{"id":10659,"date":"2020-02-20T14:29:56","date_gmt":"2020-02-20T19:29:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.brainstation.io\/?p=10659"},"modified":"2021-01-28T15:31:48","modified_gmt":"2021-01-28T20:31:48","slug":"ux-design-vs-graphic-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/ux-design-vs-graphic-design","title":{"rendered":"UX Design vs. Graphic Design"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Graphic design and UX design have elements in common, starting with their names \u2014 but the two roles also have some big differences when it comes to the focus and responsibilities.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since the dawn of history, people have been using graphic design as a way to get a message across, be it modern logos and branding or ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

UX design also has its roots in centuries-old approaches for figuring out how products resonate with the public. But it\u2019s also a role that\u2019s distinctly rooted in our high-tech age, where the graphics are just one piece of the equation when it comes to building digital offerings.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, it wasn\u2019t until 1995 that the job title even existed. Don Norman<\/span> is thought to be the first \u201cuser experience\u201d professional after he asked for the moniker upon joining Apple to help research and design a new line of human-centered products. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So what\u2019s the overlap between the two roles? And how, exactly, do they differ \u2014 and complement \u2014 each other?<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is Graphic Design?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Traditionally, graphic design focuses on branding, typography, and the overall principles of design composition: shapes, lines, colors and the overall aesthetic. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThrough their craft, graphic designers inspire emotions and responses,\u201d <\/span>writes Designer Farhan Khan<\/span><\/a> on LinkedIn. \u201cA Graphic Designer will know that users will respond very differently to text written in the much-maligned Comic Sans font as opposed to in old-fashioned Courier New font.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a role that you\u2019ll find at an advertising firm, designing an array of print or digital marketing materials like banner ads, business cards, and flyers. It\u2019s also a job that\u2019s integral to many web design companies, with graphic designers often creating logos or icons that feed into the work of web designers and developers.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also typically about static graphics \u2014 not interactive elements on a website or animations.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cProjects typically have a very defined scope and budget in mind,\u201d notes multi-disciplinary Designer Christine Maggi on her YouTube channel <\/span>DesignGal<\/span>, with client specifications being clear on the vision and requirements, be it nitty-gritty details like page margins or dimensions or bigger-picture elements like the final deadline.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Graphic design, given its narrow focus, is just one piece of user experience design.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is UX Design?<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Graphic Designers are typically focusing on individual outputs \u2014 say, a newly-redesigned corporate logo \u2014 UX Designers are looking at the bigger picture of how all the moving pieces in a product work together and how users interact with it.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For UX experts, it\u2019s also not just about how a product, app or website looks, though that\u2019s an important aspect. It\u2019s about how customers experience it.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUX Designers tend to be concerned with three primary factors \u2014 usability, look, and feel,\u201d <\/span>writes Nick Babich<\/span><\/a> for Adobe\u2019s blog.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That makes it a \u201chuman-first\u201d approach to design that\u2019s all about creating products that people can experience with ease and delight, he adds. \u201cUX design is the process of enhancing user satisfaction by improving the usability, accessibility, and pleasure provided in the interaction between the user and the product.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gaining that insight means layers of research, prototyping, and testing, making it a role that often stretches far beyond the straightforward scope of graphic design projects.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA given design problem has no single right answer,\u201d writes Khan. \u201cUX Designers explore many different approaches to solving a specific user problem.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Differences Between Graphic Design and UX Design<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

They\u2019re very different jobs, no doubt, but the two roles often work closely. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can think of it like your experience at a restaurant: A Graphic Designer would make the logo, designed the window displays, and created the menu and branding. A UX Designer would keep an eye on all those things too \u2014 while also researching and evaluating the way customers use the space, and how they feel about their experience interacting with all the elements at play.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In other words, there\u2019s lots of overlap. UX Designers rely on the skills of Graphic Designers to make projects come to life, and both approaches are often crucial on modern digital teams.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also not uncommon for Designers to bounce between these job titles over their career, particularly once they\u2019ve expanded their skillset with UX design courses<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Graphic design and UX design have elements in common \u2014 but the two roles also have some big differences when it comes to the focus and responsibilities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":10661,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[158,157],"tags":[111,216,1076,190,546,122],"yoast_head":"\nUX Design vs. Graphic Design | BrainStation\u00ae Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Graphic design and UX design have elements in common \u2014 but the two roles also have some big differences when it comes to the focus and responsibilities.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/ux-design-vs-graphic-design\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta 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