Yesterday, I learned something new about design. While designing a page for a summer high school journalism workshop I coordinate here, I realized how flat my designs had become.
What I realize is that designing for younger audiences demands more unconventional treatment and design aesthetics than designing for older audiences.
As I was working, one of my photo design students, Ed, walked by. I asked him about the typography in the design and he immediately spotted a feeling of flatness in the original. Ed suggested outlining the red letters in yellow to make the design pop. Bingo.
It was clear to me that Ed was seeing the world through youthful eyes. Now I know that designing for younger audiences requires us to bring energy and dynamism to our work, even it if doesn't always hold with tradition.