A philosophy of graphic design.
The desire to create is at the heart of what sets humanity apart from all other forms of life. It is this drive which led our nomadic hunter-gatherer ancestors to settle down, plant and harvest, and create aesthetically pleasing permanent dwellings. Tools and clothing, songs and writing, all sprang from this primal urge.
While the creative urge is natural, the success of creative efforts is not automatic. Design involves the meeting of a need through understanding of the problem, calculated effort, the exploration of alternatives, the suspension of preconceived notions, and the courage of untried solutions. These principles apply to all the design arts, including graphic design.
For graphic designers, the “problem” most often posed is the communication of information or an idea, which must be presented in a persuasive manner. This persuasion often involves the utilization of entertaining, stimulating, or attractive elements. Principles of composition, color theory, and an understanding of contemporary culture and the target audience will aid in this persuasion.
Yet persuasion cannot be achieved if the content is unintelligible. Clarity is an equally key ingredient to successful design. A graphic designer is as much an organizer as he is an entertainer/persuader. There is a fine line to be walked between the visually stimulating composition and the truly informative one. Clear presentation of the essential content must never be sacrificed to the desire to entertain or dazzle.
Philosophies of design see-saw back and forth throughout the decades between one extreme and another as different time periods form their own aesthetic preferences as to where that fine line is located. I have found that my own tastes change as well, but over the years I have consistently leaned toward a less-is-more approach. While there are some wonderful exceptions to that principle, for me they prove the rule. If I don’t need it, I cut it out.
As far as personal expression in graphic design is concerned, I believe it is entirely possible to both serve the needs of a client and express oneself artistically. While a client may insist on the inclusion of certain elements and the elimination of others, no other individual will organize and visually present the final information in quite the same way I would. This fact is one of the things that makes me so enthusiastic about the design field. Individuality and personal expression can be, and indeed inevitably is, achieved by the graphic designer to a degree occasionally as significant as that of our fine artist colleagues.
Serving a client’s needs is no different in my mind than the fine artists of history who created masterpieces on commission. If Michelangelo had not been “persuaded” by the Pope to paint, he would have been content to only sculpt, and the Sistine chapel would not be what it is today. Wonderful things can result from commissions and using design skills in the service of others, things that would never have existed otherwise. Graphic design is a wonderful thing and a useful thing. It also happens to be.... my thing!
