Although it looks simple, minimalist design is very difficult to achieve. Every proportion and feature is elevated. Secondly, the great designs of the past have always had boldness and radical silhouettes. Castiglioni, Loewy, Noguchi, Stark, Rashid, etc. So, in the context of the past 100 years, this is not a new development. Great design videos, keep it up!
I would agree with you that all of the designers you've listed use bold silhouettes. However, I would argue that the designers you listed all have an incredible sensitivity to detail. The radical designs of today lack nuance and subtlety. I know it sounds contradictory, but you can have a bold design that is also sensitive to the details.
all designers you cited have one thing in common. The products they are known for were never made for real people. Have you ever tried to use a Stark Lemon Squeezer ? it's a novelty without any consideration for ergonomy. You will never see a Noguchi like center table in the average house, it simply isn't stable enough with the way the tree points of contact from the feet are arranged. The thing for me is that all those great names closed themselves so much in an elitist bubble that it's really impressive to see someone like Kanye West, for example, having better consideration for anthropometrics, than wildly known designers that love to state "less is more" without any reflection.
I agree wholeheartedly. I recently did some remodeling on an upscale minimalist residence and everything looked perfectly proportioned, even the minimalist use of color was spot on. Trying to keep within the ascetic for the remodel proved to be exceedingly difficult. We thought it would be easy, it wasn't. Something as simple as what color a bathroom shelf was painted turned out hard. We had to repaint it twice at the owners request. AND when we were done, they were absolutely right!
I think that as technology increases in appliances it is inversely proportional to radical designs. Low tech is associated with radical because it has fewer functional limitations and more design flexibility. Great series. Thanks!
“The only way to stand out is being bombastic and loud”. Jelling it out does not improve the communication situation, but simply eliminates whispering and speaking as a medium. I think being loud is a quick fix to raise attention, as you also said. It is fast carbs. But history has shown how quickly these products die out simply because we get tired of them, the lack of detail, and the trends change. This could be a reason why striving for more elegant, understated, pure, trendless forms tend to be longer lasting and thereby more sustainable.
I absolutely love your comparison between being loud and "fast carbs". One thing to remember is that for something like a gaming console, it really only needs to be desirable for a few years. In fact, you could even argue that having it look dated is a good thing, because you go and buy the new model. There's less incentive for companies to make timeless design if they know this. I don't endorse this position. I'm merely stating that this is how many people at these companies think.
Yes but 90% of designers do just that understated and elegant. It just gets boring and irrelevant. And the number of likes matter more than being timeless. It's like Fastfood vs Healthy options, Fastfood gets the money, healthy gets the respect, but the game is all about money not respect.
@@impulsiveurge5837 the longest lasting car brand is Mercedes Benz which is very elegant and timeless. In the long run being timeless is what survives.
@@ivanmunoz9055 the company that makes monstrosities like the GLE suv coupe and the EQA to EQS range can"t be said to just create elegant and timeless products. And less than 20 years ago they had the Vaneo and R class. none of the models i mentioned resemble the 300SL whatsoever, they are all products of their time.
Fascinating topics raised there. I see the 'statement' boldness of Brutalist architecture, slimmed down for the 21st century and for our pockets! More seriously, I think there is something retro about some of the exaggerated lines materialising in popular culture and shown in your video, although I can't quite put my finger on it.
It's funny you mention that. I was going to reference brutalist architecture in this video but I decided to cut it out of the final edit. I think the retro inspiration is an apt one. I think that retro reference depends on the specific design. The PS5 is sort of futuristic (as in, the 1920s futurist movement). The Xbox Series S is very 1950s modern/minimalist. The cybertruck is brutalist. The folding phone, I'm not so sure. And the Yeezy Foam Runners, as I mentioned, are very Colani-inspired.
@@Design.Theory I was looking up 1920s artworks after this video, but couldn't find quickly things that matched with my inklings. I can understand why you cut the reference to brutalism though, because the foundations or inspirations might need a separate investigation/discussion. It is an honour to have this conversation with you, so thank you for replying!
@@susan5431 The PS5 most closely relates to neo-futurism, which was an architectural movement that happened in the early/mid 2010s. It sort of riffed on futurism, as the name implies. Anyway, pretty much everything is a reference to the past, whether intentional or not. We are subconsciously influenced by everything we see. Also, I appreciate the kind words, but I like to make myself as accessible and approachable as possible, so don't be surprised if you get a response ;)
Very true. But even the big companies have to innovate eventually. It's just that it becomes harder and harder as the organization grows. Larger corporate structures often get too large to adapt.
yes, there you have the actual situation with the huge grill, rear and front lights from BMW. They have been pretty consistent in their design, but now that they're trying to shift to a new era, is has been really polarizing among designers and car enthusiasts
I love the way you've analyzed the new design trends. It makes so much sense given the way our society is evolving. It's not my favorite kind of design style but it definitely fits into that thumbnail shopping style you were talking about. Great video! thanks!
As a watch enthusiast I appreciate subtle details of watches and some super detailed stuff too, if you take time to look at a good watch you will find out things that you have never seen when you look at it super fast but if take the time you will appreciate it’s design
New normal, online shopping, smart phone screen size and everyday it gets harder to take someone elses attention. I really like how you have a holistic approach to things, from Tesla's cybertruck to populist poluticians.
The moment you shrunk down that image to the size of a thumbnail I had a flashback to the film "Design" by Saul Bass in which he proposed a major update overhaul to the branding of the Bell Telephone company. You may know this film already. Among many things, there he's done the exercise of shrinking down Bell's old logo until it was almost unrecognizable, and also explores in several ways the topic of how to be detected and recognized with only minimal exposure, such as seeing an ad while rapidly flipping a magazine or seeing a van of the company drive by at an intersection. At one point he even makes a remark using the wording ''weak signals'' and ''strong signals'' when showcasing a new phone booth with a bold design to be visible from far, which felt very similar to how you talk about strong signatures in this video. Every time I watch this film I get a very surreal feeling that the more things change, the more they stay the same. There's always something in it that feels relevant at whichever time I watch it, sometimes in ways unrelated to design. It dates from 1969 and it can be found on youtube.
