The ANTIDESIGN

Richard Scarry's Busy Town series was a memorable part of my siblings and my childhood. I think playing the Busy Town video game was the first time I really appreciated the design in something that I was using. The colors were so pleasing, so simple, and the user interface just sucked me into the game. I remember playing this game over and over again, and reading the Busy Town books with my brother.

I barely remember anything about the books or the game's plot, but I remember repeatedly going into the world to experience the characters and interact. I remember appreciating the layout of the map for the town. This was definitely one of the first times I even thought about things like that as a child. I noticed the pleasing thick black lines on the animation and the simplistic painterly look of the coloring within them. It mimicked my coloring books, and because of that it all felt very familiar. I know that I recognized this as a child because I don't have to go back and look at the game to remember exactly how the various scenes were pixelated. I remember which one's had a more painterly style and which parts were cell shaded. I noticed that the cats' fur was gradated  in some places, and I have the colors and sound effects from the game burned into my memory.

These memories of taking my first real look at the way that something was designed for me actually takes me back to the first things that i started using in design. To this day, I find thick lines to be a significant part of my work, and a mix of sharp line work with a watercolor paint is actually something I have been distinguished by. It's interesting to look back and see where my personal values in design may have actually originated.