Creativity in Design and Development; What's your take?

Further to a discussion on Twitter between a number of MODXers on Creativity, Design, Skill or Natural Talent. What is your take on the subject? Here are a few quotes:

@JayGilmore @sepiariver @mark_hamstra problem w design is it is so subjective...there are rules but it’s situational

@JayGilmore @sepiariver @redtoadmedia @mark_hamstra Designers can be trained but the best are naturals. That’s true of developers too.

@bridgecourt @JayGilmore @sepiariver @redtoadmedia I think with some logical thinking dev is easier to learn. Creativity is harder to learn

@redtoadmedia @jaygilmore @mark_hamstra Agree. It’s perseverance with ANY endeavor, offline, online, creative, business...

Share your ideas below.

Here is a great site for design inspiration. I use it all the time.

http://vandelaydesign.com/blog/design-inspiration/

Themeforest is excellent too.

Crawford

What about TUTS+, Lynda.com?

I would love to find more resources on working up my design skills - (I have NONE)

And Creativity I think there is more to it than development, because with Design - you have to know your colors, the way you are doing layouts, and etc. As for development, it is pretty much logical - if they pick this then do this, or if they want this then do this. I am better doing back-end stuff than I am front end - but would LOVE to learn how to do the front end stuff. Actually with my current job I’s supposed to do front end stuff. and I have done a little bit here and there but I am NEVER satisfied and I never think it looks good. Because I look at the others and they look smoking good and mine just looks like well umm.. CRAP! LOL!

Design is not really subjective. Design is not art.

See below some quotes i’ve picked somewhere:

Good art sends a different message to everyone. Good design sends the same message to everyone.

Good art is interpreted. Good design is understood.

Good art is talent. Good design is interpreted.

And the last one which is subject to interpretation*:

Good art is a taste. Good design is an opinion
*Interpretation because there are rules in design, that have nothing to do with creativity.

okay, yes i will blog this but it will be a few days...lol...so this is off the top of my head

the biggest thing is an IW. an investigative workbook. And to sketch/journal daily. Record stuff you see and what impacts you. Even if you think it is stupid, there is something about sketching/recording that exercises a part of your brain you don’t know you even have till you do it. Doesnt matter if it is stick figures or what. I grew up with art? raised by an artist. my daughter is an artist. but art and design are NOT the same thing. Design is about function and psychology and utility with pleasure and message much more than about personal expression. That to me is the difference. So I study art a lot and art history and take from it but I also study product design and architecture and a lot of other things.

Some of my favorite resources for design:

adobe kuler - study color

siteinspire.net

webdesignerwall.com

http://www.stuffandnonsense.co.uk/ (I read a LOT of Andy Clarke) and his buddy Elliott Jay Stocks

http://elliotjaystocks.com/

yahoo design pattern library

vladgeorgescu.com (vlad inspires the crap outta me, I met him on freelance switch and I think he is brilliant, I follow him around a lot)
designerscouch.com - don’t get to spend as much time here as I like because work too much.

video games, commercials, billboards, I am always looking at design. always.

typography is voice so typography is really the key to good design. There is a nondesigners design book here

http://www.amazon.com/Non-Designers-Design-Book-Typographic-Principles/dp/1566091594

good start.

http://www.alistapart.com/articles/on-web-typography/

timoni - google her, she is incredible


this article

http://www.inspirationbit.com/striking-web-sites-with-font-stacks-that-inspire/

I sort of drool over carsonified.com all the time and love thinkvitamin.com


lynda.com is really good. david meerman scott (google)

as far as my favorite designs of my own, a lot of them are print or not published any longer, that last site I did was good ( jnmcpa.com ), I like it a lot and one I’m working on now that is insane ... love it but it’s crazy what I’m doing, will post a link to it soon. I usually hate whatever I’ve done after I finish it. I think that is normal though. An old site I did that we’re going to revamp is imagebuildersonline.net (it is static...old html) and vidavici.com (also old) and I think both of those have been successful because we had a very specific persona/target we went for, to reach. And we were just really to the point about it. this was successful because it surprised people... one of the first sites I did? like in 2001? http://powertomove.com/pages/aboutpam.html and the image of Pam with that shadow is something she is still using, it is still working for her. does she need to upgrade? sure. but we were so honest and raw in what we -said- that it is still effective and her print pieces which use this image are well known here ...so honesty is big in design. You have to surprise people and you sort of tap into emotion. We did a direct mail campaign for a local election ...it’s on my Facebook page ( facebook.com/redtoadmedia ) and I liked it. The designs I love most are the ones that say things, verbally or not. it’s about message.

the wizard is a big influence on me... Roy Williams, wizardofads.com (get his books and memo) and then the eisenbrothers...http://www.grokdotcom.com/


as far as process, I do a lot of research and try to discover who the client is? and do a lot of competitive intelligence to find out what makes them different from others. so for jnmcpa.com ...we looked at http://www.mcmcpa.com/ and http://www.dmlo.com and then said...okay, what’s the difference between jnm and these guys? (I actually knew mcm pretty well) and then we went personal and human with it, but smart. But we needed the message first and then went for the look/feel. I’ll often go to clients houses and/or offices and look at the colors they use in their spaces.... it tells me who they are. I use them. it’s easier to do for people you don’t know. honestly.

I’m a screenshot freak.

anyhow I have a meeting and stuff to do but I wanted to give you guys some stuff to look at. since you asked.

Honestly the best book I have ever seen on design basics is Robin Williams Non-Designers Design Book

Nice round-up Anne. Thanks for sharing - I’m never disappointed by your referrals

As far as books I also liked Design Basics Index by Jim Krause when I was starting out.

I agree that Design and Art are very different things. I still believe there’s subjectivity in Design - successful Design CAN be quantified in objective terms re:function, clarity of message, even "click throughs" and "conversion funnels" - but no matter how you slice it Design encompasses aesthetics and communication. BOTH are subjective.

For example, it’s well known in criminal law circles that if several people witness the exact same event, their description of the event will still vary significantly. In fact, if everyone’s story is exactly the same they see it as a reason to suspect foul play! The point is, no matter how hard we try, human beings are incapable of true objectivity. Design, still predominately human generated and consumed, is therefore subjective in my opinion. But I’ve been wrong before

Code, on the other hand, is a machine language. I don’t really know squat about this, but the way I see it, in order for there to be subjectivity in coding, it has to be built-in, programmed for. In the fringe there may be hacks, workarounds, inspired solutions, new applications that are absolutely creative and subjective, but for the majority of us who aren’t Code Poets, we must follow the syntax of the machine language. That doesn’t mean you can’t do it with heart For example, I LOVE making snippets calls in MODX LOL

Design definitely has rules. But I think successful designs can break the rules...but you hsve to know what those rules are to break them and have it be successful and cool and not look like a mistake or cause dissonance. Designers very much have to get their egos out of the way and do what is best and most effective for the client, it is other centered. I think part of what makes a design successful is surprise. and delight. and that is sort of what makes a developer amazing and creative too, working from the heart. like you guys...modx...always pushing to see what more you can do. and how much better. to me that is creative.

I have one thing to add: the MODX development platform is singular in that it allows for subjectivity and creativity in templating. Whether you use a TV, Chunk, Template or Snippet to accomplish a certain task/function is completely up to the MODX user and allows for infinite possibilities and variations in building any website.

Really - hats off to MODX. It still blows my mind.