Beyond the Big Picture: The Art of Detail in Design by Gigantic
Benjamin Young
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'Keeping Your Website Project On Budget'
When design moves us, we take in the big picture. A remarkable book cover, website, or restaurant menu has the power to stop us in our tracks and marvel at the resolved aesthetic it offers. Content, context, and structure harmonize to compel us to notice that an ineffable something is making this work one of quality.
How is this done? We marvel at the totality of finished work, but the practice behind such work is rarely a singular stroke of genius.
American record executive and producer Rick Rubin hones in on this truth with great salience in his 2023 book The Creative Act, stating:
"What ultimately makes a work great is the sum total of the tiniest details ... the smallest elements are the ones that weigh the most."
"...the tiniest of details can clearly define a work. They can determine whether a piece is stimulating or languid, finished or unfinished."
The details are the key. While the finished composition of a painting draws in audiences, it is the summation of meticulous brushstrokes that underpin the whole.
The next time you are viewing or making a work of design – take a moment to step away from the totality and pay attention to the details. When the smallest elements of a composition are crafted with thoughtful intention, the aggregate value of those elements becomes something capable of captivation.
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P.S. If you are looking for ways that design details can work harder for your organization, get in touch with the fine folks at Gigantic 💙 We are a team making high-converting websites for organizations who are ready to up-level their design game.
Have a project or problem to solve? Let’s get started.
Working with Gigantic was inspiring and impactful. Given the nature and timeline of this project, our company needed a collaborative and nimble partner—not just one who lists those qualities as bullet points in a capabilities presentation, but a partner who actually exhibits them day in and day out. Gigantic worked with our team to create and implement design decisions in real-time and, like any true partner, asked great questions and challenged us which has only benefited our company as a whole.
Working with Gigantic was inspiring and impactful. Given the nature and timeline of this project, our company needed a collaborative and nimble partner—not just one who lists those qualities as bullet points in a capabilities presentation, but a partner who actually exhibits them day in and day out. Gigantic worked with our team to create and implement design decisions in real-time and, like any true partner, asked great questions and challenged us which has only benefited our company as a whole.
