Category: Web design

Jim Morrison was probably the least “corporate” kind of person to ever have existed. He seemed to lack discipline, led a chaotic life, was addicted to substances and was uniquely talented. And he was the original rockstar, with no real exaggeration except for a few of his other contemporaries. Tragically, he also died very young of an overdose at the age of 27. Yet his short life can teach us life’s valuable lessons and how we can better manage our businesses. In this article, we need to take a look at some of the most unique qualities of Jim Morrison and how his qualities can help you to run your business better. 1. Jim was an attention seeker Though seeking attention is widely believed to be a negative quality but for someone who runs a business, it is not. You need to, however, attract the right kind of attention, which means your work needs to draw attention to you and not your antics. No matter how unconventional Jim was, it was his music that grabbed everyone’s attention. He knew his talent would grab attention and it did. Make use of your talents and help your talent to grab attention for your business. 2. Jim had real talent, which he used well Jim’s talent can hardly be disputed. He was one of the most talented rock musicians and his style influenced countless other musicians. He knew how to create music that appealed to the youth across social classes. His music and his poetry became a unifying force against social evils & general alienation that people faced at that time. Likewise, if you use your talents well and monetize them, you will be able to run a business successfully. If you are starting a new product or service, make sure that you have the actual talent to do so. Do not jump into certain services or products because your business rivals are doing it. 3. Jim knew how to create a cult of personality If you would like to be a serious entrepreneur, you need to build an image for yourself. The more you meet your clients and the more you network, it becomes increasingly important to have a consistent business image. Jim was successful in building a cult of personality for himself. All his antics were forgiven because he had a strong fan base. If you can manage to build a personality, which is even a fraction of what Jim’s was, you can be quite sure that you will be a charming networker and business leader. 4. Jim Morrison was original and authentic In spite of all his antics, Jim was truly authentic. His originality and uniqueness made him popular even among his critics. Likewise, if you want to build a business that is successful, you need to be authentic and original. Do not copy others and do not try to stay away from your original personality. Strengthen your existing talents and build from there. The more you are authentic about your products and services, the more people will begin to trust you. Jim knew that very well. 5. Jim Morrison cared about his surroundings It is often said that Jim was so kind-hearted that people thought he was almost saint-like. Of course, he had his vices and his weaknesses. Yet he took a great interest in the world he lived in and his immediate surroundings. That made him a very likeable person. If you wish to be successful, pay attention to your immediate surroundings. That is part of corporate social responsibility and the more you do it, the more respected you will be. Learning from musicians It might sound strange that rock musicians have much to teach corporate professionals. In reality, we can learn something from everyone, no matter how different their lives or professions are from our own. Jim Morrison led a very short life but in that very short period, he taught us how to use our talents, build a loyal fan following and spread ideas. That is what a good marketer needs to know and learn; and if you run a business yourself, it is all the more important to follow Jim’s qualities we have described above.