A bit on the dramatic side, and though you belabored the Scio-political aspects of the current state of the world, I agree with your assessment of the future of design branding. Stick to your design theory, it’s sound, leave the stock political clips and statements for others who actually believe their own diatribe.
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Great video! There are at least 4 main trends in your video: the Iphone is nothing more than a frame containing the screen, it's Still Dieter Rams, the definitive elimination of decoration. The Yeezy shoes are just a way to create a viral trend, it's designed to be shared online. The PS5 is a portal gun (pre 2008). Finally, the colors and smooth surfaces you find on Pinterest are, like you said, a product of an algorithm. I don't see a common trend between these trends.
Great video with clear incites and communication ! All the points raised also explain and feed into the DFI (design for Instagram) trends being seen in the ID Instagram community. Going to take this all forward into my own development
To design tiny thumbnail is something I have recognized. There is a quite successful electronic reader platform from major player. Readers even today have only grey tones, as it is tuned to text (black on white or white on black). But book covers aka icons are shown as grey tone thumbnail, which can be quite small. My take is not many publishing houses really understand this dynamic and still design book for physical object view. Designs are almost always quite busy and not even provide minimum of required information in thumbnail format. And best designed covers are good in thumbnail and phenomenal in full size and colour.
“I forsee a marked deterioration in American music and a host of other injuries to music in its artistic manifestations, by virtue-or rather by vice-of the multiplication of the various music-reproducing machines” -John Philip Sousa
You're making a great point here! We seem to be de-prioritizing the nuances that make a good product and there's definitely a hierarchy of attributes at play. 1) The first impression made in a few milliseconds- The silhouette. the key motifs and design gestures- What we first see in those thumbnails. 2) The understanding of detailing, split-lines, finishes, heft and quality of materials. 3) Device interaction and how it actually works for you- Ux, ergonomics etc. (Please don't those Adidas shoes be the last remnants of humanity bobbing around the North Pacific Gyre long after we've gone...)
Yes. I think this will likely happen, with one big reason being the need to compete on a global level as opposed to the once local. And I find that whenever individuals or organizations have to compete for attention based on visual appeal, especially when it means potentially reaching millions if not billions of people, the tendency is to gravitate towards the "appeal to extremes" strategy, and we can kind of see that in the fashion industry as well as social media. This trend too will likely change back to the "attention to detail" strategy the moment becoming extreme/striking becomes the norm. The novelty is gone. So the best way to attract attention will be to do the opposite, which when it does, may even be perceived as groundbreaking.
Lovely video. Great compilation of material here. Have a question on one detail - At 2:16 you do say criteria for good design is changing. I definitely agree with that. design is about context of surrounding and the environment and times it's designed for. But in the matter you are pointing to I feel you could be talking about good commercial designs. when one discusses about thumbnails and click rate it's not talking about usability, impact on the environment, circular thinking etc. Again that's where good design is not an easy summary. Having said that I do agree that designing for marketing or capturing attention is a demand of the times we live in. Probably always and will always be. Thanks for the video once more!
Very thoughtful question here. You are 100% correct. The recognizability of a design is only one aspect of a much larger picture. There's a large list of things that make a design good or bad. It's highly dependent on context. However, sales numbers are going to determine the success of a product from the perspective of a business. If no one knows your product exist, or it gets overlooked, no one will buy it. I can't think of any companies who don't want to sell their product. I'm not saying that this is right. But it's the reality of our current system.
Another reason I think this black on white thing could flourish is because it shouts minimalism. I mean, with just two colours, you get a lot of visual activity and emotion on the product itself, while the whole thing stays camouflaged in its surroundings, unobtrusive.
how the product looks on a thumbnail... an interesting point. i have been designing icons using a similar concept which i learnt from Roman Mars' TED talk on flag design (if you haven't seen it i'd highly recommend). the principle is similar ---> flag design should be simple and to be drawn small on paper because you tend to see a flag from a distance, so the iconography needs to be simple and distinctive. by that logic, product design should also slowly follow this style, as you have suggested!
Apple really nailed this with their iPhone design up to the iPhone 8. The front with the single Home button is so distinct that even in tiny icons it's immediately visible at a glance. I think everything from the iPhone X onwards looked far more boring and just like any modern smartphone hunting for thin bezels.
Great contents that you are making. Thank you for sharing these kind of brain food I am really appreciating your work. It can be a silly question but what do you mean by radicalisation of design? Can u elaborate? Thanks^^
Another aspect is this trend of low-polygon renders of 3D scenes. Modern software can render extremely realistic lighting and shadows, which leads to even simple 3D scenes to look interesting, in the same way such simple product designs pop out in pictures.
I learned a lot from your video！The viewpoint is excellent. Can I translate the video lines into Chinese text and share it to my friends？ I will attach the original author and the original link. Thank you and wait for your reply！
While I certainly understand a lot of the reasons behind the modern trends in design (much thanks to your videos in particular, and many other people's analyses), and even accept that they're necessary for the overall situation where our attention span is getting consumed more and more and more by everything going on around us... It still sucks being the outlier in this situation. While I am not well versed in industrial design, I have been studying graphics design in an amateur capacity for some time, and, well... I've noticed that a lot of claimed trends seem to have exactly the reverse effect on my when compared to what effect they are supposed to produce. As a very simple example: logos. When it comes to their design, it is quite often said that clear silhouettes and minimalist shapes are better for recognition and remembrance of designs... but for me, personally, the result seems quite the opposite. Most modern, simple logos graze through my memory without leaving much of a touch, to the point that they don't even linger in my eyesight, while something that is detailed always gets noticed and accentuated upon, even when it's a small icon at the top of my screen that I cannot quite discern all the detail of. And, besides that, I also just plain prefer more detailed designs for logos in particular, and for things in general. I perfectly recognize the fact that the modern trends in design have their merit. But it certainly does suck to be the apparent outlier who falls squarely outside of the bounds of the considerations of those design considerations.
