This morning I made an off-the-cuff remark that struck a nerve for some (unintentionally, of course). I wanted to clarify what I meant by it.
Print has its place in this world - it's just not the primary way things get communicated anymore. Print is still important and those who make a living with print are finding that it's getting tougher and tougher to do it. It comes down to speed, cost and access.
The web helps us solve those problems effectively. We gain access to information instantly and communicate our messages directly - without having to spend a lot of money doing it. The web is great for handling, filtering, sending and shaping data - but not everything boils down to data.
To think that the web will solve all of our communication problems is shortsighted - because not all of our problems are so transactional. The nostalgia in a photo album or immense pride in a business card are real feelings we experience as a direct result of really good print designers. There's just something about holding something that makes it so valuable. Maybe it's because there's a finality to something that's been printed - which is a beautiful thing. With the web, pieces can always be added, replaced or improved upon so things will never be fully "complete".
So I guess what I'm trying to say is that the "electronic" channel allow us to do things cheaper, and faster - but not necessarily better. Communication is happening in bits, and that's just fine for some - but as long as we live in this physical world, there's always going to be a need for print and really good print designers.
