Victor Papanek (1927–1999)

The function complex, which are the elements needed for consideration of good design is really good. The fold out summation is the thesis of the book. Think about what makes good design and for who! Don’t be murderous, greedy, thoughtless in your designs. Think what is needed and by whom! Very good. "aesthetic value is an inherent *part* of function."

Nomadic Furniture 2 is a sequel to the authors' highly successful Nomadic Furniture, a book which showed readers how to build and where to buy lightweight furniture that folds, inflates, knocks down, stacks, or is disposable and can be recycled, with many easy-to-follow instructions. In their new book, Victor Papanek and James Hennessey include a vast array of ideas for which they had no room in their first volume, as well as a great many ideas that have come up since its publication.

A searing and highly opinionated, but crucially accurate take on the state of design today and what must be improved about it for the benefit of humankind.

Papanek is beautifully explicit on the role of design and the responsibility of the designer: it is far-reaching, and it cannot be avoided or denied. His discussions of real-world issues (with examples from urban planning, architecture, politics) are highly relevant for interaction design in these times when digital artifacts increasingly pervade our everyday lives.