As an artist and a designer (there is a difference), I have encountered resistance in others who do not believe that they can be a great designer because they are not artists. The purpose of this article is to hopefully, for some with an open mind, break up those self limiting thoughts and allow yourself to open up the creative treasure box that is stored within the brains of all people.

Before we move too far along, I want to get some definitions and comparisons out of the way. I want to define artist and designer and compare the two.

An artist in my opinion is someone who has a natural or developed talent in producing aesthetic creations either from their own mind or a model realistically or abstractly depicted. Notice, that I said the talent can be developed; however, that discussion is for another article.

Now on to the definition of designer. A designer simply takes pre-existing elements and arranges them in a way to make them pleasing to the eye.

Now, note that being able to produce art can certainly help in your designs, but it is not totally necessary. You CAN be a great designer without any artistic talent. (You can be a great artist as well, but as I said before, we will talk about that in another article.)

In order to become a great designer, all it takes is study. Just as any subject in school or college. The next question that you may ask is, "Where is the book?" Well, with design, there are many books that you can in fact buy, and I would recommend that. There is something else that I would also recommend even more: That is simply becoming a student of design, Keep your eyes open. Look at things that other designers have done, find out how they did it, and add that technique to your designers toolbox.

Most of the lessons on my site are centered around teaching you design techniques. Things are taught that I believe can be reproduced by anyone, regardless of talent, natural, or learned.

I agree somewhat. But mostly I disagree.

What you're describing as a designer is really a less than talented artist. Designers and artists differ. Your "art" is self expression, that's its only goal. Design is primarily for others.

Art is about creativity. Design must be about human factors like usability, information design, desirability design, infographics and visual merchandising. If you want a wide open field, try those.

How many tutorials on...

-- Story telling using comics ...which just happen to be done in Inkscape?
-- Information graphics (infographics) which communicate a difficult concept in a simple way?
-- Technical diagrams explaining something a user has to know?
-- Brochures which actual have to produce sales, not merely look good?
-- Icons, along with the interaction design savvy that avoids user error through accurate information scent?

Learning this week's special effect with Inkscape is no more design than raw creativity for its' own sake. Because design is about communication and interaction. And divorcing yourself from the user in the name of creative freedom isn't design -- it is art.

To communicate visually, you have to be concerned with what users get out of a visual. Another difference is designers test with users and artists don't. You can't successfully communicate without a deep curiosity about what the people on the other end of the design actually take away.

Finally, design demands a lot of creativity -- a very different kind of creativity. That's to solve user problems and provide understanding. Design is solving someone else's problems. Artistic problem solving exclusively revolves around the artist's own inner struggle to express themselves through their art.

A visual design must always be more value than an equal amount of screen or page real estate given to text alone. And that there be an actual objective which makes that a testable proposition -- not the designer's opinion. Design is testable. Art is not.

People appreciate art. Design is supposed to be used to accomplish something. The entire criticism of Flash is due to the confusion between art and design. Designers are not simply uncreative artists.

Thanks for the detailed reply DC1.

However, I do not really completely see where we actually disagree because I pretty much agree with all of what you said.

Maybe I should clarify however, you are exactly correct that learning everything these tutorials have to offer is not exactly design. I should explain what I really meant, and that is that you can take what you have learned in these tutorials and put those elements together to form your own designs.

Simply copying what someone else has done using a step-by-step approach is neither art nor design. An artist or designer neither one can rely on exactly copying what others have done. They must take what they have seen others do and learn from those things, then make them their own by adding their own personal touch to it.

Once again, thanks for the reply. I enjoy this type of discussion much more than the "Inkscape wont do 'X' please help" type of discussion.

I third this topic

Design has to be functional while art doesn't and usually isn't. I guess most of the confusion comes from clients who think that a role of a designer is to make something pretty.

