Where Art Directors Get Stuck

Many (not all) art directors and graphic designers don’t understand the possibilities of interactive media because they don’t understand the concept of dynamic content.

They can design a beautiful web page for an online merchant to sell The Beatles “White Album,” but then make it a template that will show The Beatles Rock Band video game, complete with screen shots and videos in place of audio samples, or even a general web page that lists all Beatles products, and their eyes glaze over. Change it to an even more interactive environment with animation and even greater dynamic possibilities, and many don’t even know where to start.

So instead they often stick to what they know and create static images, or linear animations, never allowing users the possibility of participating in the final outcome. For some it’s a way of insuring that their look-and-feel is forever maintained, for others it’s a matter of not knowing how to build the puzzle pieces where users can assemble the puzzle in an infinite number of ways.

Of course this isn’t always the case. There ARE art directors and graphic designers who understand the dynamic nature of interactivity. My experience, however, has been that this is a minority.