Flat design is over. The longer term is vibrant and dimensional.
These aren’t my phrases. They’re Brian Chesky’s, CEO of Airbnb, after what can solely be described as a landmark redesign of the platform. A redesign stuffed with whimsical, animated, 3D icons and heat, tactile surfaces.
It’s at all times arduous to pinpoint when a paradigm shift occurs. Often, you solely acknowledge it in hindsight. iOS 7 in 2013 was one. These previous few weeks have felt like one other. The pendulum is swinging once more.
A few of us labored towards this shift for years, so I’ll simply say it:
We’re so again.
I instructed you so.
But when we’re actually coming into a brand new period of visible design, we’d like higher language for it.
I’ve by no means preferred the phrase skeuomorphism. A skeuomorph is when one thing digital borrows the idea of one thing bodily—like a trash can icon that appears like an actual bin, or a ebook app that flips pages like paper. However over time, skeuomorphic turned a catch-all for any design with depth, texture, or lighting—and that’s a mistake. A bin icon, at the same time as a flat glyph, remains to be a skeuomorph. It’s metaphor, not materials.
I’ve been in search of a greater phrase.
One thing that captures the dimensionality we’re starting to see.
Recently, I’ve been utilizing the phrase Diamorph.
It’s not meant to be a grand rebrand of design. A very invented phrase. A working title for a method that embraces depth, texture, and lightweight. To not mimic the actual world, however to create one thing that feels native to the display. One thing expressive. Playful.
Diamorph (adj.): dimensional design that embraces depth, mild, texture, and hierarchy—native to the display, expressive by intent.
Diamorphism (n.): a rising tendency towards intentional dimensionality—layered, tactile, digital-first, and stuffed with character.
Perhaps it sticks. Perhaps it doesn’t. However it’s been useful for me to present this shift a reputation whereas we work out the place it’s heading.
If skeuomorphic design is performative, and flat design is reductive, possibly Diamorph is one thing else completely—much less about phantasm, extra about belonging.
No matter you name it, it’s clear one thing is shifting. We’ve felt it constructing for some time: Huge Sur icons, the numerous -phism experiments, playful micro-interactions, richer lighting fashions—it’s been constructing in waves. However now it’s breaking via.
And with it, we lastly get to maneuver previous the drained flat-vs-skeuo binary. It’s time to create space for one thing new.
I received’t be shocked if WWDC in a few weeks introduces some type of materials injection into the digital surfaces Apple controls.
There’s additionally an fascinating facet story right here, one which may assist gas the adoption of this new paradigm—and sure, you guessed it: AI.
After Airbnb confirmed off their redesign, the web exploded with mushy, dimensional, extremely detailed icon units prompted into existence utilizing generative AI instruments.
Again within the early 2000s, UI design like this had a excessive ability ceiling. It took years to grasp lighting, supplies, and depth. Now? That stage of craft is commonly only a immediate away.
I may mourn that—or I may have a good time the truth that the model I’ve championed for years is lastly inside attain for everybody.
Ultimately, I’ve at all times labored towards extra enjoyable and playful interfaces—and I believe we’re about to see much more of them.
It’s surprisingly straightforward to get stable outcomes when producing dimensional icons with AI. These retro consoles I grew up with have been created utilizing ChatGPT picture prompts, then flippantly cleaned up in Photoshop.
I’ve been crafting this model by hand for practically twenty years. These aren’t good, however they’re hitting the “ok” mark for a lot of use instances.
AI handles supplies, lighting, and coloration surprisingly properly. Perspective, proportions, and consistency throughout a set? Nonetheless a problem. Most require a little bit of artifact cleanup and a sanity examine. (No, that’s not how a controller connects to a SNES.)
However with clear backgrounds and a little bit of finesse, they’re usable. Generally even production-ready. On the very least, they’re a powerful base for additional refinement.
It lowers the barrier to entry for this type of design. I did a fast mockup of a game-collecting macOS app utilizing these icons.
Like lots of different artists, I’ve blended emotions in regards to the course of. However I’ve at all times been pragmatic about instruments. And if I deal with AI as simply that: a software, not a shortcut to the ultimate end result—then there’s nonetheless lots of room for craft, style, and care.
In a super world, AI is a creativity maximiser. It lowers the bar however raises the ceiling.
I nonetheless consider core design expertise matter. Perhaps greater than ever. The basics we realized by doing this by hand: composition, lighting, depth, style, nonetheless apply.
Instruments might change, however style is tough to faux.
We’re standing on the fringe of a brand new visible language: one which’s expressive, emotional, and unapologetically digital. Diamorphic design isn’t a throwback, and it’s not simply ornament. It’s a step ahead.
And with instruments like AI decreasing the barrier to entry, we’re about to see extra individuals than ever be part of the dialog.
No matter we name it (Diamorph or in any other case), I’m simply glad to see interfaces getting extraordinary once more. We’re not going again. We’re going ahead—with depth, with texture, and possibly even with a bit of pleasure.
The longer term is vibrant, dimensional—and it’s already occurring.
Sponsor
Wish to sponsor an version of my publication? Should you’ve acquired a product, app or service you assume my design-focused viewers (~40k subscribers, ~30k opens per subject) would genuinely take pleasure in, this might be your likelihood to succeed in them in a significant approach.
Every sponsorship consists of a picture, some pleasant textual content, and a transparent button to convey readers proper to your door.
