Where to go in design?

Question

User interface

Hello, I want to get into app design, but I don't know where to go and many types of design are the same for me (I don't see the differences). I want web design, but I prefer to design for mobile devices. Ie it will be called - the designer of mobile applications? Then there are some digital designs, UI / UX, etc. Is it worth going into mobile design or is it better to go to the web? And what should I take in subjects at 11?

Answer 1

Go to VGIK, where they teach mobile design. I like it)

Answer 2

The boundaries are very arbitrary. I don’t know a designer who would be an excellent specialist in mobile applications, but could not draw a landing page or make an interface for some service. Well, it's the same in reverse.
Design in the digital environment relies on the same rules. Yes, there are differences between platforms and established patterns here and there, but in general it is about the same thing - the interaction between a person and a program.
If you want to draw mobile phones - take and draw. Now there are a huge number of courses, tutorials and articles. There is no reason not to become a designer, if there is such a desire.

Answer 3

I agree with Mikalai Bulava and McBernar , I will add:
The answer may seem off topic and as a departure from the question, but you try to hear - " go to design!" - i.e. just start walking somewhere. As they say in religions, etc. - everyone has their own way to some center (god, truth, beauty, meaning...). Clarifications about "where to go?" see below in "What to understand?"
The second point - how to go? It is important. Understand what is most important in design (how to make the design be "cool", "profitable", "comfortable", etc.), practically doing what you like most / easier / faster - i.e. e. it is necessary to master a complex of theory + practice, which must constantly replace each other. It is imperative that what you have learned (theory) you put into practice, and the results of practice, in turn, comprehend (reflect), forming theoretical ideas about your business. Only in such a balance is it possible to have a productive professional activity, not a household/ordinary one .
1) The development of any business (professional activity) begins with the development of a base for specific solutions to specific problems - the so-called. reproductive culture . Therefore, collect collections of the best solutions in your business, and also master them not only theoretically, but also practically - repeat the best examples (like students of art schools). The more iterations (cases, tasks) you solve, the greater the range of specific solutions you will own. This will give you a base to move to the next level of mastery of your business.
2) Generalization of experience - the development of guidelines (aka principles, patterns) - the so-called. "conceptual model of activity". Remember that a huge number of people lived before you and they gained a huge amount of experience (useful and not very useful). To generalize experience, you must first have it. At the first stage, you passed this experience through yourself. Further, the experience must be generalized ... on the basis of which, see the next paragraph - "What to understand?". An example of such a system is, say, the "method" of K.S. Stanislavsky or "cinema building" by S.M. Eisenstein or other methodologies of specific activities.
3) After creating a systematic view of your case, it is transferred to the level of a standard solution, another alternative is created, more adequate to reality, etc. At some point, you begin to feel your business with "fingertips", "fifth point", "sense", " intuition", who with what - you begin to solve problems analytically and synthetically, but as holistically as possible, immediately feeling exactly how to do it in what situation.
Any activity can be conditionally seen in two "dimensions": in the dynamic, temporal - as a process, as an activity, and in the static, spatial - as a system, structure.For clarity, you can imagine the process as an axis (x), and the system (multilevel) as an axis (y)
.Design as a process (x axis ) :
Understand two things: what is the super-system above you (around you, outside) and what is your system (inside):
1) Global process [design]: What is the step-by-step process from the very beginning of the design to the final result. This is necessary to understand what place exactly your profession occupies in this big design process - for which stage you are responsible. And specifically: what and who should give you at the input and what and to whom you should give at the output (as your result). If you work, say, as a graph designer, draw a logo, then understand what, from whom and in what capacity you must receive in order to do your job; and what, to whom and in what capacity you should give according to the results of your work. If it’s difficult with the design right away, take the process of anything for training: for example, cooking meatballs or assembling a car: what needs to be done first, what then.
2) Local [design] process: Break that particular element of the overall process into more local phases that are specific to your case. What's first, what's next. Please note: I describe the process in a simplified - linear way, but there are workflows that are parallel and with complex connections!
Design as a system (y-axis) :
This is the content level of the process of your activity. In different activities, the content is different, because different specifics of the problems being solved, but there are also common ones. There are many different names for these three levels, I like them more: ideology, methodology, technology (by the way, there is a book of the same name on management by G.P. Shchedrovitsky). In another way (in philosophy), this is a division into being: material, social and spiritual. A little different, but in essence about the same division (from Aristotle in the context of rhetoric) into aesthetics, logic and ethics. Without going into these sophisticated theoretical jungles, deal with three things ( in turn - from "simple" to "complex" !!! For, without mastering "simple", "complex" cannot be mastered. ):
1) The lowest level / matter / technique and technology / aesthetics / "
In painting, this is drawing - the ability to hold a brush, to drive it as it should. In driving - the ability to hold the steering wheel, press the pedals. What are the tools in your work? technique? You have to know how to use them. Usually there are not so many of them (I do not take into account their countless combinations). In your particular case - design - the essence is in the organization of space-time. Usually they forget about dynamics, talking only about space. What you do (website, logo, application, or industrial design: chair, sofa, car or architectural design: building, interior) - all this is work first of all with space! Therefore, figure out what are the methods of working with space. They are in different areas (listed above + painting, sculpture, architecture, cinema, graphic and industrial design ...) a little different due to the specifics, but in general they are the same. I hint what to look for first of all: in painting it is called " graphics " and " painting ". This is the foundation of the basics. This is how they can be taught in art schools, but not always systematically.
This also includes software proficiency and programming skills (lower level).
2)Middle level / methodology / social level / language / logic
level This is the level, as Mikalai Bulava already told you: this is the possession of techniques (methodology - sets of methods, means, techniques) of sociology, psychology, biology, mathematics, the average level of physics, economics, dramaturgy, marketing, etc. The preferred set depends on your specific specialization. But first of all, this level includes what is called "logic" as the basis of the methodology of science, natural science knowledge and "language" - as the basis of humanitarian knowledge (semiotics, hermeneutics). Specifically: you need to know natural languages ​​​​(Russian, English, Chinese, French, German, first of all), programming languages, languages ​​\u200b\u200bof your specialty (film language, painting language, graphic design language, etc.). Specifically, at this level, you need to understand about design: a) how design works as a means of satisfying lower and middle (according to Maslow) needs - how to help peopleconvenient to solve their problems. b) how design works as art - as a means of expressing meanings, artistic images, ideas (higher needs according to Maslow).
3) Highest level / meaning / ideology / philosophy / religion / ethics
This level is what is called real Creativity - work with ideas, meanings - the creation of something new. Since it is the new meaning at the heart of any creativity (artistic or technical). First learn to understand meanings, then work with them, express them in specific design projects, and then create your own meanings. As I wrote above, first get acquainted with what is: mythology, religions, philosophical concepts, all sorts of ideologies, political ideologies, artistic aesthetic trends, etc. The topic in the world is the least studied of all in general. First of all, I am hinting at TRIZ (classic, it is primarily technical, but it is about creativity).
And what to take in subjects: choose any business you like, choose the best university in this area: Stroganovka, Moscow Institute of Architecture, VGIK, etc., see what you need there and go. The main thing - go do a real practical thing that other people need and you love! It doesn't matter what your profession is called. Good luck!