Don’t be perfect - Why design can be pretty ugly
… a brief talk with David Klüft Frimark, founding member of Swedish design group Fuldesign and key speaker at Creative Mornings Sthlm on January 30th.

Isn’t design supposed to be beautiful? 

Yes, but not only. I think that a lot of people are tired of flawless perfection. There is a problematic focus on beauty in the design world. Designers tend to forget that there are other perspectives apart from the sheer beautiful.

Like the ugly?

Exactly. Ugly design does not have to be downright horrible, besides it’s a matter of taste, but ugly things lets people feel that it’s ok not to be perfect. That a thing does not have to be impeccable to be likeable. So much of the design today is “silent”, it just blends in. It’s unnoticeable and therefore uninteresting. It’s just a façade. 

What is ugly design to you?

Ugly design to me has nothing to do with looks. It’s an attitude. Ugly design shows an alternative to perfection. It makes people think and feel. It’s something that it’s hard to be indifferent about. Today everything is “designed” and don’t get me wrong, I think design is really important, but design needs to dig below the surface to become relevant.

Have you got an example?

I’ve got several. One recent example that I really like is Sias music video Elastic Heart featuring Shia LaBeouf and Maddie Ziegler. It’s super designed and really crude at the same time. Beautiful, ugly and mesmerizing. Apart from most music videos that are really slick it makes you feel… something. It’s interesting.  

Link to video: http://vimeo.com/116622243