Aesthetic Systems

Definition

The term Aesthetic System describes a programmatic solution to a design problem.

Characteristics

A programmatic design solution can be:

1. alive
   • reactive
   • emergent
   • interactive
2. serializable
   • scalable (duplicable, transmedial)
   • customizable
   • infinite variations
3. a problem specific tool
   • transferable (useable by other designers, clients, end users etc.)
   • new aesthetics (breakout of the design tool ghetto)
   • free from traditional boundaries
4. open
   • collaborative (see transferable)
   • toolkit solutions (i.e. reusing code, programming libraries etc.)
   • recursive; meta systems are not only limited to usage but open for modification (i.e. open source approach etc.)

Effects

Effects on the creative process:

1. Requires a clear formulation of the idea beforehand
   — suggests an iterative approach to the development of the system
2. The result is not automatically emotional and personal (i.e. as it normally is in traditional illustration)
   — requires special attention to the emotional and personal aspects of the design
3. The process is not automatically intuitively accessible
   — requires an extra effort to make the system’s internals accessible (i.e. user interfaces)
4. Selection becomes equally important to the production
5. Initial development is relatively work & time intensive