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. It's the same thing with trends. Trends become stale when they become overused. The hyper-simple logo trend is definitely one that people are starting to get sick of. There are practical reasons for that trend, though.
Black on white, although gaining popularity again, is an extremely outdated way to imply futurism. Just look back at old sci fi movies, sports cars, music instruments with a modern for the time design and basic electronics. 2001 ASO and Star Wars in really old movies, old Honda Type R models and other cars in the 80s and 90s, Metal EXP and V guitars in the 90s, interior design and even architecture. The list goes on and on... Just fascinating how designers always come to this fundamental high contrast scheme.
you should probably eq your mic a bit. there are some muddying frequencies that mask the sound in the low mids. + a small 1-2dB boost around 6k or so would prob be great and make it sound from good to better. cheers.
Thanks. Are you saying to cut the low mids a little bit? What frequency are you thinking? Like 150-400 hz? It might just be the room I'm recording in or my distance from the mic. I'll try a boost at 6k too. I've really struggled to get a good tone. Another thing that's hard to get used to is just hearing the sound of your own voice.
You would have to experiment a bit and see what works. Try a highpass filter at 100hz or so combined with a parametric filter around fundamental freq of your voice (you would have to listen to it). It might be a result of mic proximity effect also, in which you might sound better if you back up a tiny amount from the mic. Depending on your room, because backing off also means more room to voice ratio. Getting it right before eq is best, but if thats not possible (acoustic treatment, mic placement, angle/distance, etc), dont be a pussy with eq is all I can say ;) Good luck!
@@joinushugabear5847 "Don't be a pussy with EQ". Words to live by ;) Thanks for the advice. I'll give it a shot. As a musician, I'm pretty sensitive to these sorts of things. But I'm a total amateur when it comes to recordings. So basically, I know that it doesn't sound right, but I don't know how to fix it. Once again, thanks for the help.
Np. I used to be a live audio engineer for many years before I hurt my ears in a workplace accident. Now I study design at HDK in sweden, which is why I found your channel, scouring the internet for design related information.
nature is rich, lush. agressive and competitive yet balanced, harsh but there's a place for everyone, it's been doing it for billions of years. this monotonic high contrast is tyranny, no place in the middle or for middle and small ones, only big players.
I have a question on a different subject. What starting salary can I ask for as an industrial designer with a master's degree? Key data about the company. 65 employees, 18 million sales / year. Next week is my salary negotiation and the salary range that can be found on google is gigantic. I am from Germany btw. I don't know where else to ask so I'll try my luck
Salaries are very local. So figure out what other ID'ers are getting paid in Germany. LinkedIn and Glassdoor has decent salary databases, although for San Francisco the salaries seem low on both of those databases.
@@Design.Theory ya plz do you talk sense .. and feels visuals are just there for filling space, at least someone who is from design bkg will not ned this stills hots videos they can understand on audion only
hah... giving the iPhone as an example of sticking to a "complex" style of the past is a little funny... they were so ahead of the simple, high-contrast, trend.
I wonder if the death of detail and bigger focus on structure and contrast aids the loss of color in design. I recently read up on chromophobia, and how the world is losing its color.
Hey guys a newbie here , @Design_Theory amazing video as always . Though guys is there any forum , groups or people who just love to talk about deisgn everyday :) , I dunno anything abt so can someone guide me through ?
Those shoes look like uglier versions of crocs which I didn’t know could be a thing, the windows phone while I hate windows I absolutely love the shape and size of that device when it’s folded but not so much unfolded which I think is just because B6 is my favorite notebook/paper size. Between the Xbox and PlayStation I am glad my PlayStation is the one that gives spaceship vibes. I hope not to many things just go straight black and white because that will get very boring/old/ugly very quickly imo.
Why do you think they couldn't, because it's Microsoft? That's a dumb argument. Microsoft created some great designs in the past. And the Series S needs a giant internal fan to cool down the hardware efficiently in such a cramped space, so it's not far fetched to make that a defining design element instead of pointlessly trying to hide it.
Actually, cybertruck it's a particular death of transmateriality. What's this ? Transmateriality - design methodology, when one material looks like another, e.g soft metal or metallic fabric.
Elegance has a beauty of it's own. Do we observe the gradient of a sunset, and proclaim "it lacks details." Bauhaus was "the death of detail" decades ago... Perhaps your school of design has a particular philosophy that occludes your perspective?
@@Design.Theory Some iPhones are elegant... yet the content spewing from its screen rarely is. Perhaps this lean towards "simplicity" is due to the increasing digital chaos? Your thumbnail is indicative of the lengths advertisers go to catch attention- DEATH is a prominent word in your title. The Cybertruck is a polarizing design for which many would like a critique to justify their animus. You are successful in identifying the value of thumbnail advertising. The true death of detail may be in the death of discretion (people don't examine products in person, only through photoshopped renderings or staged photography). I enjoyed your video and appreciate your communication in "the comments." I hear that bodes well for youtube payouts. It does even more to change the perspectives of those you engage. I thank you, be well on this holiday (American independence day).
