Graphic design is a key element of branding and visual ID projects, including corporate collateral, publishing for print and screen, apps and websites. But a lot of businesses get confused about what design actually is and what its real function and purpose are.
Frequently the subject of design crops up in conjunction with two other concepts: those of art and innovation. The three disciplines operate in overlapping spaces, but they each have a different primary function.
Sometimes businesses expect design to fulfill aesthetic criteria and it is certainly true that art and design have much in common and are often expressed via the same media. They are both about communication, too, but while art draws attention to itself and may deliberately obfuscate and conceal meaning, good design should clarify and facilitate comprehension - it stands aside to let the message come through.
Art raises questions; design finds solutions. Art challenges the status quo; design works within existing conditions and capabilities to encourage understanding. When the focus is on aesthetics rather than functionality, the resulting design is likely to be unnecessarily complex or fussy.
At other times, businesses are looking for something ground-breaking, and design can also be compared and contrasted with innovation: both solve problems, but they approach those problems in different ways. Innovation demands originality and invention: it’s unconventional and pushes boundaries to produce something new. On the other hand, design is about functionality and efficiency, not about boldly going where no one has been before just for the sake of the journey.
Great design doesn’t need to break the mould: it builds on structure and familiarity and works with known techniques; it uses the tools that are already available to illuminate meaning and provide access to information.
Great design allows you to feel comfortable because it is recognisable and consistent with your experience.
Simply put, art and innovation demand attention. Art wants to be admired; innovation wants to impress. Great design, on the other hand, is happy to take a back seat, to stand in the shadow of functionality and user experience. It allows you to feel comfortable because it is recognisable and consistent with your experience. Design is the interface between message and audience, a catalyst that enables their interaction, a membrane through which information passes unaltered, a spark that animates meaning.
Whatever your business project, this interface should be as simple, intuitive and invisible as possible, allowing your client full access to your message and allowing your content, product or service to speak for itself.
We’d love to talk to you about your design needs for print or screen, so do get in touch for a no-obligation consultation.