ALEX MOULTON - DESIGN IS ABOUT EVERYTHING

This must be one of the last, if not the very last, recorded interview with Dr. Alex Moulton. Whilst clearly an old man - one is reminded that his answer to the question “What is it like being ninety years old?” was “I wouldn’t recommend it” - he has not lost his directness or his ability to get to the heart of the matter. “Don’t be diverted into the shape and style only. Design is about everything” is a succinct lesson for every design student, as is the follow up: “Everything matters in Design”.

In 1976 the Design Council produced a study of Engineering Design Education and made a series of recommendations. Alex Moulton chaired this committee, and the resulting report became known as ‘The Moulton Report”. Central to its position was the stipulation that 'Engineering should be taught in the context of design, so that design is a continuous thread running through the teaching of undergraduate engineering'. Many engineers can be thankful for this change in University teaching.

Alex Moulton is remembered as an innovative engineer, and rightly so. But, despite his railing against the idea of ‘design’ as a marketing tool (particularly during the 1980s), he is perhaps better remembered as a brilliant designer; and even more so as one of the very rare breed of true design engineers who have a deep understanding of both professions and the inherent conflict between them. One should have little doubt, however, that he believed that one led through design; as whilst engineering is a set of tools, design is a way of thinking.