In the latest Huffington Post Arts Brief, they chose to highlight a short list of famous artist album covers that ranged anywhere from REM to Kanye West.  One of my clear favorites that was featured was the cover for the latest N.E.R.D. albums, Nothing. The group and all of those involved always seem to produce a nicely designed piece and this one was no exception.  The covers highlighted seemed to span all mediums of artistic expression and in my eyes, helped bring up a common debate…does design matter?

A few years back, I had the privilege of hearing Cameron Moll, a designer, speaker and author, discuss this subject. The title of the discussion was “Good vs Great Design.”  It was an eye opener on many subjects…embracing stress (the good and the bad), going to work each day with a purpose, and especially about this very question.  Does graphic design really matter?

Working as an inhouse designer, I’ve constantly heard “Don’t focus on making it too ‘designy’…fill the space with as much info as possible. Design doesn’t sell our product.”  It makes me cringe to hear that.  In my eyes, design helped build and expand the world.  It transcends language, differences, and borders.  Where would this country be without design?  Rosie the Riveter posters sold America on the phrase, “We Can Do It!”  The simplicity of the object posters, demanded consumers’ undivided attention for decades.  Simple design elements such as layout, typography, color, graphics, contour…can hold a consumer’s attention and create memory recall.  Forget sales, where would we be without aesthetic design?  Something as simple as how traffic signs and subway maps and numerous other things you see everyday are designed…does design matter in those cases?  I bet you can instantly name things you feel weren’t designed well and have given you a headache in an everyday setting.  Well, for this designer…design does matter!