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Web Design Worldview (Archive)

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  • October 14, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Video Series (Part 5): Morality and Ethics in Design

    This is the fifth and final part in the Mirificam Press Video Series. In part one and part two the definition of design was discussed. Then in part three we looked at the purpose of design. And in part four we considered the question, "What is good design?" Now, in this final session the subject of morality and ethics in design will be considered.

  • October 7, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Video Series (Part 4): What is Good Design?

    Part one, part two, and part three of this series have built a foundation for understanding design and its purpose. In this fourth part of the series that foundation will be used to answer this question: what is good design?

  • September 30, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Video Series (Part 3): The Purpose of Design

    Part one and part two of this series focused on the definition of design and the Christian view of design. In this third part the focus shifts from the definition of design to the purpose of design. Why do we design? What is the real goal of our vocation?

  • September 23, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Video Series (Part 2): The Christian View of Design

    In part one of the Mirificam Press Video Series, we looked at the definition of design. In this second part we will be considering the the Christian view of design and how it satisfies the inconsistencies we discussed in part one.

  • September 16, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Video Series (Part 1): What is Design?

    In this first part of the Mirificam Press Video Series the question of the definition of design is explored. Four definitions from famous modern designers are considered along with a short discussion of the divorce of function from form. The full series is available on DVD at MirificamPress.com.

  • April 22, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Getting to the Particulars: What This Christian Designer Believes and Why

    "Tell me in detail what you believe and why." This is the request I received from an old high school friend a few weeks ago on Facebook and I have to admit it locked me up. After looking over my profile, this friend expressed surprise that I was attending a liturgical church. We went back and forth a little and finally she asked me if I would please explain in detail what I believe and why. "Oh, that's easy." I thought, and I started typing out my response. After all, I write a blog about worldview. Every week I go to great lengths researching topics, searching for truth, examining historical Christian positions on a myriad of topics. This will be a breeze. But instead of the free-flowing response I expected, I found myself in an intellectual stutter. I typed and retyped the first sentence several times and eventually found myself at a total standstill. Finally I responded, "Let me think about it and I'll get back with you."

  • April 15, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Grunge Design: Why It's Cool to be Broken and Disheveled

    In a recent 5 for Friday post I received a question from Hungarian designer Steve Herrmann: "Why is the visual appearance of NetGen broken and disheveled? Look at their page layout, their typography, images, clothing, mismatched styles, hairstyles,...Why?" In the past I've analyzed the worldview behind various design movements, but I've tried to stick to the ones that were very apparently berthed from a particular philosophy. It is easy, for example, to look at the fathers of the De Sijl movement and quickly deduce the connection between their philosophy and its practical outworking. But dissecting modern design trends is much more complicated. An oil-and-water-like mixture of postmodernism and pragmatism has made a tangled mess of the philosophical waters. In order to accomplish the task, we'll have to take look back at one of the cognates of postmodernism, twentieth century existentialism. But first I'm going to clear up some common oversimplifications Christians are often guilty of concerning grunge styles.

  • February 25, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Design with Humility / Design with Conviction

    The Christian life is one of great paradox. We glory in the image of God stamped on our souls and yet weep at the thought of our sinful brokenness. We cling to life as God's most precious gift but are prepared to cast it away without hesitation. At once we laugh at the utter subjectiveness of the relativist and yet count our personal relationship with Christ our most prized possession. This is a unique characteristic of Christianity and, if we are honest, it is the very essence of existence. There is one such paradox that is key to the design vocation: the paradox of humility and conviction.

  • February 11, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Modern Trends: The Truth is in the Comments

    The recent explosion of social features on the internet has given us access to a representative slice of culture we've never been able to see before. I've seen this most intimately in the form of blog comments on Mirificam Press, and I think I've come to understand the state of Christian designers better through these interactions. Recently, I stumbled upon a Solon blog called World O' Crap that reminded me of all the comment adventures I've had in the past year or so. The blog post was about an organization called the Nehemiah Institute. And, being a solon blog, World O' Crap was ruthlessly critical of the organization and its Christian worldview test. The article was poorly written and littered with typos but it at least stopped short of calling for the systematic extermination of all Christians (how tolerant). The commenters were not so tolerant. Here's what one of the authors of Blondsense had to say in the comment section:

  • January 28, 2009 in Web Design Worldview

    Love the Lord Your God with All Your Design

    Most westerners (even non-Christians) are familiar with the famous Bible passage in which Jesus explains that the greatest commandment is to "love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. The second", he goes on to explain, "is like it: love your neighbor as yourself." Well, we're all at least familiar with the second half. It is after all the "golden rule". But without the first part, the second part is a flimsy piece of secular moralism. I suppose if your purpose in studying the Bible is to find support for a system you already have in place, ripping out the first half of Jesus' speech is perfectly satisfactory. An honest search for truth, however, could never settle for the second greatest commandment. We need the first and the second.

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