Is less more (in terms of design)?

Is less more (in terms of design)?

Is less more (in terms of design)? In my opinion it depends on what the designer is going for. If a designer wants their viewer to stop and figure out or interpret the designers meaning then a designer may want to lean towards the more is better motto. Designing is kinda like cooking. You have to have the right amount in order to be successful. Other wise your dish/design will be to overbearing.

If a designer wants their viewer to be informed of something then, yes I do think less is more. For example, if a designer wants the viewer to learn or be informed of something then the less distractions the better. Also in today’s society everyone is in such a hurry that if a design is to busy it may go unnoticed. Oh yea, I am sure it would get glanced at but not very many people have the time to sit and figure something out for very long.

An example from our text of someone who believes in space with in a design is, Herbert Horne found on pages 172 and 173. Figure 10-14 on page 173 shows his use of letter “…spacing and alignment…” along with his use of negative and positive space. In my opinion it and figure 10-12 are much more pleasing to look at. The others on this page are harder to figure out.

Personally I favor the “less is more” motto when it comes to design. Because when a design gets to busy it gets complicated or cluttered. And unless you are someone who wants life a little more complicated and cluttered than it already is; I would suggest the “less is more” motto to any designer. In the long run it makes the designer and the viewers life that much more calming.

So, next time you designers are cooking up your next design throw a little dash of spices/principles into your creativity. Try using some gestalt principles to minimize your design for its full potential. One book that I suggest everyone purchase is the "graphic design basics" book by Amy E. Arntson.

Misty J Slavens

Use the KISS Method!

There’s an old saying in advertising, “keep it simple stupid.” The more clutter the worse the perception. By keeping things simple, you can be more effective with less. This principle can be applied to design as well.

If you notice, in our book, there has been a general movement over the years to more simplification and less clutter. When you look at early advertising, they filled the page with lots of information. From books to catalogs, every space had to be filled. This was probably caused by the expense of paper and the relative high cost of printing. It was especially true in the early parts of the 20th century.

As time has reduced costs, we don’t feel the need to clutter things up. Our message can be given to our reader in a more organized way. One that makes the consumer feels less stress, less like things are being pushed on him. Look at Nike as an example. Much of their advertising is very simple, yet effective.

When we see an ad with lots of clutter, we say it’s busy. Many ads, whether they are print or television, are using pictures to set a mood. They don’t clutter things. They try to make them easier on the eye.

In most people’s opinion, better advertising uses a very simple approach. If you can cut something do it. If you don’t need information, don’t put it in. We realize that our minds are overloaded, so we do something about it. I think that as time goes on, this approach will be used even more.

Is less more in terms of graphic design?

Is less more in terms of graphic design? Yes, less is more. As a designer if you are able to convey your point/purpose of your design within a moments glance, you don’t need to add unnecessary elements. Once a design has been “overworked” it loses all its good design potential. To a viewer design that is less complicated and to the point is much more visually pleasing.

A believer in the theory that less is more is Frank Lloyd Wright, he saw space as the essence of design. Although Wright was more of an architect he was influenced by design through his structures. Wright's view of architecture was beautifully simple. His floor plans were very open, airy and usually flowed into one another. His houses seemed to be reaching out toward some real or imagined prairie horizon. Some of his urban structures were more structured without windows but where inlaid with skylights.

As a graphic designer I consider myself to be classified as a minimalist. I feel that less is more in all aspects of design. In conjunction with gestalt principals a designer is able to create an overall unified whole within their design. Gestalt principles include similarity, proximity, continuation, closure, and figure/ground. By using the principles of gestalt, designers are able to eliminate clutter. How all of these elements work together for an end result create perfect design. Through using all of these gestalt principles effectively you will be able to create less overworked design and more concise design.

Good design needs to be able to communicate to the viewer as clearly as possible. People enjoy design that conveys a seemingly instantaneous result. Take for instance the Macintosh logo below. If any elements were added to this design it would lose all of its good design potential. The element that the bite of the apple is the repeated shape in the leaf is a great usage of the principles of gestalt.