the way Gamper took this opportunity to help people consider when they left the exhibition every object around them and how this encourages people to remain focused on what is important in terms of having a clear mind. When thinking about mindfulness techniques relating to design, the most obvious ones like colour and environment come to mind but the designer has to think about every single aspect they want a person to think or feel when experiencing their work, ‘the principles of yoga and brain science are converging and together can create a blueprint for transformation’. (Au, 2015) The article concludes by pointing out that ‘with meditation and yoga, you can change your bran and how you move through the world’ (Au, 2015), with it offering a clearer clarity and mind in order for a person to be more productive throughout their day. It also leads to an increase in stress levels, ultimately hugely benefiting the designer as unsolved issues or briefs often lead to a pile up of angst and worry.
Considering Gamper’s theory on good design and ‘how it changes our behaviour, or how it helps our behaviour’ (Gamper 2014), the Mindfulness Design Company believe human connections create the best future for a business. Like the previous article, they discuss ways of using mindfulness techniques within the work environment to become more focused and productive, but they go into a lot more detail about the key benefits of mindfulness for designers and how it supports their practice. Mindfulness has great confident impacts on abilities for creative problem solving and decision-making, these involve thinking divergently, convergently and critically. This applies to when a designer is encouraged to think broad with their idea and come up with something incredibly creative and unique and ‘with mindfulness providing the right mental environment, you can play with ideas and explore new and exciting futures.’ (Hart, 2017) Moreover, focus is something else important to have for designers, being mindful leads to a greater focus and as Kabat-Zinn defined mindfulness as ‘paying attention on purpose in the present moment non-judgementally’ (Kabat-Zinn, 2015), its worth noting these activities will be beneficial for the designer and ‘when practised on a daily basis, mindfulness can train the mind to refocus more quickly after brief periods of distraction.’ (Hart, 2017) Another everyday exercise for designers is to think about their clients; this is where the next point perspective and energy comes in. Research has shown that being mindful in the work place encourages the individual to become more empathetic of their clients, ‘understanding the perspective of others by developing how you articulate your own emotions.’ (Hart, 2017) Mindfulness allows individuals to ground themselves in the present moment, this highlights back to Kabat-Zinn’s definition and it also can give the person ‘mental space to think about what is really important about your design work.’ (Hart, 2017) Additionally, the final point made is about reducing stress and encouraging overall positivity, going back to the point that it can be incredibly difficult for the designer to be creative when under pressure or even when emotions are taking over. It is proved that mindfulness will keep emotions in check and also reduce stress at the same time and for most designers when their head is kept clear and free of mental stress, it leads them to become more creative and thus happier. ‘As a designer and creative thinker, mindfulness has allowed me to control my ADHD and enter new ways of thinking about the future, greatly improving my idea generation quality and speed.’ (Hart, 2017)
To further back up the key points of introducing mindfulness into the workplace to better a designer’s environment, another common activity that involves being creative is art therapy. It is a form of expressive therapy that will use the creative process of creating art to improve physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. The creative process of art therapy allows individuals to resolve issues, manage behaviours and feelings and ultimately reduce stress and increase self-esteem. It can achieve lots of different things for various people and is broadly used for counselling for therapists, rehabilitation and psychotherapy. Art therapists are trained in both therapy and art, meaning they are incredibly knowledgeable when it comes to using art as a basis for general assessments of a person’s state to aid an illness. They are trained to pick up nonverbal symbols and metaphors that often get expressed through the creative process, which can be too difficult to express with words, through this, the individual, can really begin to see the positive effects of using art therapy by the discoveries that are made.
