Thoughtless Acts: Urban Summer
Human-centered design requires us to observe human behavior with beginner's eyes, so that we can spot the innate ways people interact with the world around them. We call these intuitive and unconscious reactions thoughtless acts, and IDEO designers collect photos of them to inspire the invention of new products, services, and experiences.
I took this picture last summer while I was back home in Istanbul. Summer in Istanbul is very, very hot. Sometimes the mercury in the city gets up to 113F. It’s pretty unbearable.
On toasty afternoon, I took this picture of a bunch of people capitalizing on the shade in a park to avoid the sun. At that time of day and year, the shadows defined the usable space within the park.
From a design researcher’s perspective, this picture says so much about how the sun and shade affect how we interact with cities and spaces. Sometimes design is all about constraints.
It’s a great reminder of all the factors to consider when we design for urban environments. Or a great reminder that nature is a designer, too.
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