Can digital design classics exist?
Is there such a thing a that we can aspire towards creating?
In some ways the ultimate achievement for designers is creating something that is eventually considered to be a ‘design classic.’ Think Anglepoise lamp, Eames chair or Juicy Salif. But of course we now live in a brave new digital world, with millions of creatives worldwide applying the practice of product design to the digital products and services used by the masses every day. Which begs the question, is there such a thing as a digital design classic that we can aspire towards creating?
First things first, what is a design classic?
Unsurprisingly, there is no unanimous definition for what exactly constitutes a design classic, even though there is agreement about which products are worthy of the title. In place of this, I have identified some common traits that are shared by all design classics.
A design classic…
- Remains popular despite time passing: It may scream its era or lack modern features, but people still buy, own and use them in the modern day.
- Is instantly recognisable: Often provoking an emotional responsible and becoming the ‘posterchild’ of a product category. E.g. Anglepoise is the lamp in the Pixar main title. — So whether you know what an Anglepoise is, you know what it looks like.
- Often widely imitated: Reinforces the status of the original design and its “pioneering” concept.
- Sets a trend: A design that creates a movement, in style or functionality. E.g. Walkman and portable audio.
- Has a good story: People love a good story, and typically this helps them build an attachment with objects. There’s often a great story that leads to the creation of a classic. e.g. The Mini is a design classic that came about because of restrictions in fuel supply during the 1950s caused by the Suez crisis.
Drawing a parallel between physical and other mediums
Before we try and identify design classics within the relatively new industry of digital design, we can look at other mediums to see if the criteria we have established is fit for purpose. We can look at an industry like branding, which traditionally existed purely in the world of print, but has also shifted to living in digital formats over time.
Logos that have stood the test of time: Coca-Cola (1886), FedEx (1994), Chase (1961)
It’s not too much of a stretch to say famous logos are design classics. They barely change, if at all. They are instantly recogniseable, with people knowing exactly what they are and who they represent — e.g. Coke is the second most recognised word in the entire english language.
Unfortunately it’s not quite that simple. Some famous logos can change over time, whether its to bring them inline with modern design trends or allow them to function better at newly required smaller sizes. The question then becomes, can we consider a past version of a logo a classic even if it was replaced? If it was updated recently even, has it been long enough that we can call the previous version a classic?
Paul Rand’s widely acclaimed logo for UPS lasted for 42 years before being overhauled — potentially showcasing the destruction of a classic design.
Well, naturally, it depends on how the design was modified in subsequent versions. Evolution of the core concept is unlikely to affect a designs ability to remain a classic, but revoloution almost certainly will.
Another parallel between branding and digital products is that once something is no longer ‘live,’ it no longer has a use, unlike a physical product which can still be owned and used even if the company stops making them.
The branding industry shows us that other design mediums can still have design classics, in some cases even if the work is subtly updated over time. As a result, I belive it is also possible to create design classics in the world of digital and that a few already exist.
Identifying some digital design classics
A good example of an evoloutionary design classic is the Google homepage, which remains effectively unchanged from its inception in 1997. Even with Alphabets huge amount of branching out and NPD since then, the Google homepage has not been reimagined from an empty white page with a search bar. This is due to the fact that the original design already addressed the needs of users arriving at the page as directly as possible — by giving them a place to search free of distraction.
Another viewpoint could be that rather than having whole experiences that stand the test of time to become digital design classics, you have persistent micro interactions that span multiple products and sectors. Concepts such as pull down to refresh, slide down from the top for notifications and swipe up for home come to mind.
So maybe, just maybe…
By considering some of these ideas in our work, we can build the next generation of design classics!
