Among the general courses for an Associates of Arts degree at Peninsula College, the most memorable was Philosophy 101. Although, the lessons that remained came more from the history of the teacher himself than from the Classical Western thinkers about whom he taught. Professor Werner Quast was uniquely qualified for his post, which was all about rousing young minds to open up . . .

As a young, German teen during World War Two, he was drafted into the national, Hitler Youth military corps and stationed at a prison camp. Hearing the captured inmates recount the Nazi campaigns across Europe, he befriended them and did what he could to bring them extra food and otherwise assist.

At the close of the war, when Allied forces roared into the camp to liberate it, only by the POWs shouting through the barbed wire fence to spare him, did Mr. Quast survive that day. After then learning the dreadful reality of the war’s horrors, he was so infuriated at his country having been so heinously deceived by their government and for the public following so blindly, that he dedicated his life to teaching people to think.

What more vital message did Plato, Aristotle, or Socrates possibly have to offer than that? And what circumstance had I ever endured and learned from to the extent that I would commit my life to a cause of such service? It was a humbling thought that would resurface some years ahead and, in retrospect, would represent the basis of a more intentional life.

The next step though, would be earning a bachelor of science, industrial design degree at Western Washington University. Enthralled with the creative curriculum and anticipating the prospective, employment competition, I spent twelve to sixteen hours a day, six to seven days a week on related, degree studies and in the design studio.

The program prepared students to comprehend the entire, product development process, with an orientation towards manufacturability through a practicum in materials and mass production technologies. In addition to other, conventional skills in ideation, sketching, iterative mock ups, CAD drawing, and presentation, it also trained students to imbue products with meaning and value for end users, through function, appearance, and subconscious insinuation.

We not only made physical models, but also built working prototypes of our senior projects, including a warming trivet to serve heated desserts concluding a romantic dinner for two, a recyclable, 35 mm film camera for mountain biking treks, and a reconfigurable, room divider screen with enticing character.

Graduating as WWU’s Industrial Design Society of America, senior student of the year, I’d learned that there was more to product design than mere visual appeal. Trusting too, that there was much more to learn within the industry itself, I headed south on Interstate 5, to look for a vocation where I longed to vacation.

I N I T I A T O R Y C A R E E E R

As a recent grad, my first professional opportunity was with Compass Product Design in the East Bay of San Francisco, California. I was immersed in all areas of development, including mechanical engineering and tooling documentation of molded plastic and sheet metal parts. This level of participation brought direct interactions with clients and vendors, and a wide spectrum of experience across medical, consumer, and office product categories.

I moved on to join the national, top ten consultancy, Hauser Inc. in Thousand Oaks near Los Angeles, California, where I worked with exceptionally talented people from whom I gained a greater sense of creativity and appreciation for detail. I was also involved with more sophisticated market and user research, which steadily increased my awareness of why I was designing, beyond simply what I was designing. This ever growing interest drove a search for a deeper understanding of people, including myself, that would in turn drive better product design.

Noticing the mass consumption mindset driven by companies pushing for ever more rapid refresh rates to sell new products, another growing interest was in sustainable product development. So, after Hauser, it was back to Seattle to begin my own, environmentally friendly furniture company, known as LUMA, designing and building hand crafted furnishings of wood, aluminum, fabric, glass, and stone.

The pieces came about through careful consideration of their function, taking on forms connoting a casual, sensible life. Along with the freedom expression that LUMA afforded, it was a wonderful way to learn about balancing the business of design, and to embolden fresh, personal views.

I N T E R M E D I A T E T R A V E L S

In early 1999, continuing curiosity about cultures eventually swayed me to leave LUMA behind and pursue international travels for more direct learnings about other ways of life. The first six months unfolded in Europe, backpacking through about a dozen countries where epic, Western history came into clearer view, as did a contrasting vantage on modern America as a revealing, personal mirror. In conjunction with the evident consumerism I knew, the prevalence of nationalism and individualism would surface as integral elements of America’s cultural profile too.

For the next few months I lived in view of the medieval, Castle of Leiria, Portugal, working with the consultancy, grandesign, led by the charismatic, José Manuel dos Santos. Projects ranged from a faucet exhibition installation and residential recycling concepts, to an ambitious, wireless, hand held transaction device for digital commerce on the move—seven and ten respective years prior to the iPhone and iPad. Overall, Portugal taught a casual, work life balance, with an emphasis on life. And, as for work, the nation’s craft heritage in stone carving, ceramic wares, and hand blown glass was captivating.