Design professionals need to constantly innovate and strive for perfection. Innovation or perfectionism isn’t enough for a good design. It requires a burst of creativity and an appreciation for what is considered aesthetic. However, developing a sense of aesthetics cannot be taught in schools or training programs. It is something that a person cultivates over a period of time. Developing a sense of aesthetics not only helps one to appreciate beauty around us but also create beauty as well. Designers know very well that their work will only be appreciated when they create beautiful products or services. We recently came across a paper written by Neera Parekh at the Gnostic Centre, New Delhi. It specifically describes what an aesthetic sense is and elaborates on the specific skills that are required to develop a sense of aesthetics. What impressed us about the paper is, it takes examples from real life situations and explains how we can use those situations to develop a keen sense of aesthetics. On that note, we shall list a few pointers that should help you to develop a sense of aesthetics and improve your design ideas as well. 1. Look for beauty around you Though we live in crowded and polluted cities where the green cover has drastically reduced, there is still beauty all around us. Look for those charming old buildings or find beauty in the perfection of a bird’s feathers and plumage. This perfection and natural beauty need to inspire you to create ideas that are lasting & aesthetically pleasing. Find inspiration in all things that you see and apply that beauty to your own design products. 2. Appreciate all forms of art What human beings create can be just as beautiful as nature. Music, painting, literature, films etc. can all teach you about aesthetics. Art forms always teach their connoisseurs how to appreciate beauty and how to develop a sense of aesthetics. Slowly over a period of time, you begin to develop a more refined sense of what is beautiful and what is not. That will help you to create products and designs that are aesthetically pleasing. 3. Look for beauty in yourself and others Qualities like kindness, generosity, affection and nurturing are all forms of beauty. They might not be tangible but can certainly be perceived. These forms of beauty will help you to become a better person and that is required to create things that are beautiful. Appreciate all the good qualities that you have and that others posses. Translate those qualities in great design ideas. For instance, appreciate the simplicity of your friend; and apply that simplicity to your website. Simplicity and minimalism are some of the most important qualities of a well-designed website. 4. Reject what is unpleasant or unnecessary including shallow appreciation of beauty In the paper that we previously mentioned, Neera Parekh asks us to reject vulgarity where we find it. We couldn’t possibly agree more. When Steve jobs created the iPhone, he probably rejected everything that was not required on a phone. All those features which added to a device’s crassness were removed. Similarly, learn to reject what is not required. Beauty naturally forms because of the lack of unnecessary features. At this point, we need to also state that what is beautiful is not necessarily beauty. A person who looks great need not be a great person. Learn to discriminate between shallow appreciation of beauty and inherent beauty. Hollow appreciation of external beauty is vulgar; and that is not aesthetics at all. 5. Learn from all things beautiful When you notice beautiful things and appreciate beauty in nature, you will observe that we are hard-wired to appreciate things that are perfect. Perfection can be described as a cognitive schema that makes us more attentive to geometrically uniform patterns. Such geometrically uniform patterns can be found all over the natural world. An example would be a snowflake. A flake of snow contains geometrical patterns that humanly can’t be reproduced. If you want to create a design that is beautiful, make sure that it is microscopically patterned and perfect. Develop an aesthetic sense slowly but surely Learn to appreciate beauty around you but do not fall into the traps of noticing only external beauty. Beauty needs to be matched with perfection, whether perfection of design or perfection of human character; and in fact, it is the perfection of design or of human character that creates beauty. Painting random colors on a canvas will not make it a beautiful painting. The creative thought and the intention behind a painting and the context make it beautiful. With that in mind, developing a sense of aesthetics does not happen overnight. It is a cultivated quality, which helps to create great design as well.

Vincent Van Gogh is probably one of the most famous post-impressionists in the world. Though he died almost 125 years ago, his work continues to inspire people till date. His life was full of difficulties but his art persists and the way he led his life, probably, shaped his style of art as well. Van Gogh was known for paintings that were rough in their beauty, bold and emotionally honest. His art had a far reaching influence on the 20th Century art and surprisingly, on design as well. When we talk about design, we cannot be very distant from web designing. The way he used colors, light techniques and the way he created images on the canvas can all be sources of inspiration for modern web designers. Moreover, his life itself has a lot to teach us and inspire. Though he led a very difficult and tragically short life, his style of working continues to inspire and challenge us when we encounter difficulties ourselves. Van Gogh was an enigma who produced more than 2,100 artworks. He painted self-portraits, landscapes, portraits and a whole lot of other things that are closely related to the school of impressionism. In this article, let us take a look at what his work and life can teach us about design and web design in particular. Choice of colors and light Van Gogh was a proponent of impressionism. Impressionism was a school of art that questioned