How to distinguish bad design from good design

This article collects observations about bad and good design. They apply to everything from logos and websites to urban elements. We tell you how to evaluate someone else's design and what to think about before creating your own.

Theory

There is a saying that good design is beautiful design. Sounds logical, but it's a little more complicated.

Beauty is a relative concept. In 1785, such a dress was considered beautiful:

And in 2022 - this:

If we imagine that a fashion designer flew to people from the 18th century in a time machine and showed a dress from 2022, no one would like the design of this dress. For the 18th century, this thing is too strange, there is nowhere to put it on, it looks out of place at all events. Because of this, no one would simply see her beauty.

Good design is practical, not aesthetic. It has three characteristics:

• context;

• contrast;

• content.

Context

Without context, it is impossible to understand whether a design is good or bad, whether it works or not. But what is context? Let's explain with an example.

This is a poster for the movie One More Year. Is he cool or creepy? Without additional input it is difficult to say picture and picture.

And now we tell the details.

One More Year is a Russian film that was released on December 4 and was shown before the New Year and during the holidays. New Year's Eve films are a separate genre that has its own audience. People go to such films for emotions, a sense of wonder and celebration. The task of the designer is to show that the film creates a New Year's mood, so the poster has a garland and lights.

Next to the garland (and right above the girl's chest) is the 16+ mark. It also performs an important function. Part of the audience of cinemas are people who came on a date. They are interested in relationships, they go to the cinema, among other things, to hold hands and hug. With the help of the 16+ sign, the designer communicates that there are erotic scenes in the film and hooks the viewers who are looking for it.

At the same time, the poster looks innocent enough, because "One More Year" is a remake of the Soviet film "Do not part with your loved ones." The distributor assumed that older people would be interested in the melodrama, and did not want them to think that this was a vulgar youth comedy. Therefore, calligraphy refers to the fonts that were used in Soviet film posters.

And the last. The film poster was developed for a chamber Russian film. Advertising of such films is not placed on huge billboards in the city center. Cinema owners and managers print their own posters on A2 or A4 media and hang them where they see fit. In December, there is little light in cinemas. If you make the poster dark, it will not be visible. Because of this, the designer chose light colors: they will definitely be noticed.

All of the above is the context through which the understanding comes, whether the design works or not. A poster doesn't just look pretty to someone. It performs applied functions: it attracts three different audiences (fans of New Year's films, melodramas and Soviet cinema) and advertises the film in cinemas for those who have not decided what to watch. That's how good design works.

Practice. Before creating any design (from a website to a spaceship), it is worth considering how people will interact with the finished object. Where will they see it? Under what circumstances? In which condition? Is it often used or not? Is it dangerous if it breaks?

The more questions asked and answered, the higher the chance that the design will come out well.

Contrast

The second hallmark of effective design is contrast. Contrast refers to visibility, any difference.

For example, differences between elements within a design. So, in the screenshot of the broadcast of a racing tournament, speed is most noticeable - this is the most important and therefore the most prominent detail.

Also, the design is designed to distinguish the product from competitors. This is what the logos of most drag racing championships look like:

And this is what the logo of the Russian championship looks like:

It's easy to guess whose logo is easier to remember

Practice. When designing, do not forget about the contrast. It makes sense to think about which elements to highlight and which to tone down, and assess whether the design stands out from the competition.

Content

Content is everything that makes up the finished design.

When it comes to a fashion magazine, the content is pictures and things. If you are talking about a marketplace site, the content is photos of products, descriptions under them, buttons, search convenience, and so on.

The importance of content is often overlooked. It seems to many that it is enough to draw a beautiful logo, and what idea is embedded in it is no longer important. Or that there is a chance to make a full-fledged game on a weak engine.

In fact, just as you can't build a good house out of bad materials, you can't make good design out of bad content.

The quality of the content determines the content of the future product. Even when a fashion catalog is excellently laid out, it will be bad if it has bad photos, things and models. A PC game with a well-thought-out story and spectacular graphics is worth nothing if it doesn't load.

Practice. Before developing a design, you should prepare the content of the highest quality. The higher the quality of the content, the more opportunities.

A source: https://ironov.artlebedev.com/ru/blog/post/quality/