John Maeda : Designing for simplicity

Designing for simplicity

Summary

This was a little bit old story.

The speaker is Japanese-American with American by nationality. He is an artist, a designer, and published the book “The Law of Simplicity”. Every day, you must feel that the world is getting very complicated, however, when you can find simplicity, you will be really comfortable. He was used to stand the stage, he seemed to participate in four times, and his story was getting a laugh many times. Somehow, l was really glad that he grew up in a Tofu factory in Seattle. Tofu is Japanese healthy food made of Daizu-beans, though, it’s not famous more than Sushi. When the speaker explained his ten laws of simplicity, the sample was sushi, and it would be better because not only Americans but all people were interested in Sushi. However, many people seemed not to know about Tofu, unfortunately. I think that Tofu should be more famous because Vegans don’t eat fish, people want to be slim, it’s quite healthy food, thus Tofu is simple food.

In the dictionary, simplicity means the absence of complexity, and lack of sophistication, though, in his design and his book, it’s wrong. Simplicity isn’t created from absence and lacking. Simplicity is pursuing innocence, honesty, and sincerity.

The speaker seemed to teach design at University in Japan sometimes. Simplicity is not changing forever, isn’t it?

TEN LAWS

1 REDUCE The simplest way to achieve simplicity is through thoughtful reduction.

2 ORGANIZE Organization makes a system of many appear fewer.

3 TIME Savings in time feel like simplicity.

4 LEARN Knowledge makes everything simpler.

5 DIFFERENCES Simplicity and complexity need each other.

6 CONTEXT What lies in the periphery of simplicity is definitely not peripheral.

7 EMOTION More emotions are better than less.

8 TRUST In simplicity we trust.

9 FAILURE Some things can never be made simple.

10 THE ONE Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful.

THREE KEYS

1 AWAY More appears like less by simply moving it far, far away.

2 OPEN Openness simplifies complexity.

3 POWER Use less, gain more.