What is Design and Why Does it Matter?

Design is one of those things that is almost impossible to describe, but you know good design when you see it. But what is the point? Why spend countless hours, days, months, or years on perfecting a design? Does it really matter that much? I am here to tell you that, yes, it does matter. Being that I am a design major, I may be slightly biased, but I truly believe that good design is important in so many ways. Let me show you why:

What is Design?

Designer Todd Johnston said, “A design marks out a vision for what can be; the act of designing is to move with intent to close the gap between existing conditions and that vision.” Design is taking something and finding a creative way to make it better than it was before. It is coming up with innovative ideas and turning those ideas into a tangible reality.

In order to come up with a good design, one must use “design thinking.” Design thinking is a good way to come up with solutions for complex issues. Daylight Design has five steps to design thinking. The first is to learn from the people. When trying to come up with the best possible design, one should hear what the people think. They know what problems they want solutions to. The next step is finding patterns. After talking to enough people, patterns will begin to become apparent. Many people will likely have some of the same complaints, so that is a good place to start designing. After that, one should be able to define a design principle that would be an effective tool to cater to the needs of the people. The next step is to make the design principle tangible. To make the abstract idea into a reality. The last step is to iterate relentlessly by creating prototypes and mock-ups until the design is perfected.

Why does it Matter?

Designer Richard Seymour has said that design “is making things better for people.”

Good design benefits everyone who interacts with it because it makes the user or viewer’s experience more enjoyable. Good design makes things easier. Design is how we creatively solve problems. Designers spend years on projects, perfecting every detail so that whoever sees it will have the best possible experience. Without design, the world would be a boring and confusing place.

Sources: http://www.forbes.com/sites/victorhwang/2014/02/11/what-is-design-unlocking-the-genius-within-says-expert/, http://www.mech.hku.hk/bse/interdisciplinary/what_is_design.pdf, http://www.whatisdesignthinking.org/