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♪ MUSIC ♪
MOORE: RIT WAS THE ONLY
UNIVERSITY I APPLIED TO.
I ASSUMED I'D HAVE A CAREER IN
SOME FORM OF ART, BUT I HAD NO
IDEA UNTIL I GOT TO RIT THAT
THERE WERE THINGS OTHER THAN
DRAWING PICTURES THAT COULD BE
CLASSIFIED AS ART AND THAT'S
WHEN I FOUND INDUSTRIAL DESIGN.
TWIST: I THINK THAT SHE WAS
GIVEN THE FREEDOM EARLY IN
HER LIFE AND THROUGH HER
EDUCATION TO DEVELOP HER
CREATIVITY AND TO BE INQUISITIVE
AND TO ASK A LOT OF QUESTIONS.
MOORE: I RECEIVED PROBABLY THE
BEST GIFT ANY STUDENT GRADUATING
COULD HAVE AND THAT WAS AN
INVITATION TO COME TO NEW YORK
CITY AND WORK WITH RAYMOND LOEWY
WHO WAS THE FATHER OF INDUSTRIAL
DESIGN, PRODUCT DESIGN, IN THE
UNITED STATES.
I WAS VERY SURPRISED TO LEARN I
WAS THE ONLY FEMALE AND THERE
WERE 350 ARCHITECTS, DESIGNERS
AND ENGINEERS AND AS THE ONLY
WOMAN ON BOARD TO TAKE CARE OF
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGN,
I HAD A VOICE THAT WAS NOT AS
COMMON AS THE OTHERS IN THE
ROOM AND I WAS THE ONE WHO
WOULD BRAVELY RAISE MY HAND AND
SAY, "WELL WHAT ABOUT PEOPLE
WITH ARTHRITIS?
WHAT ABOUT PEOPLE WHO DON'T HAVE
FEET TO WALK BUT USE WHEELS TO
MOVE?
AND WHAT ABOUT, WHAT ABOUT
WHAT ABOUT?"
AND I WOULD CONSTANTLY HEAR,
"PATTI, WE DON'T DESIGN FOR
‘THOSE' PEOPLE!"
AND I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THIS
HIERARCHY BY DESIGN THAT
SOME PEOPLE DESERVED GOOD DESIGN
AND OTHER PEOPLE DIDN'T.
AND I HAD NO IDEA WHY IT
EXISTED BUT I KNEW IN MY HEART
OF HEARTS WE HAD TO CHANGE IT.
I REALIZED THAT I DIDN'T JUST
WANT TO BE AN ACTRESS
PRETENDING TO BE AN ELDER,
BUT THAT WHAT HADN'T BEEN
ACCOMPLISHED, AT LEAST WITH THE
VARIABLE OF AGE, WAS A TRUE
IMMERSION CHARACTER, AN EMPATHIC
CHARACTER.
SO WE DEVELOPED ALL THE
PROSTHESIS THAT WOULD ALTER
MY BODY; GIVE ME CURVATURE OF
THE SPINE, TAKE AWAY MY VISION
BY USING CLOUDED LENSES,
PLUGGING MY EARS SO I COULDN'T
REALLY HEAR AND WEARING NON
OPERATING HEARING AIDS, TAPING
MY HANDS, MY LEGS, USING SPLINTS
SO THAT I COULDN'T RUN, I
COULDN'T BEND, I COULDN'T RAISE
MY ARMS.
I NEEDED THE SUPPORT OF PEOPLE
AROUND ME IN THE COMMUNITY TO
HELP ME DO THE SIMPLEST OF
THINGS BECAUSE I WAS LIVING IN
THIS SHELL, A BODY CHANGED BY
TIME.
YOU COULD SEE THIS VERY SAD
DISTINCTION THAT EXISTS IN THIS
WORLD TODAY BECAUSE WE DID NOT
DESIGN AND BUILD STRUCTURES,
SERVICES, PLACES, SPACES FOR
THE PRESENCE OF ELDERS AND FOR
PEOPLE WHO DO THINGS
DIFFERENTLY THAN THE NORM.
REMINGTON: SHE IDENTIFIED EARLY
IN HER CAREER A NEED AND A
PROBLEM AND SHE STRUCTURED A
DEFINITE RESPONSE TO THAT NEED
AND I THINK WE'RE ALL VERY
PROUD OF THAT ACCOMPLISHMENT
AND I THINK THAT IS SOMETHING
THAT STICKS OUT AS A
RECOGNIZABLE BENCHMARK IN HER
CAREER, EVEN THOUGH SHE'S GONE
ON AND ON AND ON FAR BEYOND THAT
POINT.
