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A review by fargestift
The Shape of Design by Frank Chimero
2.0
I first came across Frank Chimero on the social media platform Letterboxd, which can be described a bit like goodreads for film - "goodwatches" - and stalked my way to his homepage after being impressed by his taste in cinema.
The past year, I've become more and more interested in designing for the virtual world, and read Chimero's brilliant essay on 'What Screens Want'. Since then I've been a fan of his design-philosophy, and eventually delved into his short and free ebook, 'The Shape of Design'. While by no means a terrible book, I can't help but feel that my time could have been better spent by re-reading his essays, as most of the ideas contained in the book comes across better in the essays, which incorporates design and examples much more illustratively and appropriately than in the book. Where I think the book has most to give, is when Frank writes about _his own_ influences, like how he keeps a copy of Edward Hopper's iconic 'Nighthawks' in his drawer and makes up little narratives from the still painting. Among the good tips for designing, I think examples like how limitations – self-imposed or not – can be helpful in getting the mind racing. But that advice isn't new to me. That is no fault of Frank's, and it's always good to have helpful thing reiterated, but it greatly reduces my take away from the book.
If you are unfamiliar with Frank Chimero and interested in design, I would say you should look up his visual essays first, they can be found on his homepage (frankchimero.com). If they leave you hungry for more, maybe give his ebook a shot, it's free, and maybe you'll get more out of it than me.
The past year, I've become more and more interested in designing for the virtual world, and read Chimero's brilliant essay on 'What Screens Want'. Since then I've been a fan of his design-philosophy, and eventually delved into his short and free ebook, 'The Shape of Design'. While by no means a terrible book, I can't help but feel that my time could have been better spent by re-reading his essays, as most of the ideas contained in the book comes across better in the essays, which incorporates design and examples much more illustratively and appropriately than in the book. Where I think the book has most to give, is when Frank writes about _his own_ influences, like how he keeps a copy of Edward Hopper's iconic 'Nighthawks' in his drawer and makes up little narratives from the still painting. Among the good tips for designing, I think examples like how limitations – self-imposed or not – can be helpful in getting the mind racing. But that advice isn't new to me. That is no fault of Frank's, and it's always good to have helpful thing reiterated, but it greatly reduces my take away from the book.
If you are unfamiliar with Frank Chimero and interested in design, I would say you should look up his visual essays first, they can be found on his homepage (frankchimero.com). If they leave you hungry for more, maybe give his ebook a shot, it's free, and maybe you'll get more out of it than me.