You Can Be a Great Designer and Be Completely Unknown
Christopher Butler argues that true design excellence often goes unrecognized, emphasizing functionality over fame. He advocates for valuing the contributions of anonymous designers who meet human needs effectively.
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Christopher Butler reflects on the nature of design greatness, arguing that true excellence often goes unrecognized. He contrasts the celebrated figures of history, like Leonardo da Vinci, with the many talented designers whose contributions remain anonymous. In today's attention-driven culture, visibility is often equated with value, leading to a distorted understanding of what constitutes great design. Butler emphasizes that effective design is often invisible, seamlessly integrated into daily life, and defined by its functionality rather than the fame of its creator. He points out that many essential designs, such as intuitive tools or efficient systems, may never receive public acknowledgment. This focus on recognition can lead to designs that prioritize visibility over utility, resulting in clutter and ineffective solutions. Butler advocates for appreciating the work of unknown designers who pursue excellence for its own sake, creating impactful solutions without the need for accolades. He concludes that design greatness should be measured by the ability to meet human needs and solve problems, rather than by the designer's visibility or fame.
- Great design can exist without recognition or fame.
- The current attention economy distorts perceptions of design value.
- Effective design often becomes invisible through its functionality.
- Recognition should not be the primary goal of design work.
- True design excellence is measured by the impact on human needs.
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- Many talented individuals remain unknown due to their focus on work rather than self-promotion.
- There is a growing frustration with the elevation of mid-tier talent over true excellence.
- Historical examples illustrate that many great artists and designers were unrecognized during their time.
- Social media has created a culture where visibility often trumps merit.
- Contributors emphasize the importance of recognizing the quiet, impactful work of anonymous designers and creators.
31 commentsThe book "Do the Work" explained it well: "The amateur tweets. The pro works." People who fit into the Shell Silverstein "I'm so good I don't have to brag" bucket aren't as visible because they're working, not talking about working.
Something fairly consistent I've observed: the popular people you see tweeting and on every podcast are likely not very good at what they're popular for.
Sometimes there's overlap, but it's the exception, not the rule.
It made me realize that there's an innumerable amount of talented people out there, who are most definitely capable enough or willing to grow enough, that can produce something that makes you think that Ubisoft could have made it, because those people were always right there!
And if they weren't motivated enough to risk it all, because you're only starting from a mere idea, we would never have seen the fruits of their labor.
I'm not claiming that they're comparable with the greatest artists of our time but, the probability of someone out there becoming great will be silenced and squashed before it even has a chance to show up, either because they must conform to the job market to survive day to day, or because of office politics, or out of their own temperament avoiding risks. Especially if that risk is unemployment and homelessness.
As a fan of John Carmack, for example, I have to wonder if he would've ever hit the status he achieved if Doom wasn't this fun to play, or if he kept shipping monthly video games by mail instead. I'm not talking about whether he would be this intelligent or not, but whether he would be known.
It's a kind of tragedy of the commons. Instead of our attention being taken up by creatives who are mostly competent, it is taken up by everyone who wants to short circuit the system. (This would be even more interesting if I could find that article that suggests our taste in music is actually created by exposure.)
There used to be editors of various sorts, whether it be in writing, art, or music, who would be the arbiters of taste. You could indeed take issue with who they decided to elevate, but they definitely provided a useful function.
Who got attention? People who spent 20% of their time making and 80% self-promoting.
everyone needs to internalize this. its similar to the "Gell-Mann Amnesia effect." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gell-Mann_amnesia_effect) if someone in your domain is famous but their "quality" is weak, assume by default this is true for all other type of famous.
if I'm understanding correctly the implications of Emily Noether's work, its an absolute travesty that she isn't famous in the same breath as Einstein and Feynman. Yet this video was the first time I had even heard of her.
Where X is any vocation, skill, talent, etc…
I suspect that combinations like that, are, indeed, as rare as hen's teeth.
Many great talents probably couldn't be arsed to play the rat race game, and keep their domain humble, or they piss off other people so much, that they never get a break.
There are people who are great at something not because they do novel work, but because they redo known work that's really hard.
Not everyone has the luxury of knowing where the frontier lies and working at it. Many, many people reinvent the wheel simply because they don't know that what they're trying has already been done. And they can redo the work in a great way.
Of course they'll never get credit for this.
the last anecdote is a true story. one of the original owners of Alinea (Chicago) did just that and the guy who developed the site is quite literally set for life if he doesn't do anything else but also has this incredible in within the fine dining world now.
Many great artists died in complete obscurity (eg van Gogh). Some have found their fame posthumously (eg van Gogh). I'm sure many who were even more ahead of their time remain in obscurity.
The world is full of amazingly talented and hard working people. Almost all of them are not on social media.
it is a perfect example of what it does without any deference to other design languages. instead of po-mo symbolism, it really is just the sufficient metal and glass to do the thing. an essential truck is unsentimental working capital. its not a duck, its an undecorated shed.
i think the design will age very well because there's nothing to add to it.
Related
This behavior is by design
The article emphasizes that software design is driven by intentional human decisions, highlighting the impact of design choices, unintended glitches, and the ongoing human influence in AI development.
From Plato to Pixels
The article discusses how Plato's philosophy of ideal forms can enhance modern product design by promoting timeless aesthetics and functional efficiency, encouraging designers to create meaningful user experiences beyond current trends.
What enabled us to create AI is the thing it has the power to erase
Christopher Butler discusses AI's impact on design, highlighting its speed but lack of depth. He advocates for preserving the creative process and using AI to enhance exploration rather than compress it.
Beautiful, boring, and without soul
The article emphasizes the importance of emotional design in creating meaningful spaces and products, advocating for intentionality to foster connections and enhance human experiences beyond mere functionality.
Great software design looks underwhelming
Great software design emphasizes simplicity and risk elimination, focusing on effective strategies like centralizing state and using robust systems to enhance reliability and maintainability while avoiding unnecessary complexity.