The wonderful thing about design is that it doesn’t have to be perfect or obey any strict rules. It just has to work. The best design captures a mood, and lives it completely. This design is adamantly “all in”.
Take me for a ride. There are many ways to express joy and whimsey. This love car is one of the best. With vibrant, primary colors, arrows leading every which way, rough hand lettering, wavy lines, big messy dots: pure happiness. Has a Cadillac ever been put to better use?
Susan says:
If you are given the task of designing a presentation, you might find your heart sinking under the burden. I am not suggesting that the happy car should serve as an example for your design, but rather that it might set you free to explore the mood and the message you want to convey in your presentation. Thinking about design as a tool to perfect and enhance your communication is far better than being bullied and intimidated by its principles.
This may sound like sacrilege to some, especially as one of our specialties here at Imagine is design of presentations. But whether you come to us for help, or undertake the design job yourself, quiz yourself about the mood, the message and the atmosphere you wan to convey in the course of your talk. That is what you want your design to support.
Lucia says:
I agree with Susan, this design is ‘all in’ in a big way. You couldn’t miss it. My goodness, it sure stood out among all the other events happening in the downtown square that day. This photo doesn’t show it, but the reactions of people who saw this car while walking by, was fun to watch. The looks of surprise, the smiles, and of course the obligatory selfies were in abundance.
The design is full of whimsy and the colors grab your attention. But it also draws you in to look closely at all the whacky details. I don’t have to go into them. Susan defined many of the details already, and you can see them for yourself. This is a terrific example of letting go and enjoying the design process. Feel free to try different ideas and combinations. Understand that trying to be too perfect can stifle creativity.
