Chapter five of our book was titled Problem Seeking and Problem Solving. Just as the name of the chapter says, it is about how we as designers have to identify issues and then how we go about coming up with ideas of how to meet said issue. The first example of how the Eames team came up with a solution to make a comfortable chair for indoor use that took up minimal space was an excellent way to show off this concept. The author of the book gave same excellent criteria for what characteristics a problem should have, such as being significant (worth the time and effort to deal with) and being comprehensible (able to be understood so that effort isn't wasted).
After this, the chapter got into something I had never heard of before: convergent vs divergent thinking. Convergent thinking can be summed up as a linear method of solving a goal one has in mind from the very start. Having a very clear idea of the issue and what the game plan to solve it is essential for success. On the other hand, divergent thinking is more creative and less set to one given path of how to solve an issue. The benefit to this method is that it can be very effective at coming up with unconventional solutions, but it can suffer from a lack of efficiency. In general, convergent thinking is the better option for collaborative efforts while divergent thinking allows independent artists to come up with groundbreaking ideas. I'm able to see how I use these techniques without realizing it in my life, with group projects at school being very organized compared to the more freestyle like quality of my individual work.
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