Designer Genes: The Anatomy of Design 

Joel Milani, Copywriter, YouShouldGoToSchool.com

When you sit down on a chair it's unusual to pay too close attention to it. Aside from the awareness in the back of your mind of how comfortable you are, the chair rarely gets a second thought (unless it collapses under you). Likewise, when visiting a website, most people use the information on the site without giving much notice to how that information is arranged, or the specific colors and fonts that are being used. Design may be the most ubiquitous, yet largely overlooked, art form in our society— for good reason.

Transparent Design

Design affects nearly every aspect of our day-to-day life; if it is man-made, someone designed it. Design is everywhere and yet, when done well, almost invisible. Matthew Friske, email design specialist and freelance graphic designer describes good design this way:

"Good design is design that describes the content clearly, quickly, and in a unique way. But clearly and quickly are usually more important."

In other words, the goal of a designer is to create something simple, functional and aesthetically pleasing that solves a problem or fills a need. Simplicity and functionality take precedence over aesthetics, however. Good design should never sacrifice practicality for looks. Design, when done right, is often invisible. When designing a chair, the designer must keep in mind that the chair is a chair. It will be sat upon. Probably often, and by many different people. If the chair fails to be a good place to sit, then what it looks like is irrelevant. When a designer creates a chair that evokes a certain feeling or look or style and functions as a lovely place to rest your feet, good design has been achieved. The design itself is often overlooked by the consumer. If the design draws attention to itself, chances are it was done poorly. In a website this could appear as offensive or clashing colors, information located in hard-to-find places on the page, poor spacial arrangement (too much clutter or empty space) or a gaudy or kitschy style. In a chair this could appear as an extravagant, uncomfortable chair. 

Learn More 

 

The award-winning documentary Objectified takes a look into the world of industrial design, and explores the general principles of what goes into good design. Also check out the blog updated by New York School of Industrial Design students for a look at design in an academic setting. 

Here's a short list of design fields, and what they encompass:

• Graphic– Design of images, usually for a commercial purpose
• Interior– Design of spaces within a building or house. Closely related to architecture, not to be confused with interior decorating
• Industrial– Design of objects, usually objects that can be purchased. Lamps, watches, chairs, tools, cell phones, and soccer balls fall into this category
• Fashion– Design of clothing, shoes, accessories, etc.
• Web– Design of web pages, emails, etc.

Design as a Career 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

 

"Employment of graphic designers is expected to grow 13 percent, as fast as the average for all occupations from 2008 to 2018, as demand for graphic design continues to increase from advertisers and computer design firms. "Moreover, graphic designers with Web site design and animation experience will especially be needed as demand increases for design projects for interactive media—Web sites, mobile phones, and other technology. Demand for graphic designers also will increase as advertising firms create print and Web marketing and promotional materials for a growing number of products and services. Growth in Internet advertising, in particular, is expected to increase the number of designers."