TWIST: I WOULD HOPE, AND I
WOULD THINK IT IS TRUE, THAT
PATTI'S EARLY EDUCATION HAD
SOMETHING TO DO WITH HER
ATTITUDE AND HER VALUES
AND ESPECIALLY HER RESPECT FOR
ALL PEOPLE.
MOORE: UNIVERSALITY JUST SEEMED
TO BE THE MOST SENSIBLE COURSE
OF DESIGN IN OUR EYES.
WHAT WE WERE LOOKING AT WAS
DESIGNING WITH EQUITY;
DESIGNING FOR ALL PEOPLE AS
EQUAL AND RECOGNIZING THAT THERE
WERE NOT CONSUMERS THAT WE COULD
CALL ‘THOSE' PEOPLE, BUT RATHER
ALL OF US HAVE THE SAME DISCREET
AND INDIVIDUAL AND UNIQUE NEEDS
AND THE SAME COMMONALITIES.
ONE OF THE PRODUCTS I'M MOST
PROUD OF IS THE MAMMOGRAPHIC
UNIT WE DESIGNED SO THAT WHEN
OUR BREAST IS IN COMPRESSION,
WHICH IS VERY PAINFUL, WE HAVE
AN AUTOMATIC RELEASE ONCE THE
X- RAY HAS BEEN COMPLETED SO
ACTUALLY THAT'S ONE OF MY
PROUDEST MOMENTS WAS FIGHTING
AGAINST, SADLY, THE MEN WHO
WERE FINANCING THIS PROJECT,
WHO SAID THAT WE DIDN'T NEED TO
SPEND MONEY ON THAT DETAIL.
BUT I DON'T KNOW IF WE'LL EVER
BE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT THIS
WITHOUT EMBARRASSING SOME
PEOPLE, BUT I SUGGESTED WE
COULD PROBABLY USE SOME
COMPRESSION ON THEIR BODIES
AND THAT'S WHAT GOT ME THE
BUDGET.
THAT'S A VERY FAMOUS PATTI
MOORE STORY (LAUGHING).
A MORE GLOBAL STORY, OF COURSE,
WOULD BE THE OXO GOOD GRIPS
PRODUCTS AND BEING PART OF THE
TEAM WITH SMART DESIGN, HELPING
SAM FARBER AND BETSY FARBER JUST
TAKE A LOOK AT SUCH A SIMPLE,
INNOCENT DAILY PRACTICE OF
PREPARING YOUR MEAL IS THE KIND
OF THING THAT DESIGNERS LOVE TO
SOLVE.
REMINGTON: I USE OXO GOOD GRIPS
EVERY MORNING OPENING A CAN OF
DOG FOOD FOR MY DOG AND THINK
OF PATTI EVERY MORNING,
ACTUALLY (LAUGHING)!
MOORE: DESIGN IS SUPPOSED TO
EMPOWER PEOPLE; IT'S NOT
SUPPOSED TO DISABLE PEOPLE AND
THE ONLY TIME I EVEN USE THE
WORD DISABLE IS IN CHIDING
DESIGNERS AND SAYING,
"YOU DIDN'T DO A GOOD JOB THERE.
LET'S TRY AGAIN." PEOPLE AREN'T
DISABLED.
EACH OF US HAS SOME LEVEL OF
CAPABILITY, SOME LEVEL OF
ABILITY.
DESIGN IS INTENDED TO MEET THAT
LEVEL AND EXCEED IT AND SO IT
GOES BEYOND COMPENSATION TO
THRIVING, NOT JUST SURVIVING BY
DESIGN.
SO WHEREVER THERE'S A ROADBLOCK
IN OUR LIVES IT'S BECAUSE
SOMEBODY DIDN'T DO THEIR JOB
RIGHT AND ON THAT POINT I'M
ADAMANT.
TWIST: I THINK CREATIVITY IS A
GOD GIVEN GIFT.
I THINK USING IT IS INNOVATION.
MOORE: THOSE OF US WHO IDEATE
ABOUT WHAT LIFE COULD BE ARE
OFTEN IN A SITUATION WHERE SOME
OF THE BEST IDEAS COLLECT DUST
FOR A WHILE UNTIL THE RIGHT
TECHNOLOGY, THE RIGHT
MATERIALS, THE RIGHT SCIENCE IS
IN PLACE AND IT'S SOMETIMES A
WAIT AND SEE GAME.
BUT YOU'RE ALWAYS BUILDING FOR
WHAT IFS AND WHAT ABOUT TOMORROW
AND WHAT COULD WE POSSIBLY DO
AND WE CAN DO ANYTHING BY
DESIGN.
♪ MUSIC ♪