Proposed by the architect Mies van der Rohe: "Less is more." But it is by no means as simple as a blank sheet of paper, which makes you feel empty and has no design at all.
Mies van der Rohe adhered to the architectural design philosophy of "less is more" and advocated a new concept of flowing space in terms of processing techniques. Every detail in his design works has been streamlined to an irreducible absolute level. The structure of many works is almost completely exposed, but their nobility and elegance have sublimated the structure itself into architectural art. The Seagram Building is the world's first high-rise glass-enclosed building. It demonstrates the "less is more" principle proposed by Mies. Many internal facilities were also handled by Mies and his apprentice Philip Johnson. The square in front of the building occupies about half of the base, which was also a first for the time. After modernism was brought to the United States, many works were practiced in conjunction with the power of capitalists. Due to its simplicity in form and easy imitation, it quickly affected all parts of the world and also influenced design in other fields. Hence the name "International Style". However, the International Style no longer lacks the social ideals and critical spirit of the early modernist Wudang style. And later imitators may not pay as much attention to detail as Mies. But modernism has reached its peak.
In the early days of the Internet, the amount and sources of information were relatively small, and people were hungry for information in this emerging world. The form of the current Internet is very different from that in the early days. Most of the information comes from the interaction between people, and all kinds of information have truly exploded. People's requirements for information are also increasing, and they are beginning to choose more valuable content. This selection process is also tiring due to the explosion of information. In the world of the Internet, Google is a typical example of simplicity. It has never been widely praised or praised by people visually. Underneath its simple appearance, it is a practical and effective service. The algorithm of the most commonly used search engine in the background is even more complex. And diversity, for example, in-site search in large foreign professional websites already has a relatively mature information architecture support, while in China, it still focuses on full-text search, or competes for user groups through new application functions. This approach is also the same as that of GOOGLE, which continuously enriches its product line. After Google defeated its competitors, it realized that it was difficult to maintain its vitality with a single product and technology, and its strategy was to keep its existing products leading the way and enrich its various innovative products and service chains. It became part of our work and life.
Although the idea that less is more is widely recognized in the design circle, most domestic designers have little say or are unable to effectively convince others to gain recognition. They are more positioned to do things, or to meet visual needs within specifications. In the past three years, the promotion of UCD in China has been very effective. Less is more is also a frequently mentioned topic. However, this popularity is within the industry. How can it be effectively spread by the majority of designers and then be used by others? It's definitely important.
The idea that less is more has been talked about in China for several years, and its development is also adapting to more specific needs and guidance details. For interactive pages, we want users to be uninterrupted. Provide a more unified usage standard in terms of page performance. The visual design does not only consider the exquisiteness and the taste of the bosses, but also selectively provides appropriate designs. We use some methods in UCD just to make our results just right. Maybe some works will be less gorgeous, but what we pursue are the highlights under the surface. Just like abstraction is the fundamental characteristic of philosophy. Many methods in UCD work have abstract identities. It is unlikely that we will use all methods in one piece of work, but we will fundamentally achieve a common goal. Bai Ya once mentioned that if he destroyed Alipay's UED department, he would have succeeded. This is not to say that UED should not have a dedicated department. UED should be a work that everyone participates in, so that they can perform best. The current important thing for the UED department is not only to do a good job in UED, but also to widely spread the culture of UED.
Editor in charge: Yang