art and design... the difference

Many theories have emerged to try explain and hence contribute to a certain level the understanding

between art and design. This however, has had the effect of somewhat complicating the relationship

between art and design hence no clear picture exists of how art and design ultimately differ. According

to some theories, if a design is good enough it becomes an art.

Art can be designed as a lofty design or an expression of an individuals will to society at large, it’s origin

must be of a very personal nature such that only the artist knows the source of his own work. While

artists and designers both create a visual composition using a shared knowledge base, their reasons for

doing so are usually entirely different. This is evidenced by the fact that while most designers consider

themselves as artists, few artists consider themselves as designers.

A common phrase that tries to well differentiate the two is the phrase” while good art inspires, god

design motivates’ basing on this statement, this article will try show the relationship between the two

crafts using their purposes. Usually, the creation of an art starts with nothing, it stems from an opinion

or a perception or even a feeling that the artist holds within themselves and a blank canvas. The purpose

of creation of an art is to enable the artist to share their current feeling with others, so as to allow

others to not only relate with it but also learn and get inspired by it. Historically, the most renowned and

successful work of art today are those that establish the strongest emotional bonds between an

audience and the artist.

This is in contrast with a designer in that when a designer set out to create a new piece or work, they

always start from a fixed perception that is always a message, an image or an idea or even an action, his

purpose is usually not to come up with something novel but to communicate something that already

exists for a given purpose.  This purpose is in most cases to motivate his audience so as to achieve a

given goal. Most designers for example come up with designs to motivate a business’ potential

customers to visit a given location, buy something, learn certain information or even use a service.  A

successful designer is defined by his ability to most effectively communicate their intended message and

motivate their audience so that they carry out his intended task.

Another statement that well tries to show the relationship between art and design, is the statement,

while good art is interpreted, good design is understood. Since art is interpreted, the same piece of art

can be interpreted differently by different people and hence an art can bear various interpretations

depending on the respective audience. Although an artist initially sets out to convey a certain emotion

or viewpoint, the art usually connects with different individuals in different ways since different

individuals interpret it differently and hence the given art does not only bear the single meaning that the

artist set out to convey. An example is the Mona Lisa portrait by Da Vinci, where the lady is smiling.

Various groups of people have come out to explain the reason of her smile, while some say it’s an

illusion, others say she is in love.

Design, however, is different in that if people try to interpret a design then the design has failed in its

purpose. This is because the primary role or the basic function of design is to communicate a given

message so that the audience will be motivated to do something. If a design communicates a different

message other than the intended message, and the audience goes to perform something that they

interpreted the design to mean, then the design has not met what its required. A good design therefore,

enables the viewer to understand the message the designer intended.

A distinct relationship also that exists between art and design is the fact that while art is a taste or

preference, design is judged by opinion. This mirrors the point that art has various interpretations, as

one art is more people particular in that it to a large extent depends on ones likes and dislikes or

preferences rather than the message that the art tries to propagate. Design in addition, has an element

of taste but the difference between a design that people consider good and bad is to a large extent a

matter of their diverse opinions. Theorists, have at times pointed out that art and design are related

with the fact that taste governs opinion and opinion decides whether a design is good or bad hence art

and design are one and the same thing.

Good art is mostly defined as a talent this is mainly because an artist in most cases has a natural ability

and started showing his passion in art from a young age, for example an artist may have grown up

sculpting, drawing or painting and develops their abilities over the years. An artist has an inborn ability

since while good artists have a skill, the artistic skill without talent is debatably worthless.

Design however, is a skill that can be taught and learned, one does not necessarily have to be a great

artist to be considered a great designer, as one simply has to meet the objectives of design to be

considered a great designer. A great designer will in most cases use minimalist styles, texture and color

while optimizing on size, positioning and spacing.

Winding up, while it may be hard to distinguish where design ends and art begins, as at times certain

design works are considered as an art, the distinctions exist in the overall goal of the purpose of the

craft in that while good design broadcasts the same message to all its viewers’ good art transmits

diverse messages to different people. While many designers consider themselves as artists simply

because they create visually attractive pieces, a visual composition that is purposed to achieve a given

task or transmit a given message cannot be considered as an art a but rather a form of communication.

Artists create their work as a means to express their words in ways that words can’t really express, an

art is an expression that can be viewed and appreciated by others, it transmits feelings and not facts.