Visual Aesthetics — Fall 2012

So tonight instead of catching up on blog posts like I should have been doing (…whoops…) Anna, Alexandra and I made paper snowflakes to decorate the lab. Katie made one too. Little did I know this would be a great metaphor for what I’ve learned about aesthetics this semester.

Anna had the idea, provided the supplies, and set goals for how many snow flakes we should make. She didn’t make as many snowflakes as Alexandra or I , but she hung almost all of them. To have a successful design project, you need an idea, goals, a means to complete the project, and a sense of purpose for your finished project.

Alexandra made very pretty snowflakes that were both scientifically correct, and geometrically attractive. Although she said she can’t come up with things just out of her head, clearly that isn’t true. She did illustrate that people can be equally creative and yet approach art in very different ways. I may prefer Vermeer over Jeff Koons, but they are booth artists and I am able to appreciate that more now than I was at the beginning of the year.

I free-handed most of my snow flakes, but I gathered inspiration from templates I saw online. They were more intricate than Alexandra’s generally, but they also had a greater chance of failure. In design, it’s ok to draw inspiration from other people’s work, but you have to make it your own–and sometimes that means taking a risk.

Katie only made one snowflake but I think she showed the best example of what it means to be a creative. She took an idea, toyed around with it and sketched it out, revised it, and then finally made it happen.

Hope you enjoy your snowflake Phil. It’s a work of art.

I remember at the beginning of the semester I tried to define what Design meant. As I stated then, I really didn’t know. I was working at the time at NC State and frequented many buildings on campus. I would always pass the building with Design written on it and always wondering what that meant. I had to walk right past it on my way to eat and would wonder what studying design meant and what sort of students would study it. Design of what, I would say. Graphic design? Architecture design? Some other design I didn’t know about? There was even a guy I worked with who graduated from that program at State and I was always scared to ask him what exactly he studied as I didn’t want to seem stupid.

Well, now I get it. I have a new filter thanks to this class. I see the world a little differently and I am appreciative. Now, I admit I am not the best at making that design, and I don’t think anyone would argue that. But I sure do know what good design looks like. I know what looks good and why it does or does not, and then what needs to be done to make it good. Being in traditional media, this offers me a whole new skill set and a new level of skill, and I am truthfully grateful for that. I even look at art differently.

I literally just finished reading my local town paper prior to making this post and I want to comment on a comment someone printed. A gentleman is complaining about a piece of art a local town paid for and wonders how it is art. He goes on and on about what is art and how it doesn’t look like it and why is the town paying that much money for it. I believe that last summer I may have either somewhat agreed with him or been sympathetic. Now, I’m not so sure. While it may not be his style, it is art and there are people that probably like it. Someone took the time to make a piece of themselves through sculpture, and that is the definition of art. I liked this class.

What have you learned this semester that impacts the way you approach the design of visual communication content?

• I am more aware of the process of being creative.
• I know the importance of working on concept first.
• I know that a critical eye should be brought to every work in multiple stages
• MY WORK WILL NEVER BE DONE

Why is having an understanding of visual aesthetics important (or not) when the artifacts  being created are interactive?

• Interactive elements provide function, aesthetics provide personality
• No one wants to be hang out with someone with NO personality

How will your increased sophistication with visual content impact the choices you make about the potential direction of your career?

• I will be more successful in the pursuit of a career because I will be a creative & critical designer
• If it ain’t good lookin’ don’t bother cookin’.
• You can’t fix stupid.

In my very first post for this class (“To opine on design”), I wrote: “Clutter drools. A little white space, simplicity and functionality rule.”

That was initially my approach to designing visual communication content: keep it clean, simple and functional.

Although those thoughts about design are the same, I have learned a ton since submitting that post on Sept. 1.

Mostly I’ve learned that designers must create with purpose and all artists approach every project differently. Each design should be well-conceived because each typeface, color and size of each component within that design matters. Each component communicates something to users, so the message must be executed well.

Planning is an important part of execution. While every artist’s approach is different, I learned that sketching on paper should be a part of the process. Sketching isn’t my forte, but it helps designers flesh out their ideas and give them direction.

What I thought about the importance of understanding visual aesthetics to create interactive media still rings true.

As interactive media strategists and designers, we must know how to communicate messages through several visual elements (i.e. images and icons) across multiple platforms to people from various backgrounds.

Therefore, visual media students should be aware of artists and artistic movements. It’s important to understand the past in order to understand the present, and have a good foundation on which to build.

My increased sophistication with visual content will affect nearly every choice I make from creating my capstone to managing projects at my future workplace.

Mostly, my increased knowledge will give me confidence to work anywhere. I can speak with authority with future clients and bosses about why I chose a certain typeface over another in a design, or why this website or app will be user friendly, or why this color in an ad will attract more customers.

On Sept. 1, my goal after taking this course was to be able to articulate how an interface’s design affects users.

“Why did their eyes go there first? Why did they click on this? What about the layout encourages certain actions?”

Mission accomplished.

Thanks, Motley.