| This Master's Degree Project is an exploration into the emotional attachments between people and products. An area little talked about in our material culture. It has been found that emotional attachments are forged through the product's ability to become an outward expression of self through history and memory keeping and by the satisfaction found in an object's aesthetics and functionality over time. The results of thorough research, aesthetic assessments and personal product attachment assessments have resulted in a greater understanding of the relationship people have with the products they own. These conclusions found expression in the design explorations of The Tea Cup Trials, The Canadian Plaid Trials and the Doily Trials. These explorations were developed with the design methodology of the recontextualization of outdated products. That is, old products that hold only emotional value have been used as a design medium in the design of new products which now hold contemporary aesthetic and physical value as well as emotional value. These recontextualized objects in new product form attempt to encourage the formation of attachment bonds through the use of the developed design tools of function, memory and story, identity, aesthetics, value, meaning and time. By using these design tools within the design methodology, products were designed to have greater emotional affect on their users thus facilitating the development of attachment emotions. Only through considerate industrial design can we stimulate thought and emotion, developing a more emotionally affected product culture.; Key words. Product Attachment, Affective Design, Industrial Design, Human Factors, Recontextualization, Furniture... |