the need for specific lines and outlines in paintings. The paintings were not mere replicas of what were seen but, instead, used color and light to create “movements” within paintings. Thus, the slightly distorted images within a painting came to represent how our identities are continuous and that they overlap with other people’s or our environment’s outlines as well. Impressionism was not very popular in the late 19th Century and received considerable criticism. However, towards the end of Van Gogh’s life, his style became very popular. Web designers can pay attention to how lights and colors can create a sort of movement within images. With the help of modern software programs, we can easily create logos and websites that are a reflection of impression. If not blatantly impressionist, we can at least create logos and websites that are inspired by impressionism. Facing challenges in life Van Gogh’s life was not easy. He suffered from a number of physical and psychological issues. He even cut off a part of his ear and gave it away to a streetwalker; and in the midst of all these challenging and troublesome issues, he persisted and created some of the most magnificent pieces of artwork ever created. He took his difficulties as a challenge and continued to create works of art that were unparalleled. If you are a web designer and are looking to create something phenomenal, you can choose to read about Van Gogh and his life. His life will surely inspire anybody who is into design and art. Thinking out of the box Van Gogh was not someone who stuck to traditional ideas. He was as unconventional as artists can possibly get. This nature of thinking out of the box helped him to create paintings that were met with stiff criticism initially but later on, were recognized as masterpieces. If you are a web designer and create something challenging, expect to be criticized. However, if you really have talent, you will sooner or later be appreciated for your uniqueness and unconventionality. Unconventionality and uniqueness are always important while creating design, whether virtual or real. If you create logos or websites, you will know how important it is to create designs that are unique. Learning from other’s life stories The example of Van Gogh needs to be taken as a lesson to learn from the life stories of stalwarts. Famous artists and designers always had challenging life issues and they persisted with their talent. If you want to make your mark and leave a legacy behind, you need to be as inspired as they used to be. Take all your problems as challenges and create phenomenal designs that will last for a long time. That needs to be the lesson to learn from Van Gogh’s life history.

If you are a web designer, you must have already looked up for a lot of resources online. Sometimes, there is nothing better than a physical copy of a book. Thus, it is important to get hold of some books which will help you to sit in peace and read. These books that we have listed below are great resources for web designers who are looking for go-to-resources to help them build great websites. Web designing as a profession is an amalgamation of technology, design and art. Thus, the books listed below explore all the 3 domains and will also help you to get acquainted with emerging technologies. If you are unable to purchase all the books at once, you could request a few of your colleagues to buy some books as well, and share the burden of cost. 1. The Best American Infographics 2013­­ The Best American Infographics 2013 by Gareth Cook is a great book that tells its readers what infographics are, and why one must be specializing in them. Web designers often discount the importance of infographics in today’s world and the results can be dismal. The fact that the human brain processes more visual stimuli than textual content is reason enough for web designers to concentrate on infographics. The Best American Infographics 2013 lists a number of great infographics and provides thoughtful explanations for each of them. This book is a great resource for any web designer who is looking for some inspiration. Click here to purchase The Best American Infographics 2013 by Gareth Cook. 2. The Principles of Beautiful Web Design Whether you want to understand the process of good design or you want to discover what great websites are made of, The Principles of Beautiful Web Design by Jason Beaird is a great book that will help you to understand your profession better. It helps you to understand how you can use color effectively and develop color schemes. It also teaches you how to create pleasing layouts and employ textures in websites. It gives you information about grid-based design and how you could design better for mobile resolutions. This is one book that you would want to carry everywhere you go. Click here to purchase The Principles of Beautiful Web Design by Jason Beaird 3. Designing Interfaces Designing Interfaces by Jenifer Tidwell is a useful book that you could even read before going to bed. Most web designers know that there are a number of UI toolkits available today. Yet, it is not easy to design great interfaces and people end up designing shoddy websites that do not attract a number of visitors. This bestselling book is a great resource for those who are attempting to learn more about design options. It teaches you how to design engaging and useful interfaces without compromising on anything. It also goes deep into design concepts that are easily misunderstood. All in all, this is a great book that is a must-read for all web designers. Click here to purchase Designing Interfaces by Jenifer Tidwell 4. CSS Mastery: Advanced Web Standards Solutions CSS Mastery: Advanced Web Standards Solutions by Simon Collison, Andy Budd and Cameron Moll is a great book that teaches web designers how to use CSS. It is meant for advanced learners who already know what they are doing. Yet, it can be used by novices who are trying to learn and grasp the concepts of CSS. CSS is one of the most important technologies of today in order to design websites. Whoever is serious about designing