My hot take is that making software design, that feels like art, is just really hard. So instead we just told each other that it can't be art, so we can all be happy and focus on our MVPs instead. The stuff andy.works does feels like art to me.
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People tend to like discussing the differences between art and design, and point out that art serves no function while design does. I don’t know about that, but I would rather live in a world surrounded by art than surrounded by apps and ads.
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Or maybe it's just because, when people think of "art" they think of a piece by Picasso or Salvador Dali and think it can't be that.
Yeah, everyone says they craft delightful experiences but delight tends to get lost in the process.
I think both serve a function, or neither wouldn't exist. Design is just more functional, while art is more expressive. IMO
Not always. Certain things in design live at the intersection of both. For example the lemon squeezer from Philippe Starck is not the best lemon squeezer, but it is one that I treasure and makes me happy to use.
On this subject, I like to think that Design mainly serves to solve a problem, even if this problem is simply "aesthetic", to make a more beautiful object. Since art is not intended to solve a problem, it can even say about a problem, but hardly by itself will solve a problem.
Maybe if we think of design more as adding value and less as solving problems, then artistic experiences also have their place in design.
Apps & ads? Sure, me too. But how about a place to live, street signs, furniture, etc.? Both art and design can be beautiful and functional, but art does not have to be any of those things, whereas with design, function is a requirement.
My point with the thought above was not to elevate one to the detriment of the other (Art vs. Design). My perspective is that aesthetics and artistic experiences matter, even if we are not discussing art at all.
I believe this really is the best definition + making art is defined as “producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.”
I think the problem is lack of grey area. Great design is usually masterfully mashed with art (at very least artwork). But art always serves a purpose even if it’s just to express one’s feelings. I tend to think that design serves needs of many while art serves the artist first.
Also Sagmeister has a saying: beauty as function. I feel like that tells a lot about the place of art in design.
Great points from everyone here. I’ve always thought of it this way: Artists create with the intention to communicate how THEY want to express themselves while Designers typically communicate what OTHERS want to express.
Also contributes to how each tends to describe their work. Artists are pretty gray or non-tangible with their word selection. Designers are typically black and white with their terminology. Very solution oriented.