This is an interesting post. When it comes to Inkscape, I never really know what to call myself (or if I even need to call myself anything other than a user). I have never thought that I had much artist talent. I know exactly what a designer is because I am one professionally. I'm a design engineer in real life and it's my job to either invent products to be sold or take someone else's idea and turn it into something tangible. I use a host of tools/applications to get the thought out of my head and into my hands. When it comes to the term "artist" I go blank. I'm not exactly sure what it means to be one. Can a designer be an artist or vice versa? Are they the same or are they different? I have no idea. I have no trouble sketching technical things but I have trouble sketching my own hand. I would think a true artist can sketch anything just by thinking about it. And by anything I mean a pair of scissors right down to the human body. I also think an artist could create using just one tool while a designer might use a host of tools, such as, Inkscape, Gimp, and Blender to complete an artwork project. Take my last project for instance (http://www.flickr.com/photos/heathenx/3 ... 856370@N20). I had to use Blender to create the bottle because I could not see in my head how the lighting/shading would be on the blue bottle. I had drawn the outside shape in Inkscape first but without Blender I don't think I would have made it realistic looking. I would think an artist would know exactly how to reproduce the shading without the need to such tools. Those people are truly gifted. I feel handicapped because I have no gifts like that.

I still think of myself as a designer and not an artist. Your definitions or clarifications between the two are rather interesting because up until now I have never really thought about it. Sometimes not sure what I am but definitely sure what I am not.

A little background is in order. My father was a commercial artist. He would make wall murals for restaurants in oil paint which could be fifteen feet high.

And of course, he painted on canvas. I started painting my own canvases in oil paint at ten or eleven. So I can provide an opinion based in experience. (Although not on painting scenes fifteen feet high -- never did that)

I do not really completely see where we actually disagree because I pretty much agree with all of what you said.

Perhaps that's because my definition of design sort of picks up where your article ends. We may not be far off. A designer might be more creative than rearranging pieces. But most would do less than an artist, which would be to develop a trademark style.

Most artists can sketch just about anything. However, there's more. One thing my father would do is have you do a simple mark or doodle on a page. Then he would make a sketch which incorporated your doodle into the composition seamlessly.

With package design, it's really the depth of user and consumer psychology. What you might think of as "not creative" because it isn't art can be very creative. You have to create something which has to compete against a flurry of competition on the shelf.

I don't use Blender, but I've done a little 3D package design myself. It's very 'different' because focus is not on label art but the larger design.

I don´t think that design and art are excluding each other or are opposing things.
In my opinion, art is something new, extraordinary, "not necessary", and created driven by some internal motivation.

For example, take the crapiest, cheapest chair from a home depot - somebody thought about how it should look like and how it should be built (within given production limits). That is design. probably a bad one, but design. Now take Eero Aarnios Ball Chair or Marcel Breuers Wassily Chair. These guys did just the same, thinking how their chair should be etc.. But these works can also be considered as art, they are there to last, like sculptures. (I fyou don´t consider these examples as art, okay. But it is in the nature of art to start discussion on aestetic questions )
Or musicians. I don´t consider the entertaining singer at grampas 80th Birthday an artist, but Jose Carreras definitely is one.
Or if you see me dancing, you´d feel sorry for me, but when you see michael jackson dance in his videos - that is art that will last.

Please don´t get me wrong -there is nothing wrong with doing a job as good as it gets - a home depot chair or singing on birthdays- but it is not art, but that is not necessary.

" Do I Have to be an Artist to be a Great Designer?"

Now maybe the question is wrong. What is a great designer?
One, that´s work will be remembered and admired after decades?
One, where everybody knows the name?
Then my answer is yes, because after a longer time and when judged by others, it is likely to be considered as art. But it is not in ones own judgement, if you are an artist or not, at least in the way i understand artist.
In any field that requires some creativity, the top people that push the field ahead and tear down limitation are artists.

It does not work like this: "I studied art and now i design a chair and therefor it has a great design!"

One should also take respect of the perception within groups. Within the "chair designer scene", there will probably be much more designers considered to ba an artist compared to the perception in the world of "normal" people.
And also, if the designer has the opportunity at work to show what he can is important etc...

Bottom line: If you are a great designer, you are likely to be an artist - but others will find out.

Just my 2 cents,
ME

p.s.: sorry for my clumsy english, i hope you get what i mean.