Colton Zuvich is a designer & information scientist

He gives shape to dense information environments crafting technical instruments which render complex workflows stylish & intelligible

Founding Designer @Foley

Philosophy

  1. Start at the Information Layer

    Information is at the heart of an interface - the glyphs, marks, and symbols meaningfully arranged into schemas help make sense of the system. It is the underlying structure which permeates every product surface. A cohesive architecture helps implicitly explain what a tool can do & where affordances reside.

  2. Context is Everything

    Products never exist in a black box, but in dynamic & cybernetic environments. Designers should seek to understand the political, social, and economic context(s) where a product may be used. Who is the person behind the screen? Where are they? Why are they using it?

  3. Thoughtful Care is Always Remembered

    Solving a problem for purely utilitarian & functional purposes is not enough. People can always feel - deep in their bones - when a tool was crafted with them in mind, subtly anticipating their needs. I believe good design scales care. Jony Ive would agree.

  4. Unlearn → To Learn

    Leave preconceived notions on the field. The beginners mind may construct new realities from first principles. Unconventional approaches & new interface patterns tends to vie against the madding crowd.

  5. Tools contain worldviews

    McLuhan’s seminal quip, “We shape our tools, and thereafter our tools shape us” suggests that a tool embeds a value-structure. Opinions from its makers on how we ought to live. Designers should be careful to embed values which make the world a better place.

  6. Subtraction is (usually) the answer

    When faced with ambiguity designers tend to add & add & add. Addition bloats & complicates. Subtraction forces clarity - what is truly the essence of this problem?

  7. The design lies in the edit

    “The more you produce, your character or your talent will emerge (for better or for worse). Your identity, your personality, your vision, whatever … You’ll be able to edit something that becomes who you are.” - Rick Owens

  8. Design is Both an Art & A Science

    We can study the socio-psychological quirks of a user & their interaction with a system - a/b testing & tweaking forever. Yet, the functional result can still remain soulless. A product should bear the soul of its maker.

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