@@10-AMPM-01 yup, I leverage the algorithms in the thumbnails whenever possible. You are right about the death of discretion. That actually gets at the root cause of the death of detail. Because of customer discretion (or lack thereof) designers are incentivized to make a loud, bold statement, often at the expense of nuance and finesse. We're all guilty of it... Or at least I have been in the past. I hope that someday soon we can find our way out of this trend
@@Design.Theory I don´t think that what you call "minimalism" is really "minimalism". If you are talking about simplicity, just call it that way. Minimalism [and it is not only you, it is an error that very many do] is a plastic movement that values repetition. Sol Lewitt was a very well known minimalist, and I guess we will consider it pop nowadays.
Great video! If you were to choose between xbox and ps5 solely based on design which one would you buy? No strong reason but i think i would go with ps5 xbox design looks lazy
So most of my designer friends prefer the Xbox. I understand why. I would say it is probably a more balanced and well-proportioned design. I still prefer the PS5, personally. I just think it's more interesting.
Hi, what I think is that there is a subject that is not really "design politically correct", and that is what we have been told about what design is. Design is not details, and beauty is certainly not detail either. It has been the profession rethoric for too long, to be honest. This detail obsession, which is shared with automotive design and some architectural aesthetic currents, needs to stop at some point. First of all, because it is very old, almost 90 years [the infamous "god is in the details", but I´d like to add: evil is in the concept. And evil is usually funnier and more interesting]. This obsession even to try to find a detail, that frankly is just there for the pleasure of macro lens obsessives, is not that relevant: was called "craftmanship" before.
Loving the videos, but your background audio is really distracting. It has lyrics, a ton of variability, and it just muddles your voice. Everything else is great!
@@Design.Theory Please accept an honest opinion, I'll further my thought by writing I believe you let forces such as politics to distract you from design in human life.. please be aware of this and how it affects your work..
@@stevewill3572 Hi Steve, I only mention politics for about 5 seconds at the very beginning of the video, and never again throughout the entire video. It was mostly just to point out how radicalized our culture has become as a whole. Objects are a reflection of our culture.
Although it looks simple, minimalist design is very difficult to achieve. Every proportion and feature is elevated. Secondly, the great designs of the past have always had boldness and radical silhouettes. Castiglioni, Loewy, Noguchi, Stark, Rashid, etc. So, in the context of the past 100 years, this is not a new development. Great design videos, keep it up!
I would agree with you that all of the designers you've listed use bold silhouettes. However, I would argue that the designers you listed all have an incredible sensitivity to detail. The radical designs of today lack nuance and subtlety. I know it sounds contradictory, but you can have a bold design that is also sensitive to the details.
@@Design.Theory Only if you make it difficult for yourself.
all designers you cited have one thing in common. The products they are known for were never made for real people. Have you ever tried to use a Stark Lemon Squeezer ? it's a novelty without any consideration for ergonomy. You will never see a Noguchi like center table in the average house, it simply isn't stable enough with the way the tree points of contact from the feet are arranged. The thing for me is that all those great names closed themselves so much in an elitist bubble that it's really impressive to see someone like Kanye West, for example, having better consideration for anthropometrics, than wildly known designers that love to state "less is more" without any reflection.
I agree wholeheartedly. I recently did some remodeling on an upscale minimalist residence and everything looked perfectly proportioned, even the minimalist use of color was spot on. Trying to keep within the ascetic for the remodel proved to be exceedingly difficult. We thought it would be easy, it wasn't. Something as simple as what color a bathroom shelf was painted turned out hard. We had to repaint it twice at the owners request. AND when we were done, they were absolutely right!
I think that as technology increases in appliances it is inversely proportional to radical designs. Low tech is associated with radical because it has fewer functional limitations and more design flexibility. Great series. Thanks!
“The only way to stand out is being bombastic and loud”.
Jelling it out does not improve the communication situation, but simply eliminates whispering and speaking as a medium. I think being loud is a quick fix to raise attention, as you also said. It is fast carbs. But history has shown how quickly these products die out simply because we get tired of them, the lack of detail, and the trends change. This could be a reason why striving for more elegant, understated, pure, trendless forms tend to be longer lasting and thereby more sustainable.
I absolutely love your comparison between being loud and "fast carbs". One thing to remember is that for something like a gaming console, it really only needs to be desirable for a few years. In fact, you could even argue that having it look dated is a good thing, because you go and buy the new model. There's less incentive for companies to make timeless design if they know this. I don't endorse this position. I'm merely stating that this is how many people at these companies think.
Yes but 90% of designers do just that understated and elegant. It just gets boring and irrelevant. And the number of likes matter more than being timeless. It's like Fastfood vs Healthy options, Fastfood gets the money, healthy gets the respect, but the game is all about money not respect.
@@impulsiveurge5837 the longest lasting car brand is Mercedes Benz which is very elegant and timeless. In the long run being timeless is what survives.
@@ivanmunoz9055 the company that makes monstrosities like the GLE suv coupe and the EQA to EQS range can"t be said to just create elegant and timeless products.
And less than 20 years ago they had the Vaneo and R class.
none of the models i mentioned resemble the 300SL whatsoever, they are all products of their time.
Fascinating topics raised there. I see the 'statement' boldness of Brutalist architecture, slimmed down for the 21st century and for our pockets! More seriously, I think there is something retro about some of the exaggerated lines materialising in popular culture and shown in your video, although I can't quite put my finger on it.
It's funny you mention that. I was going to reference brutalist architecture in this video but I decided to cut it out of the final edit. I think the retro inspiration is an apt one. I think that retro reference depends on the specific design. The PS5 is sort of futuristic (as in, the 1920s futurist movement). The Xbox Series S is very 1950s modern/minimalist. The cybertruck is brutalist. The folding phone, I'm not so sure. And the Yeezy Foam Runners, as I mentioned, are very Colani-inspired.