websites will need to know at least a little bit about CSS. With that in mind, this book helps those who are looking for information on CSS. Click here to purchase CSS Mastery: Advanced Web Standards Solutions by Simon Collison, Andy Budd and Cameron 5. Learning Web Design: A Beginner’s Guide to HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Web Graphics Learning Web Design: A Beginner’s Guide to HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Web Graphics by Jennifer Niederst Robbins is titled rather lengthily. However, this is a great book for designers who are looking at learning all the technologies predominantly required of web designers to succeed in their fields. It teaches how to use HTML, CSS and Web Graphics in order to build formidable websites. It also teaches readers how to use web graphics to create attractive websites. This book is meant for beginners but is a good resource for advanced professionals as well. Click here to purchase Learning Web Design: A Beginner’s Guide to HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Web Graphics by Jennifer Niederst Robbins 6. Responsive Web Design (Brief Books for People Who Make Websites, No. 4) Responsive Web Design (Brief Books for People Who Make Websites, No. 4) by Ethan Marcotte is designed for those who are still wondering what responsive web design is. It teaches beginners and advanced web designers about CSS techniques and design principles. It is a great book to learn more about fluid grids, flexible images and media queries. Whether you like it or not, responsive web design is here to stay and is one of the most important methods to build websites. This book will only help you to do that better. Click here to purchase Responsive Web Design (Brief Books for People Who Make Websites, No. 4) by Ethan Marcotte 7. CSS3 for Web Designer CSS3 for Web Designer by Dan Cederholm is specifically designed for those who want to specialize in CSS. CSS, as we all know, is an important part of web designing. The fact that CSS is more important in responsive websites makes it an important technique to learn. It teaches you how to use CSS and what to do when browsers do not support CSS. This book clearly explains CSS3 code and makes designing websites a fun activity. By reading this book, you can rest assured that your website will always look great and function great as well. Click here to purchase CSS3 for Web Designer by Dan Cederholm 8.

Cubism, as we all know, was an important art movement in the early 20th century. Stalwarts such as Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque and others made cubism famous and brought the avant-garde art movement to the periphery of modernism. It revolutionized European sculpture and painting and people began to view art from a completely different angle. In fact, cubism is known to be the most influential art movement in 20th century. The fact that it paved way for many more art movements helped it to be a pioneer of sorts. Cubism, as we know it, is not really popular among web designers. In fact, cubist websites are not something that you come across every day. A simple Google search will yield you nothing. All that you see is a link that reviews a fictional cubist website that is terrible to navigate. Jokes apart, in this article, we shall learn more about the philosophy behind cubism and how web designers can benefit from it. We shall also try and understand if cubism is making a comeback in the design world. For all that we know, it might become the next big thing after a similar revival of pop culture, influenced by Andy Warhol. What is the technique behind Cubism? The technique behind cubism is quite simple. Usually, in Cubist artwork, objects are first analyzed. Once they are analyzed, they are broken up and dismantled, in a metaphorical way as well. Once they are broken up, they are reassembled as well. This gives us an idea about the object from perspectives that we wouldn’t have realized, if we presented the object in its original form. The fact that we dismantle an object, only to reassemble it later on, provides us with alternative perspectives and multitude of viewpoints. This helps the viewer to understand the object in a greater context, rather than just being stuck to its original intention. We must realize that no object exists without a context. The context can differ even if the object does not. However, the same object can take on different meanings depending on the context. Cubist works explore these ideas they often help us to assess and understand art works from multitudes of viewpoints. This is one of the reasons why cubism is considered an important modernist movement. Cubist aesthetics in web designing Cubist aesthetics, total abstraction or partly abstract, can be employed in websites. Cubist backgrounds can be used especially if the client is looking for a high-end and artistic website that is focused on capturing the attention of art buffs. A totally abstract cubist background will help you to give a mysterious and ethereal feel to the website. It is not possible to simply forego the importance of basic design structure but using a cubist aesthetic can make the website standout. Whether cubist patterns are used in the logo or on the background, you will always stand out from the rest of the crowd. The fact that not many people know or understand cubism is a problematic issue. It gives a sense of exclusivity to the website you create, albeit not in a good way. While exclusivity and artistic notions help drive traffic, it may alienate you from your target audience. You may end up keeping out people from websites. However, by using cubist aesthetics, you can attract those who are really interested in the client’s products and services. Abstract cubist aesthetics are great for artists, designers, and those who are in creative fields. Cubist philosophy in web designing Cubist philosophy centers and revolves around defining and representing the modern reality. It tries to make sense of the complex and the ambiguous without being burdened by new inventions, philosophical speculation and