ERIC KIM

Depressing Design vs Uplifting Design

I cannot say for certain that great design uplifts, but I can certainly say that ugly design depresses us:

Just don’t surround yourself with an ugly view

The worst decision I have made semi-recently:

Signing a lease on an apartment with an ugly view.

Why? Every time I see the view outside of my kitchen window when I’m having my morning coffee it depresses me with the ugliness. A physiological depression.

What makes a certain design ugly?

Subjective — proportions. I hate most car designs— either too round, unaesthetic, ugly colors, and not stylish. Fortunately most cars now in 2021 are far more aesthetically well designed (Hyundai, Genesis, Kia, BMW, Lexus, Toyota, Honda) all pretty much look good now.

Ugly clothing?

What I wear affects my mood. Once again, very subjective here. I hate certain colors, textures, and anything that smells “vintage” and old. I like clean, crisp, vibrant, or just all black everything. I prefer a more futuristic and forward-facing design. Nike sneakers (NIKELAB), or even YEEZY sneakers.

Camera design

For the most part, I’m not a huge fan of Fujifilm camera designs (I feel the X100-series cameras try too hard to be faux Leica rangefinder cameras), although I like the more genuine XT-series designs for Fujifilm cameras (more honest design). I’m not a huge fan of any Leica camera which isn’t an M camera (I don’t like the SL, or the Q— which look/are like Lumix hybrid cameras). Lumix cameras as very well designed, proportioned and functional (best UI/UX in cameras). RICOH GR and Pentax cameras (Pentax 645Z) are also great.

In terms of the aesthetics of a camera, it doesn’t need to be the “most beautiful” design (Leica M), it just needs to not offend you, or not seem ugly to you!

DESIGN THOUGHTS

hand red black macro ERIC KIM