Designer Things

I used to think autism-friendly design was just about softer colors and fewer patterns. Turns out, the visual language underlying these design standards

I used to think maximalism was just about throwing more stuff at a wall until something stuck. Turns out, the maximalist movement that emerged in the 1960s

I used to think brand logos were just corporate window dressing—something dreamed up in a boardroom and slapped on a bottle. Turns out, the evolution of

I used to think detachment in photography meant coldness, but that was before I spent three months staring at Bernd and Hilla Becher’

I used to think credit cards all looked the same—that generic blue-gray rectangle with raised numbers that felt vaguely official, like a miniature passport to adult life.

I used to think space imagery was just pretty pictures scientists took between the real work. Then I spent three weeks talking to astrophotographers, digital

I used to think New Objectivity was just about cold, hard photography. Turns out, the movement that swept through Germany in the 1920s—Neue Sachlichkeit

I used to think wabi sabi was just a fancy way of saying “broken stuff looks cool.” But here’s the thing—it’s actually this whole

I used to think environmental posters were just pretty pictures with alarming statistics slapped on top. Turns out, there’s this whole underground

I used to think emoji were just silly little pictures people added to texts when they couldn’t be bothered to write actual words. Turns out, I was