cultural diversity. Cubist philosophy tries to put all these disparate ideas factors into collages, which results in an almost postmodern condition. If you were wondering how this is related to a website, you need not go too far ahead. We must realize that we are surrounded by a number of technologies and cultures. If we were to make sense of this complex reality, cubism offers answers and solutions. By breaking up this complex structure, we can look at our reality from a number of perspectives. Building a cubist website A website is not meant to be something that cannot be understood. There must be a homepage, a page with contact details, a blog and a few other curios that help the visitors to get the information they need. What we really mean by creating a cubist website is to incorporate not only their aesthetics, but also their philosophy of making sense of the complex by breaking it down. You can easily do this by building a corporate website that is broken into sub-structures, instead of piling all the information together. By breaking a large website into smaller pages, we make it easier for viewers to understand the content and also ensure that new perspectives are enabled. This helps us to broaden our views and create new realities with the help of a website. How this is done will be explained below. There is a lot of stigma attached to art movements especially among those who are into hardcore technological professions. Yet, these art movements have much to tell and teach us. Just because you do not understand does not mean it is unimportant Once Pablo Picasso famously remarked “The fact that for a long time Cubism has not been understood and that even today there are people who cannot see anything in it means nothing. I do not read English, an English book is a blank book to me. This does not mean that the English language does not exist. Why should I blame anyone but myself if I cannot understand what I know nothing about?” Yet, we need to build websites that can be understood. In our frenzy to create cubist websites, we may forget that a website must be accessible to everyone, no matter what their level of expertise or education

If you have caught yourself using the words Anime and manga interchangeably, you are not alone. There are a number of people who believe all comics and animated movies that are from Japan are either Manga or Anime. Nothing could be farther from that. While it is true that both the forms of art originate from Japan, the way we understand Anime and Manga is vastly different from how it is understood in Japan. What is Manga and what is Anime? We must remember that Manga is written and drawn, whereas Anime refers to animated movies and TV shows. IT is possible that manga comics are converted to Anime format and aired on the TV. Manga is usually written by one person where as Anime is produced by a number of people. Naruto and other Manga comics have been converted into Anime. These are hugely popular in the west and a lot has been discussed about why the Japanese chose Anime and Manga as unique forms of art. Indeed, comics and animated movies are popular in the U.S. as well, but in Japan, it takes a whole new precedence. In order to understand the differences between Anime and Manga, we need to understand a little bit about the history of Japan as well. The history or the evolution of Manga and Anime Japan grew us a feudal kingdom that alternated between embracing the West and shunning it. When Walt Disney began to produce cartoons based on comics, the Japanese began to get influenced by Disney comics and cartoons as well. However, Japanese Manga writers usually retained a very Japanese form of drawing and that is evident in the way the characters are created. Manga characters usually have big eyes and androgynous features, which seem to be popular among Japanese people as they signify innocence and beauty. Again, unlike in the west, Manga characters lead normal and drab lives. They go to work, school and cook at home. Yet, they hold dark secrets or powers that others do not realize. This is an indication of the Japanese city which is conformist and is tradition-bound. In order to escape the monotony of life in Japan, people look towards fantasy. That is exactly what is reflected in Manga comics. How long do Manga strips run? Manga usually runs for years together. Sometimes, famous Manga strips have run for decades and each one is written by the same person. When a Mangaka or the creator of Manga dies, his or her Manga strip comes to an end too. Anime, on the other hand, is more commercial in nature and is undertaken by the big production houses of Japan. How is Manga created? Manga is pure and is derived from Japanese artists who spend years together perfecting their art. It is usually done with the help of pen and paper but nowadays, Manga artists may use technology as well. Anime on the other hand is in the video format and is usually the result of a number of people’s efforts. Both Manga and Anime are not limited to Japan alone. In fact, a number of people believe that Anime and Manga were probably inspired by Chinese artists more than the Americans. Today, Manga and Anime are produced not only in Japan but also in China, South Korea, Taiwan and other far-eastern countries. There are a number of Anime and Manga artists in Brazil and Peru as well, which hold a large number of Japanese immigrants. The future of Anime and Manga is especially bright. What do web designers have to do with Anime and Manga? We, in the world of web designing, can adopt Anime and Manga to suit our needs while creating websites. Web designing can find inspiration from Manga aesthetics and create characters that are uniquely Manga in nature. This will strike a note with people who are into Japanese culture and art. Manga and Anime are uniquely poised to be associated with the Internet and web designing. In the years to come, we expect a lot of people to request websites that are inspired by Japanese Manga strips. If you are a web designer, you could probably start reading up some Manga comics to be prepared for the future.  