@@Design.Theory I was looking up 1920s artworks after this video, but couldn't find quickly things that matched with my inklings. I can understand why you cut the reference to brutalism though, because the foundations or inspirations might need a separate investigation/discussion. It is an honour to have this conversation with you, so thank you for replying!
@@susan5431 The PS5 most closely relates to neo-futurism, which was an architectural movement that happened in the early/mid 2010s. It sort of riffed on futurism, as the name implies. Anyway, pretty much everything is a reference to the past, whether intentional or not. We are subconsciously influenced by everything we see. Also, I appreciate the kind words, but I like to make myself as accessible and approachable as possible, so don't be surprised if you get a response ;)
great video as always John! I think the best point was around the idea that if you are at the top its way riskier to make a bold design.
Very true. But even the big companies have to innovate eventually. It's just that it becomes harder and harder as the organization grows. Larger corporate structures often get too large to adapt.
yes, there you have the actual situation with the huge grill, rear and front lights from BMW.
They have been pretty consistent in their design, but now that they're trying to shift to a new era, is has been really polarizing among designers and car enthusiasts
@@alexflores4458 Actually, Nick and I were talking about this the other day and he mentioned the new BMW 4 series. Great observation.
Exactly the hardest part for a designer to bring new out of the same design lanuage !
@@Design.Theory BMW comes to mind
I love the way you've analyzed the new design trends. It makes so much sense given the way our society is evolving. It's not my favorite kind of design style but it definitely fits into that thumbnail shopping style you were talking about. Great video! thanks!
Thanks for checking it out :)
As a watch enthusiast I appreciate subtle details of watches and some super detailed stuff too, if you take time to look at a good watch you will find out things that you have never seen when you look at it super fast but if take the time you will appreciate it’s design
Agreed. Watches are as detailed as the most beautiful piece of jewelry.
New normal, online shopping, smart phone screen size and everyday it gets harder to take someone elses attention. I really like how you have a holistic approach to things, from Tesla's cybertruck to populist poluticians.
Thank you Ekim! I do my best. I'm glad you like the content. I'll keep posting more :)
@@Design.Theory Definitely will be waiting for more content from you ! :)
The moment you shrunk down that image to the size of a thumbnail I had a flashback to the film "Design" by Saul Bass in which he proposed a major update overhaul to the branding of the Bell Telephone company. You may know this film already.
Among many things, there he's done the exercise of shrinking down Bell's old logo until it was almost unrecognizable, and also explores in several ways the topic of how to be detected and recognized with only minimal exposure, such as seeing an ad while rapidly flipping a magazine or seeing a van of the company drive by at an intersection. At one point he even makes a remark using the wording ''weak signals'' and ''strong signals'' when showcasing a new phone booth with a bold design to be visible from far, which felt very similar to how you talk about strong signatures in this video.
Every time I watch this film I get a very surreal feeling that the more things change, the more they stay the same. There's always something in it that feels relevant at whichever time I watch it, sometimes in ways unrelated to design. It dates from 1969 and it can be found on youtube.
Thanks for the video, your video is one of those videos that I watch and never think watching it is a waste of my time
I try not to waste anyone's time ;)
i think the fact that things are losing detail makes them look very bland
A bit on the dramatic side, and though you belabored the Scio-political aspects of the current state of the world, I agree with your assessment of the future of design branding. Stick to your design theory, it’s sound, leave the stock political clips and statements for others who actually believe their own diatribe.
Enroll in my online industrial design course, Form Fundamentals: bit.ly/335vsqO Learn visual storytelling, design language, and form. Make a killer portfolio and land your dream job: bit.ly/3EYVU3X ...or come check out the discord if you want to talk about design, get feedback on your portfolio, or request the next video topic! discord.gg/hFw55nh
this is amazing da
This feels like a video from a 300k+ subs channel, well done!
300k subs? Maybe someday :)
Please dont stop making these videos!!
Don't worry, more are coming!
Great video! There are at least 4 main trends in your video: the Iphone is nothing more than a frame containing the screen, it's Still Dieter Rams, the definitive elimination of decoration. The Yeezy shoes are just a way to create a viral trend, it's designed to be shared online. The PS5 is a portal gun (pre 2008). Finally, the colors and smooth surfaces you find on Pinterest are, like you said, a product of an algorithm. I don't see a common trend between these trends.
The thread uniting them is an attempt to shock you. The iPhone and Pinterest trends are not related to this
Great video with clear incites and communication ! All the points raised also explain and feed into the DFI (design for Instagram) trends being seen in the ID Instagram community. Going to take this all forward into my own development
Yeah I didn't even think of the IG community. Kinda funny how it's starting to make its way into the professional world.
Cant agree more! Thanks for pushing out amazing videos.
Thanks for watching them! More coming soon :)
To design tiny thumbnail is something I have recognized. There is a quite successful electronic reader platform from major player. Readers even today have only grey tones, as it is tuned to text (black on white or white on black). But book covers aka icons are shown as grey tone thumbnail, which can be quite small. My take is not many publishing houses really understand this dynamic and still design book for physical object view. Designs are almost always quite busy and not even provide minimum of required information in thumbnail format. And best designed covers are good in thumbnail and phenomenal in full size and colour.
yes, just like a logo!
Wow love this John! You've definitely given us some food for thought.
Thanks for checking it out Shubhi :)
Subbed, been looking for channels like these for a while.
Welcome aboard!
“I forsee a marked deterioration in American music and a host of other injuries to music in its artistic manifestations, by virtue-or rather by vice-of the multiplication of the various music-reproducing machines”
-John Philip Sousa
literally amazing. was expecting a piece of info but rather I got a flood of insights. Thank you so much!
