Table of Content:
- Who are web designers and what do they do?
- What tools do web designers use?
- Where do we go from here?
Web Design Mysteries: Elements of Design
Be honest.
Have you ever trolled around the web to find a design that you like?
Have you ever contemplated stealing the mark-up or styles from another site?
Have you ever tried to emulate a site, but just couldn’t pull it off?
Have you ever played with an existing site just for fun, and found that if you change even one color the whole site looks off-kilter?
For many of us, especially those from a coding background, we know good design when we see it, but find it very difficult to replicate it, or even describe why it appeals to us. Trained artist, Linda Goin begins this new series, which is a crash course to help newbies and coders understand why they like a design, how to adapt it without stealing it, and how to come up with sparkling new designs of their own.
In this first tutorial, Linda lays out the terms and vocabulary that you need in order to understand and discuss designs - the ingredients that you need to cook together. Using examples of sites out there on the web, we look at how to recognise, and what we mean by
- Line
- Color
- Volume
- Movement
- Space
- Texture
- Value
- Typography
Linda Goin
Linda Goin carries an A.A. in graphic design, a B.F.A. in visual communications with a minor in business and marketing and an M.A. in American History with a minor in the Reformation. While the latter degree doesn't seem to fit with the first two educational experiences, Linda used her 25-year design expertise on archaeological digs and in the study of material culture. Now she uses her education and experiences in social media experiments.
Accolades for her work include fifteen first-place Colorado Press Association awards, numerous fine art and graphic design awards, and interviews about content development with The Wall St. Journal, Chicago Tribune, Psychology Today, and L.A. Times.