UI/UX Articles and Interesting Tidbits of the Week

Pedro Canhenha
Product Coalition
Published in
3 min readMay 20, 2018

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May//18//2018

Here are some interesting finds on UI/UX of the week!

1.https://www.nngroup.com/articles/brutalism-antidesign/
Brutalism and Antidesign. Interesting article from the Nielsen Norman Group, focused on detailing what Brutalism and Antidesign movements are about, and how they impact the product experience and how users consume information. It’s a way to document a trend and approach that walks in a direct opposition of what UX is focused on, but it’s still a trend with enough advocates to justify attention and debate on it. Highlight of the article includes:

“Web brutalism is beginning to take on a new meaning, quite different from the spirit of the architectural movement. Rather than just focusing on stripped-down UIs with raw or nonexistent styling, some designers interpret brutalism to mean rebelling against oversimplified design by intentionally creating ugly, disorienting, or complex interfaces. Though some lump this trend in with brutalism, it doesn’t fit with the original architectural sense of the word. For the sake of clarity, I’ll use the term antidesign to refer to this separate understanding of the movement. Antidesign sites often feature a complete lack of visual hierarchy. Some use harsh colors, disorienting patterns, weird cursors, and unnecessary distracting animations. The overall effect feels like bad 1990s’ designs on steroids.”

2.https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2018/05/high-concept-theory-ux-design/
Movie Pitching and UX Theory. Another great article from Smashing Magazine focused on the parallels that can exist between the act of pitching the concept for a film, and a streamlined and effective product experience. The article explains what “high concepts” are about, and how designers can take that approach to define a understanding of what the usefulness of the product is about, and build the experience from that point onwards. Highlight of the article includes:

“The parallels between ‘High-Concept’ theory and UX Design best practice are clear. Blockbuster audiences prefer simple easy to relate concepts presented in an uncomplicated way. Web users often prefer simpler, easy to digest, UI (User Interface) design, clean layouts, and no clutter. Regardless of what your message is, presenting it in a simple way is critical to the success of your site’s user experience. But, what about the message itself? Understanding if your message is ‘high-concept’ enough might also be critical to the site’s success.”

3.https://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2018/05/9-a11y-tips-for-global-accessibility-awareness-day/
Accessibility. Article hailing from WebDesignerDepot, focused on something very important: accessibility. Now, and more than ever, with the continuous evolution of technology, it’s imperative that products and experiences are ever inclusive. This article sheds light on important items, such as proper tagging, detailed coding, color considerations, keyboard accessibility, create ultra clear forms, among others. Highlight:

“Website accessibility isn’t a difficult concept to understand. It simply means that a website is equipped to deliver an experience to all users, regardless of any disability or impairment they might have. And it’s not just about being able to see, read, or understand the content either; users need to be able to navigate through websites and complete transactions just like everyone else.”

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