Glad you enjoyed it!
This is why I like Draplins philosophy. A lot of this stuff was figured out over 100 years ago. It just takes good execution and creative synthesis.
Thank you fo the grate video.and I see here you talk about on "Strong visual signature" and I really agree with you.
You're making a great point here! We seem to be de-prioritizing the nuances that make a good product and there's definitely a hierarchy of attributes at play.
1) The first impression made in a few milliseconds- The silhouette. the key motifs and design gestures- What we first see in those thumbnails.
2) The understanding of detailing, split-lines, finishes, heft and quality of materials.
3) Device interaction and how it actually works for you- Ux, ergonomics etc.
(Please don't those Adidas shoes be the last remnants of humanity bobbing around the North Pacific Gyre long after we've gone...)
I agree. Great points. Thanks for the comment, Nick. Very insightful!
eCommerce Context Appeal + Sustainability + Branding Trust Factor
I love this channel! Awesome!
Glad to hear it!
Yes. I think this will likely happen, with one big reason being the need to compete on a global level as opposed to the once local. And I find that whenever individuals or organizations have to compete for attention based on visual appeal, especially when it means potentially reaching millions if not billions of people, the tendency is to gravitate towards the "appeal to extremes" strategy, and we can kind of see that in the fashion industry as well as social media. This trend too will likely change back to the "attention to detail" strategy the moment becoming extreme/striking becomes the norm. The novelty is gone. So the best way to attract attention will be to do the opposite, which when it does, may even be perceived as groundbreaking.
Your videos are excellent. Great writing and. narration!
Glad you like them!
Lovely video. Great compilation of material here. Have a question on one detail - At 2:16 you do say criteria for good design is changing. I definitely agree with that. design is about context of surrounding and the environment and times it's designed for. But in the matter you are pointing to I feel you could be talking about good commercial designs. when one discusses about thumbnails and click rate it's not talking about usability, impact on the environment, circular thinking etc. Again that's where good design is not an easy summary. Having said that I do agree that designing for marketing or capturing attention is a demand of the times we live in. Probably always and will always be. Thanks for the video once more!
Very thoughtful question here. You are 100% correct. The recognizability of a design is only one aspect of a much larger picture. There's a large list of things that make a design good or bad. It's highly dependent on context. However, sales numbers are going to determine the success of a product from the perspective of a business. If no one knows your product exist, or it gets overlooked, no one will buy it. I can't think of any companies who don't want to sell their product. I'm not saying that this is right. But it's the reality of our current system.
subscribed from the video u said to watch his video from
enjoying the content my guy thank you for creating this xD
Another reason I think this black on white thing could flourish is because it shouts minimalism. I mean, with just two colours, you get a lot of visual activity and emotion on the product itself, while the whole thing stays camouflaged in its surroundings, unobtrusive.
Interesting perspective, I think you're probably right
how the product looks on a thumbnail... an interesting point. i have been designing icons using a similar concept which i learnt from Roman Mars' TED talk on flag design (if you haven't seen it i'd highly recommend). the principle is similar ---> flag design should be simple and to be drawn small on paper because you tend to see a flag from a distance, so the iconography needs to be simple and distinctive. by that logic, product design should also slowly follow this style, as you have suggested!
Thank you for telling me about this talk!!! I'll check it out
Apple really nailed this with their iPhone design up to the iPhone 8. The front with the single Home button is so distinct that even in tiny icons it's immediately visible at a glance. I think everything from the iPhone X onwards looked far more boring and just like any modern smartphone hunting for thin bezels.
That XBOX just looks like someone opened a Dieter Rams catalogue and implemented his design philosophy in full.
Hey thanks for this great content. You did a quick tip video on Johntrast, I'd love to see you discuss it more. Contrast, I meant contrast.
Yeah I'll try to do something more in depth on johntrast soon :)
@@Design.Theory sorry if you’ve answered this many times, I googled for info, but I can figure out how you are able to use key shot on the iPad?
@@Nickporter17 You can't. But you can use the iPad as a second monitor and run keyshot on it that way (through a computer)
@@Design.Theory thank you, seriously appreciate it!
Thank you for this video.
Glad it was helpful!
Great contents that you are making. Thank you for sharing these kind of brain food I am really appreciating your work. It can be a silly question but what do you mean by radicalisation of design? Can u elaborate? Thanks^^
My pleasure! Basically, you need to express more and more radical/weird/strange/eye-catching designs in order to command customer's attention.
It is the shape that solves needs
Another aspect is this trend of low-polygon renders of 3D scenes. Modern software can render extremely realistic lighting and shadows, which leads to even simple 3D scenes to look interesting, in the same way such simple product designs pop out in pictures.
very true. beautiful renderings can make mediocre designs look amazing
Wow this is amazing broer...I love this
Thank you!!!
@@Design.Theory all the way from South Africa 🇿🇦🇿🇦
I learned a lot from your video！The viewpoint is excellent. Can I translate the video lines into Chinese text and share it to my friends？ I will attach the original author and the original link. Thank you and wait for your reply！
Of course! As long as you give proper credit :) Thank you for sharing with your friends. I appreciate that very much.
@@Design.Theory Thank you！my friends were enlightened a lot, especially about the visual signature and high contrast
Great video John
Thanks for checking it out!
great video！It would be even better if there were automatic subtitles... :)
yeah
Crazy how almost 2 years later we see that yeezy foam runners are very popular
While I certainly understand a lot of the reasons behind the modern trends in design (much thanks to your videos in particular, and many other people's analyses), and even accept that they're necessary for the overall situation where our attention span is getting consumed more and more and more by everything going on around us... It still sucks being the outlier in this situation.