Another ten months would be spent in Turkey, including a month visiting Syria and Jordan, which, together, proved to be the most fascinating and influential. The European vestiges of Greco Roman civilization and Gothic, ornately spired cathedrals of Christian antiquity gave way to the splendorous, Ottoman Empire architecture of flowing domes, slender, cylindrical minarets, and courtyard fountains walled with open, arched arcades. With further discoveries and discussions throughout the country and through the seasons, it was as if a window into another world had appeared.

The region’s public expressions of faith, such as daily prayers and the Ramadan month of fasting, illustrated a spiritual—rather than political, commercial, individual—paradigm for relative, cultural cohesion, consumer restraint, and personal confidence. Their societal narrative linked a well defined cosmological past, and a present life of personal responsibility, with a communal aspiration for an infinite future.

As one gesture typifying Turkish virtue, a pair of young men I met at a restaurant suggested I live with them in their meager, Sultan Ahmet flat for free, indefinitely. Graciously accepting for the first couple of winter months, I would then move to the upscale, faculty housing of Istanbul Technical University as a Visiting Instructor of industrial design there.

That summer, Syria and Jordan’s ancient desert sites, shared holy lands, and thriving, millennium old cities such as Petra, Mount Nebo, and Damascus respectively, then offered an Arab picture of human tenacity and tribal bonds among a broader, regional ancestry. Given their scarce resources, rugged conditions, and clenching, arid climate, the people’s consistently selfless acts amid the modesty of their lives contributed most to my journal note that, “those who have the least . . . often give the most”.

Traveling was naturally a period of reflection, as a personal quest for experiential knowledge of human values, and of my own values. Climates and conditions, foods and fashions, art and architecture all changed from place to place. But peoples’ desires remained basically the same—control of their lives, a sense of belonging, and hope for what was ahead. It was the discovery of the various approaches to fulfilling these desires that proved most edifying in relating products to people and in revising my own perspectives. 

By being outside my own culture, I was able to recognize how strongly one's surroundings shape their world view. History, political and economic stability or fragility, social customs, geography, resources, commerce, and religion or a lack thereof, all combine to form a projected measure of success. It seems we maneuver our lives by these measures, directing our choices in people, places, professions, piety, and of course—products. It is through these means that we then strive to satisfy our needs for control, belonging, and hope. All desires to be addressed through design, including how one designs their own self.

C A R E E E R D I R E C T I O N

Returning to the States in late 2000, with a new priority on family and renewing my professional ethic, I joined the environmentally recognized, Watson Furniture Group near Seattle, Washington, to form and lead an internal design team. As Director of Product Development, the initial role was to guide the creation of an entire new line of office furniture in just six months—fusing a European feel with domestic client desires, to enter the architecture and interior design market. Having a design consultancy background, I also directed the development of Watson’s first, proprietary digital device—an innovative, comfort control system for public safety, call center operators.

A position with Intel corporation near Portland, Oregon, represented the next, evolutionary career step. In senior designer and project manager roles, I worked with the User Center Design (UCD) group to develop futuristic product prototypes that informed Intel’s strategic, technology roadmap without producing any actual products. As a project manager, it was a chance to lead a diverse team of about 35 members across several disciplines and geographies, in partnership with an even larger program and department. My background also enabled distinct contributions as a senior designer, to develop mobile products not only for potential, mass markets, but also for the emerging, Middle East market having culturally specific attributes.

When Intel later chose to defund the UCD group, and feeling a calling eastward having a Turkish wife, in 2009 we resettled in Amman, Jordan, where I later became Director of Institute Development for Qasid Arabic Institute. As a plunge into primarily service interactions and online interface design, the focus represented a departure from material products, while promoting an even more refined sense of user experience design. Internet and cloud based technologies became a new medium to connect students, staff, administrative information, and instructional content, and to offer a favorable, study abroad, cultural immersion education.

This skillset was then an integral means to develop the hospitality interactions, information management, logistics, and accommodation facilities of the institute’s housing programs. To serve about 400 annual residents, these ranged in scope from conventional, apartment bookings for individual students, to partner group packages, and home stay arrangements with local host families. An intuitive grasp of user concerns and expectations relative to the local conditions, along with apt knowledge of local customs, combined to lead the program’s success.

O N W A R D

In retrospect, as a personal and professional journey, I’ve come from the realm of material products towards immaterial services and operations that make a material difference.

As for what’s next, now located in Virginia in the United States, the current tack is toward the design, direction, and overall development of organizations, operations, and projects in the humanitarian or ethical economic sectors.

If you have any ideas . . . please reach out.