Should designers stand by each other’s work…

What a sad reflection on our industry that we can whine on for years about the lack of morality surrounding free pitching and yet when one of the most important moments arises to show our collective value, London 2012, numerous ‘experts’ surface to declare that they could have easily done a better job.

Shame on them. Where is the professional morality in this? When the proposals for the Tate Modern extension or other public buildings were tabled I don’t remember the architectural world climbing over each other to offer better designs or damning comments. No wonder then that we are light years away from representing ourselves with the stature of the Royal Institute of British Architects or other professional bodies.

Let’s be clear. This type of reaction drives the value of our industry back by decades, as do the smug, sour-mouthed comments of critics.

A piece of work like this takes a lot of careful consideration. Surely people from the industry appreciate that it is not just an overnight doodle? This was a moment were our industry should have stood together to value the contribution, or kept a dignified silence, even if it was not to everyone’s taste. The small-minded backstabbing has done us all no service at all.

How can ‘we’ ever expect the public and the business community to take us seriously if ‘we’ continue to denigrate and diminish ‘our’ own work publicly (remember the British Airways tailfins witch hunt)?

Peter Knapp, Executive creative director, Europe and Middle East, Landor Associates Branding and Design Consultants, London EC1