Furthermore, there are different variations of art therapy, with mindfulness art therapy being one of them, ‘mindfulness as a technique is being used by Cognitive Behavioural Therapy arts-based practitioners in conjunction with other CBT methods.’ (Hogan, 2015) To do this, the therapist will create a supportive environment where the individual can feel safe; it involves guided mediations and sensitive exploration of the art images that are created. Kindness and care encourages non-judgemental responses within the practices, thus linking back to Kabat-Zinn expressing how mindfulness will allow a person to live in the present moment non-judgementally and enable them to focus solely on themselves and their feelings. Considering this in conjunction with previous points made about design evoking various feelings and behaviours for both observers and creators, it is interesting to note that ‘art therapists have a considerable understanding of art techniques and are proficient in using materials to facilitate none-verbal communication’ (Hogan, 2015), they are used when an individual cannot express thoughts or feelings that well through verbal communication. When reflecting on this in combination with Gamper creating an exhibition to highlight the importance of every day objects and ‘what this object does in a social context, how it changes our behaviour, or how it helps our behaviour.’ (Gamper, 2014) It allows an individual to use mindfulness techniques in order to apply their social skills to become more understanding and kind towards the design world and consider the important steps that go into creating something like an exhibition.
In addition, to link the points made about environmental graphic design, signage and wayfinding were created to allow an individual to move around a built up space efficiently and smoothly, without this it would most likely lead to a lot of chaos and confusion, as people would not have a simple system to follow. This therefore automatically reduces the stress levels of an individual and allows them to navigate through a system successfully. It is worth noting that often, places where mindfulness is significantly used within a built up area, for example a work place or somewhere that offers therapy, will have an incredibly simple wayfinding system for an individual to navigate around as they will want to implicate the most stress free ways to keep that person feeling calm and safe. A Hygge environment where a person will most likely be ‘taking pleasure from the presence of gentle, soothing things’ (Russell, 2015), will highlight the importance of efficient environmental design. Noting that large companies such as Google have implemented a mindful working environment will mean they are careful and considerate when it comes to their workers environment. They provide a stress-free environment for design workers to create in, meaning their attitudes and behaviours towards co-workers; the company and themselves will most likely be positive and successful. This relates to the Mindfulness Design Company and how they discuss the key benefits of mindfulness for designers as it is proved to reduce stress within the workplace and improve staff loyalty and relations.
To conclude, there are many factors to argue that the influence of mindfulness through and within design has a highly positive effect on a person’s health and wellbeing. Through research, there have been no arguments to suggest that these mindful activities are not helpful of have any negative connotations surrounding them. The topic of mindfulness has become popular in recent years as many people now recognise it as a way to encourage a more calm and relaxing mind set. Many people look to design to evoke calming feelings and behaviours, whether this is through visiting an exhibition, taking part in performance art or using products such as books and apps. This has also led to the recognition of noting how all things that have been designed have a purpose. This may then lead to a person behaving in a much more positive way as they are able to adapt their environment to suit them, this is done through both design and how they think and feel. Furthermore, in relation to how mindfulness can benefit a designer and their work process, it is clear that there is many techniques that are recognise amongst professionals and that are applied to their work practice. Kabat-Zinn describes mindfulness as ‘to be in a wiser relationship with things that are going on in our lives’ (Kabat-Zinn, 2015), then an individual can apply all of these techniques mentioned within this essay in order to become more self-aware in their day to day life. The business and concept set up by the Mindfulness Design Company is incredibly influential and beneficial for designers working in a fast paced environment as they encourage individuals to incorporate a new way of thinking and working. In addition, the suggestion that mindfulness helps designers with creativity, focus, perspective and empathy, helping reduce stress levels and improving all round positivity, is a huge positive factor to implement more mindful techniques within the workplace as it is proven to help how individuals feel about themselves, therefore producing high quality standard work. But also a much more encouraging relationship with co-workers. The concept and topic of mindfulness is greatly covered by both designers and professors, as established within this essay. It is important to note that there is a very common understanding of what mindfulness means and how much it can benefit an individual, therefore in terms of answering the essay question, to what extent can design be used to influence a person’s mindfulness, it has an incredibly highly praised attitude towards a persons thoughts, feelings and behaviours. Whether that being through a person using design to achieve a more positive mind-set or a designer in a workplace using the many mindfulness techniques and activities, it is clear that they all contribute to influencing an individual to consider their surroundings more and encourage them to be kinder to themselves but also to the people around them. Also seen through the concept of adapting to a Hygge lifestyle, something that is now becoming more known of and practised in this country to achieve mindfulness.
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