Scott Berkun wrote a post a few weeks ago, ” Why you are not an artist”, about the differences between designers and artists. Its both on and off  point for me, but it also blows my mind a bit, because I’ve always identified as an artist, even though I design as a profession. Scott says:

“But if you work for clients/bosses in the making of things that you yourself would not consider art, or are beneath your own standard, or that you blame others you work with for ruining, you are not an Artist. You are an employee. You are being paid to give someone else authority over your creative decisions. This can involve inspiration, effort, sacrifice, passion, brilliance, and many other noble things, but it’s not the same as being an Artist.”

And he’s kind of right. I think one of the biggest challenges I have as an interaction designer is balancing the needs of the user with business goals, then coming up with a solution that stakeholders will approve, while still keeping true to design principles, aesthetics, taste, ease of use etc. And sometimes its just not possible. Scott says:

“This means anyone who constantly sacrifices their own ideals, and regularly makes major compromises to satisfy the inferior opinions of ’superiors’ they do not respect, can not sincerely call their work art….”

Being a team player means compromising, it means picking your battles, it means using blue because the CEO likes blue. Thats a strike against me as an artist for sure. Scott goes on:

“…Are you proud of what your company makes? Does it go out the door with even half the soul you put into your designs? If you ship things to the world that are beneath your own bar, can you call it art in the same way you would if it met that bar?”

You know what? On that point I say yes. I am proud of what I do and happily put my name to it even if it is flawed. I do put my soul into my designs, and most of my colleagues are incredibly passionate about their work and their products. I feel bad for those folks who aren’t.

Scott and I agree on one thing:

“If you make paintings, movies, novels or similiar things, of course you’re an artist. Even if your work sucks (however we determine that), and even if you do it part time, or have never been paid a dime for your art, you still qualify.”

But it doesn’t have to be just what we traditionally think as art. I’m making stories using animation, music and storytelling. I think its art – I do it for me. That makes me an artist who works as a designer.

Salon has an interview today with the “The world’s best female Elvis impersonator,” Jacqueline Feilich. I had to post it, I mean she’s awesome!

“A Sydney gemologist and suburban mother turned full-time Elvis tribute artist, Feilich has been shaking up the Elvis circuit with her skin-tight pink jumpsuit and decidedly female take on the King’s music.  Feilich is one of a very few female Elvises worldwide, and perhaps the only one who takes it seriously: Her acts aren’t campy, nor do they go for a knowing, ironic vibe…”

Just read this fascinating column (sparked by a web-post) by Oliver Burkeman of the Guardian about how cultural influences lead to misunderstandings between people.

“We are raised, the theory runs, in one of two cultures. In Ask culture, people grow up believing they can ask for anything – a favour, a pay rise– fully realising the answer may be no. In Guess culture, by contrast, you avoid “putting a request into words unless you’re pretty sure the answer will be yes…Neither’s “wrong”, but when an Asker meets a Guesser, unpleasantness results. An Asker won’t think it’s rude to request two weeks in your spare room, but a Guess culture person will hear it as presumptuous and resent the agony involved in saying no…”

Its obviously a spectrum, but this really resonates for me. Personally I have to work really hard to ask for anything, even though I know deep down that you won’t get it if you don’t ask for it. I’ve been thinking its a gender thing (as in the book, “Women Don’t Ask,”) but if you add in understanding our cultural differences I bet a lot of hurt feelings could be avoided.

I’m featured in Francisco Inchauste’s article in Smashing Magazine. Part 2 features an interview too. I blush to be in such fine company.

Using storytelling, however, we can pull these fragments together into a common thread. We can connect as real people, not just computers. In this article we’ll explore how user experience professionals and designers are using storytelling to create compelling experiences that build human connections.

Read the whole thing…

Nice post from Ignore the Code about Realism in UI Design.

…Graphical user interfaces are typically full of symbols. Most graphical elements you see on your screen are meant to stand for ideas or concepts. The little house on your desktop isn’t a little house, it’s «home». The eye isn’t an actual eye, it means «look at the selected element»…

They also use an example from Scott McCloud – who is an inspiration to a storyteller like me.

Great list of “short learnings” about interaction design, although I’d say it pertains to way more than that.

Some of my favs are:

1. Like buildings, applications break at the joins
2. Play to your strengths and team up with complementary players
3. In times of trouble, ask “What is the user problem that we are trying to solve?”