While I am not well versed in industrial design, I have been studying graphics design in an amateur capacity for some time, and, well... I've noticed that a lot of claimed trends seem to have exactly the reverse effect on my when compared to what effect they are supposed to produce. As a very simple example: logos. When it comes to their design, it is quite often said that clear silhouettes and minimalist shapes are better for recognition and remembrance of designs... but for me, personally, the result seems quite the opposite. Most modern, simple logos graze through my memory without leaving much of a touch, to the point that they don't even linger in my eyesight, while something that is detailed always gets noticed and accentuated upon, even when it's a small icon at the top of my screen that I cannot quite discern all the detail of. And, besides that, I also just plain prefer more detailed designs for logos in particular, and for things in general.
I perfectly recognize the fact that the modern trends in design have their merit. But it certainly does suck to be the apparent outlier who falls squarely outside of the bounds of the considerations of those design considerations.
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. It's the same thing with trends. Trends become stale when they become overused. The hyper-simple logo trend is definitely one that people are starting to get sick of. There are practical reasons for that trend, though.
The OLED Switch is black & white too.
Great Video! Thanks
Thanks Daniel :)
Those shoes are the new crocs
Great Video!
Thanks for the visit!!
Isn’t yellow and black the best contrasting colors?
Yes, true. I meant that black and white is the biggest contrast that you can have in terms of value, but not color.
Black on white, although gaining popularity again, is an extremely outdated way to imply futurism. Just look back at old sci fi movies, sports cars, music instruments with a modern for the time design and basic electronics. 2001 ASO and Star Wars in really old movies, old Honda Type R models and other cars in the 80s and 90s, Metal EXP and V guitars in the 90s, interior design and even architecture. The list goes on and on...
Just fascinating how designers always come to this fundamental high contrast scheme.
you should probably eq your mic a bit. there are some muddying frequencies that mask the sound in the low mids. + a small 1-2dB boost around 6k or so would prob be great and make it sound from good to better. cheers.
Thanks. Are you saying to cut the low mids a little bit? What frequency are you thinking? Like 150-400 hz? It might just be the room I'm recording in or my distance from the mic. I'll try a boost at 6k too. I've really struggled to get a good tone. Another thing that's hard to get used to is just hearing the sound of your own voice.
You would have to experiment a bit and see what works. Try a highpass filter at 100hz or so combined with a parametric filter around fundamental freq of your voice (you would have to listen to it). It might be a result of mic proximity effect also, in which you might sound better if you back up a tiny amount from the mic. Depending on your room, because backing off also means more room to voice ratio. Getting it right before eq is best, but if thats not possible (acoustic treatment, mic placement, angle/distance, etc), dont be a pussy with eq is all I can say ;) Good luck!
@@joinushugabear5847 "Don't be a pussy with EQ". Words to live by ;) Thanks for the advice. I'll give it a shot. As a musician, I'm pretty sensitive to these sorts of things. But I'm a total amateur when it comes to recordings. So basically, I know that it doesn't sound right, but I don't know how to fix it. Once again, thanks for the help.
Np. I used to be a live audio engineer for many years before I hurt my ears in a workplace accident. Now I study design at HDK in sweden, which is why I found your channel, scouring the internet for design related information.
nature is rich, lush. agressive and competitive yet balanced, harsh but there's a place for everyone, it's been doing it for billions of years.
this monotonic high contrast is tyranny, no place in the middle or for middle and small ones, only big players.
I have a question on a different subject. What starting salary can I ask for as an industrial designer with a master's degree? Key data about the company. 65 employees, 18 million sales / year. Next week is my salary negotiation and the salary range that can be found on google is gigantic. I am from Germany btw.
I don't know where else to ask so I'll try my luck
Salaries are very local. So figure out what other ID'ers are getting paid in Germany. LinkedIn and Glassdoor has decent salary databases, although for San Francisco the salaries seem low on both of those databases.
It also is important to know your level of experience.
Oh yea, everyone locked in their houses for 8 months will still go shopping on their 5" hones instead of computers
Exactly!
great video!
Thanks for checkin it out nacho :D
hey do u have podcast ?
No but I've been thinking of doing one.
@@Design.Theory ya plz do you talk sense .. and feels visuals are just there for filling space, at least someone who is from design bkg will not ned this stills hots videos they can understand on audion only
amazing video! ganaste un suscriptor :)
Thank you for checking it out, Daniel!!
Regarding "There is no reason to Innovate if you are already at the top" - Remember Internet Explorer 6?
lol
damn you predicted the rise of yeezy foam runner
Our games became hig-poly while reality became low-poly.
lol
Maybe we will get an art deco 2.0, id certainly not mind simplicity 2020 with oriental motives.
I love this kind of thinking. I left you a much more lengthy response in your other comment
hah... giving the iPhone as an example of sticking to a "complex" style of the past is a little funny... they were so ahead of the simple, high-contrast, trend.
Ironically subtle could become stand out if "stand out" becomes standard.
Microsoft designers got the drawings mixed up, new xbox was supposed to be a speaker
Subbed! I actually want a cybertruck iphone...
Singular:criterion
Plural: criteria
3:40 They look like deep fries Crock's if you ask me 🤔
I wonder if the death of detail and bigger focus on structure and contrast aids the loss of color in design. I recently read up on chromophobia, and how the world is losing its color.
Detail will be back bigtime next year
Said but true
Thanks for checking out the video, Kunal :)
Hey guys a newbie here , @Design_Theory amazing video as always . Though guys is there any forum , groups or people who just love to talk about deisgn everyday :) , I dunno anything abt so can someone guide me through ?
yeah, check out the discord chat channel. There are about 140 designers in there right now. discord.gg/hFw55nh
shit even the new oled switch is black and white dawg
Those shoes look like uglier versions of crocs which I didn’t know could be a thing, the windows phone while I hate windows I absolutely love the shape and size of that device when it’s folded but not so much unfolded which I think is just because B6 is my favorite notebook/paper size. Between the Xbox and PlayStation I am glad my PlayStation is the one that gives spaceship vibes. I hope not to many things just go straight black and white because that will get very boring/old/ugly very quickly imo.
