Design, design, everywhere

I can't remember when I first realized the ubiquity of graphic design...At least, I can't remember never having noticed really good or clever or effective design, but it wasn't until starting this program that I began to marvel at the work that goes into really good campaigns. But I have relatively recently started to notice that bad and mediocre design is absolutely everywhere. I can't say how many times a week I look at an ad, or a billboard, or a magazine spread or a commercial, and think, "That's the best they could do? There was probably a whole group of people involved in working on this, and THAT represents the BEST of all of their ideas?!"

Part of the problem with the abundance of bad/mediocre design is probably budgetary, in that a lot of people can't afford to hire a truly qualified designer to do their stuff. And probably another part of the problem is the undervaluing of the field by non-designers with an "Oh, I can just do that myself, I've always had an eye for color" attitude. When trying to get ideas for our identity project, I was looking through a big book of logos, and I was surprised to find a lot of things in there that I found mediocre (example: I lost count of the number of logos incorporating the flowing-stick-figure-person generally employed by dance schools and stuff like that).

So stuff that disapprove of, I guess I notice now more than ever.

The article brings up an interesting point that most design around us falls into the "quiet" category: efficient but not intrusive. This is the design that, even now, I pass constantly without really seeing. Maybe I'll try paying closer attention to see what I haven't noticed.