Presenting my blog and project ideas to my colleagues and tutors today got me thinking about the future - the future of communities, the future of publishing and the future of retail corporations such as supermarkets.
Yes, the experience of shopping is changing and is changing for good. With the introduction of online shopping practices many years ago we began our journey towards faster, easier shopping yet we're now bearing the consequences of impersonal shopping experiences - partial demonstration of community bonds, for instance.
For the past few weeks I was trying to find a bridge between supermarkets' corporate social responsibility, local communities and the print media, such as magazines. Media theorists and practitioners seem to be in agreement that media play crucial role in building and maintaining communities. My research, however, indicated that none of the existing publications effectively fulfills that role now. There surely is a place for another magazine. But maybe creating yet another print publication to solve the community problem is like looking for a light switch on the wall of unfamiliar room in the dark - you touch the wall groping your way across the room.
TOUCH THE WALL
The whole experience would be so much easier if only the wall could respond to your touch. And what if it could?
There seems to be a lot of discussions about the future of magazines. Some of them are moving online or at least creating their 'www-counterpart' but the print 'glossy' is not yet sentenced to death. People seem to enjoy the physical experience of flipping through a magazine, touching the slick pages. There is something sensual about magazines. And, as web pages are good for transmitting information, the magazines transmit style and feelings.
But would it be enough to keep magazines alive in 50 years?
Or should we think about design solutions for the communities of the future? Your comments are appreciated.
