Is web design a dying art? (Part 2)
Adrian Hanft
Adrian Hanft
Creative director, Red Rocket Media Group
www.redrocketmg.com/index.shtml
“Compared to other dying arts, I would say web designers’ jobs are safe for a while. Yes, there are plenty of people resorting to pre-designed websites, but I don’t feel like they represent the kind of client that most designers would want anyway. Overall, demand is really high for websites that can stand out in the sea of millions of dull, poorly designed sites. A ‘stock’ site just can’t compete with a site made by a great designer.
“The rise of blogging tools has only helped me as a web designer because now I can handle a huge chunk of work that would have been outsourced in years past. WordPress (and the like) are flexible designer-friendly solutions that cut down on development time and let the designer spend more time on design and creating unique online experiences. Perhaps web developers are feeling the pain more than the designers?”
AND FINALLY…
Thankfully then, this is not an open and shut case. But then we hope you wouldn’t expect it to be. If the web is anything it’s a vastly undulating topographical terrain with a multiplicity of highs and lows to be navigated in a variety of ways. Now that might just be a flowery journalistic way of saying the web is complex in form, usage and function – but if you accept this fact then you will agree that automation can never govern us with so many changeable factors to constantly provision for. Will that ever change? We’d like to suggest that the answer must be no. We’ll always have this living level of unpredictability because it is us humans who will constantly demand something new. Who better to interpret those wants most accurately then – a human perhaps? What kind of human you ask? Do you think it might be a web designer by any chance?
What do you think?
We’d like to hear your opinions on this so send your emails to webdesigner@imagine-publishing.co.uk or leave comments below.
This article first appeared in Web Designer issue 159, authored by Adrian Bridgwater
Pages: 1 2
to find out about all the latest web development, news, reviews, previews, interviews, features and a whole more.
This is something that i was thinking about because technology changes at a rapid rate, and we web designers/developers are part of one of the fastest and unpredictable technologies on the planet!
Software companies well make their software easier to use as they evolve and people (those who are not in the industry)will just become more smarter and try their hand at designing sites. I am sure of this because even my bleeding dad has had a go and he is over sixty!!!!!
But there is a lot to this industry than designing websites and as a creative i think it’s time to start adding to my skill set with illustrations, graphic designs, game design and 3D. Website design is dying but DESIGN isn’t and never will!!!
I don’t believe website design is dying. There will always be people who want something different from what a one-size-fits-all solution, and even today still plenty of people young and old with zero interest in doing this kind of thing themselves (too hard or too geeky). But what will happen is competition will become more and more fierce as the number of people able to do website design grows, thanks to a tech savvy generation and increasingly easy to use tools.
I agree with the art of design may be dead. What I am trying to do and if you can help please contact. I see internet usage as a one piece interface, as in I want to monitor my tweets talk on FB and book a hotel and see where I want to go next, all at the same time. We are coming into an age where the computer is not part of our lives it is our life and how we connect with the world. Youth may hold the keys but it will be the mind of the experienced to see the door.
Great article! As a designer myself I do not foresee the art of web-design dying in the future. Lets face the facts… Some people are just not made to be artist. Art is a talent and skill one must master, the same as music. Many are born with a talent to draw, design and organizational skills (excellent skills for someone in the web-design field), and others simply are not. That is not to say they cannot build their own sites, but rather they will be dependent on designers/developers for professional look.
The use of CMS tools such as WordPress will only better the field of design. Certainly a person can choose from their host’s “web package” and setup a simple blog, but like many of those interviewed in this article stated…”if they want to be unique they will have to rely on designers/developers to get their brand/identity out there.” Face it, the truth is people don’t trust sites that look amateurish. The more professional a sites usability and looks; the more trust it gives its users.
Fear not friends, we are not a dying breed! It can only get better for us! :)
i think that there will always be future for good design and the majority of ordinary people do not know how to set a hosting account or indeed what wordpress is
Blogging is not wiping out web design. But it is wiping out the small business market for web design companies.
Companies have to balance cost and quality with everything, and web design is no different.
With WordPress a Deli owner, event planner, or an accountant can have a website that looks decent and they can manage. For next to nothing.
That said larger companies are always going to have a need for a branded and professional look.
Long term we should look at the web for what it is, information sharing. Where is information sharing going long term?
The art of web designing is not dying, but it is however beginning to be a harder sell. Having established my company 10 years ago it seems with these canned web sites are beginning to ruin the industry. You can not replace a canned web site for brand development. I think now we have to educate our clients as to the differences between a site that you can pay on the cheap, but will probably end up paying more for in the future VS. doing it right the first time.
Some of the canned flash sites though are pretty nice ill admit LOL.
I’m not so sure that web design is dying as much as it is evolving. My company understands the cost pressures and constraints that most small and mid-sized companies have, so yes…I offer pre-packaged CMS with integrated template. However, if somebody truly wants some new functionality or something completely original, then I can do that also. Since the pre-packaged is becoming so dominant, the evolution is in specialization. Some designers/developers will focus on building (hopefully) quality templates for different CMS packages, some will focus on extending functionality by building plug-ins and modules, still others will focus on integrating all of the disparate pieces together.
Another evolution taking place involves the changes in hardware medium. Five years ago, all we had was the PC and laptops. Now not only do we have those computer resources to optimize our sites to, but also smartphones, tablets, etc.. So no, design is not dead it is just evolving to keep up with technology.
Youre so cool! I dont suppose Ive learn something like this before. So good to find someone with some unique thoughts on this subject. realy thanks for beginning this up. this web site is something that is needed on the internet, somebody with a bit of originality. helpful job for bringing one thing new to the internet!