Due to minimalism direction
The X-box seems heavily inspired by the Braun Radio, there's NOWAY MS can come up with a great/iconic design like that on their own!
Why do you think they couldn't, because it's Microsoft? That's a dumb argument. Microsoft created some great designs in the past. And the Series S needs a giant internal fan to cool down the hardware efficiently in such a cramped space, so it's not far fetched to make that a defining design element instead of pointlessly trying to hide it.
They look like CROCS!
The details are for desing, but, the world moves by economy, most chepper means more popular, even if you not like that
Actually, cybertruck it's a particular death of transmateriality. What's this ? Transmateriality - design methodology, when one material looks like another, e.g soft metal or metallic fabric.
Elegance has a beauty of it's own. Do we observe the gradient of a sunset, and proclaim "it lacks details." Bauhaus was "the death of detail" decades ago... Perhaps your school of design has a particular philosophy that occludes your perspective?
These are all interesting points. I think there's a fine line between heavy-handed simplicity and elegant minimalism, however.
@@Design.Theory Some iPhones are elegant... yet the content spewing from its screen rarely is. Perhaps this lean towards "simplicity" is due to the increasing digital chaos? Your thumbnail is indicative of the lengths advertisers go to catch attention- DEATH is a prominent word in your title. The Cybertruck is a polarizing design for which many would like a critique to justify their animus.
You are successful in identifying the value of thumbnail advertising. The true death of detail may be in the death of discretion (people don't examine products in person, only through photoshopped renderings or staged photography).
I enjoyed your video and appreciate your communication in "the comments." I hear that bodes well for youtube payouts. It does even more to change the perspectives of those you engage.
I thank you, be well on this holiday (American independence day).
@@10-AMPM-01 yup, I leverage the algorithms in the thumbnails whenever possible. You are right about the death of discretion. That actually gets at the root cause of the death of detail. Because of customer discretion (or lack thereof) designers are incentivized to make a loud, bold statement, often at the expense of nuance and finesse. We're all guilty of it... Or at least I have been in the past. I hope that someday soon we can find our way out of this trend
@@Design.Theory I don´t think that what you call "minimalism" is really "minimalism". If you are talking about simplicity, just call it that way. Minimalism [and it is not only you, it is an error that very many do] is a plastic movement that values repetition. Sol Lewitt was a very well known minimalist, and I guess we will consider it pop nowadays.
6:53 crewmate
The Adidas shoe…not so good in the rain.
Great video! If you were to choose between xbox and ps5 solely based on design which one would you buy?
No strong reason but i think i would go with ps5 xbox design looks lazy
So most of my designer friends prefer the Xbox. I understand why. I would say it is probably a more balanced and well-proportioned design. I still prefer the PS5, personally. I just think it's more interesting.
contrast
Hi, what I think is that there is a subject that is not really "design politically correct", and that is what we have been told about what design is. Design is not details, and beauty is certainly not detail either. It has been the profession rethoric for too long, to be honest. This detail obsession, which is shared with automotive design and some architectural aesthetic currents, needs to stop at some point. First of all, because it is very old, almost 90 years [the infamous "god is in the details", but I´d like to add: evil is in the concept. And evil is usually funnier and more interesting]. This obsession even to try to find a detail, that frankly is just there for the pleasure of macro lens obsessives, is not that relevant: was called "craftmanship" before.
I wonder if people in like 20 or 30 years be like, lmao look at those garish desings from the 20's!
They absolutely will
devil is in the details
Loving the videos, but your background audio is really distracting. It has lyrics, a ton of variability, and it just muddles your voice. Everything else is great!
I need it for the funk
@@Design.Theory hey could you even include captions though sometimes they are helpful haha .
@@anuph2826 does closed captioning not work?
You could say the same thing about ig models.
Indeed you could, Kyle. Indeed, you could.
Detail requires attention, not something for Twitter generation.
It's the age of madness and silly ridiculousness.
Unfortunately, I agree with you :(
Indonesian sub please.
I don't speak Indonesian, and there's no auto subtitle :(
@@Design.Theory it's okey man 👌
wait a minute so that's why i started to dislike pop, slowly moving to more melodic song prefereffly old ones.
Finally, thanks to Elon all this shitty cars will die and old boxes with wheels get back
The Playstation 5 is doing this right... The Xbox is what this could lead to, lmfao. That thing is hideous.
Could you please define radical design?
Yes, it's defined in the video :)
@@Design.Theory I'm sorry sir, could you please put in the time stamp. I'm not sure if I got it precisely
@@monshdoesart It's discussed throughout the entire video. Radical basically just means extreme or very different from the norm.
@@Design.Theory Thank you so much for your time sir😊 Your content is very informative
I think people will buy these products just because they look different not because they look beautiful
Unfortunately, you might be right. :(
Overly simplistic and sourceless claims. Death of melody? What are you talking about?
This commentary is off base..
Your comment on my commentary is off base
@@Design.Theory Please accept an honest opinion, I'll further my thought by writing I believe you let forces such as politics to distract you from design in human life.. please be aware of this and how it affects your work..
@@stevewill3572 Hi Steve, I only mention politics for about 5 seconds at the very beginning of the video, and never again throughout the entire video. It was mostly just to point out how radicalized our culture has become as a whole. Objects are a reflection of our culture.
@@Design.Theory okay, that is valid. We only seem radical if outlets deem it to be. You're an outlet, as long as you're aware. Good work all around.