Most of use the computer for everything that we do: write, communicate, design and create. Computers have replaced the humble pen and sketch book for most designers and it is not a bad thing. Designers can now create objects and designs that are simply not possible to do so without the help and assistance of technology. All that is fair and we agree to that. Sketching is still important for designers However, sketching as a practice is still important for web designers. No matter how much we may like to disagree, the convenience of a pencil and paper and the immediacy of our own hand movements are simply irreplaceable. Of course, the mouse can do a lot more than what we possibly could do with our hands. It offers better comfort, better style and even more finesse. Yet, we are meant to use our hands, our fingers, our gestures and the way our brain has developed to coordinate our thought processes with our hand movements. With that in mind, using a pen and paper to design websites isn’t such a bad idea after all. In this article, we shall take a look at how sketching can help you to design better websites. Sketching and web designing? Sketching isn’t all about going to the art school. Every person who likes to understand how lines and spaces interact with each other to form patterns and shapes would have tried to sketch on a piece of paper. Though today’s children grow up learning how to draw using a tablet, you are probably one of those who grew up using crayons and pencils in school. That alone can help you to design better websites. The fact that we can immediately draw what is on our mind; instead of having to create a layout on PhotoShop is one of the best examples of how important sketching is to web designers. Scenario #1 You meet a client and the client tells you what kind of website he wants and what his requirements are. You immediately note down the points and go back to your office to create a layout. You know what the website must look like but you still must create a layout and then add the finer details. By the time you create the layout, you probably forgot some of the finer details that occurred to you or were discussed during the conversation. Scenario #2 In the alternative scenario, you discuss what the client wants and make points. You immediately take out a piece of paper and a pencil. You begin to draw the layout of the web page with its toolbar, menu bar and just about everything that is required to be there. It almost looks like the end product that you must deliver. Now, you can go back to your office and create that layout in peace, without worrying about how it might turn out, or what it might look like once it is created. Sketching skills can help web designers to stay in touch with their creativity Using sketching skills may seem like a foolhardy method for web designers but it is not. It is a quick and easy method to understand what the website must look like and then begin to work on PhotoShop or any other software program that you are comfortable with. As a web designer, you must also carry a sketch book to make sure that you can draw your inspirations as they occur in your mind. You cannot always open PhotoShop and other programs (even if you choose to work on a mobile device), in order to make sketch notes. Just like a poet cannot sit in front of the computer and expect for the words to flow out, you as a web designer cannot expect to create websites out of nothing. You need a sketchbook that has a number of inspirations and ideas that have all been scribbled inside. You can use them whenever you want and when you run out of inspirations, your sketches may save you more than anything else. There is a stigma attached to sketching as we knew it, all thanks to over-reliance on technology. While technology and our professions are inseparable, it is never a bad idea to carry a sketch book in which you can draw all the designs that come to your mind.