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Where creativity meets accessibility

Where creativity meets accessibility

Accessibility in design has been given a bad rap in the past. Uninspiring. Boring, even. Designers challenged this when the creative industry embraced web design in the Web 2.0 era. At the time, they flipped the narrative - proving that when it came to user experience, accessibility provided a creative opportunity rather than a constraint.

Melting away misconceptions


The myth that accessibility inhibits creativity melted fast when designers understood that accessibility didn’t mean watering down creative genius, it meant expanding it. It’s complementary.
 

Recent projects like Alain de Saint Louvent’s “Understanding Accessibility” platform are proving the point. The platform equips designers with a tool to guide creativity with accessibility in their work from the very start, allowing them to harness their creative spark and include these requirements in the design process from the get-go. 

Marianne Waite, the inclusive design guru at Interbrand, notes:

"We’ve seen in the last few years people and brands are trying to break down this tension... and we’re seeing beautiful things as a result."



every design decision we make has the power to include or exclude

The Designer’s responsibility


Designing with accessibility ensures creative work is relevant and engaging - for everyone.


The recent
D&AD Festival held a masterclass with Sightsavers that focused on design choices, where they powerfully stated, “we create disability through our choices as designers.” Let that sink in. In other words, every design decision we make has the power to include or exclude, and this is key to understanding the importance of what we take away from people when we’re not taking their needs into consideration from the beginning. 


we create disability through our choices as designers

Brands lead from the front


Big brands have stepped up and led from the front, and they’ve been doing it for a while. Think about Apple’s design ethos for a moment – it showcases the marriage of accessibility with desirability. And loads of brands are trying to emulate that concept. They’ve set the bar high - rightfully - proof that inclusive design can be aesthetic, functional
and hugely popular. To Apple, it’s synonymous with quality and creativity. 


Brands have shown us over time that it’s not just a trend, it’s the standard, and it’s expected.

Future-proofing creativity


Alain de Saint Louvent hits the nail on the head:

"If your project isn’t accessible from the beginning, it means that it’s going to become obsolete quite quickly."


Whether wilfully or not, ignoring accessibility is like building a sandcastle too close to the tide. Sooner or later, the tide will come in and you’ll be left with regret. And the need for a costly redesign.

A golden opportunity for better creativity


Accessible design doesn't impose limitations: it opens doors to better designs. It’s an essential component of creativity. With it, creatives not only expand their audience, but elevate their work. Without it they impose limitations on their work and its exposure, and it’s an appreciable reminder - one that reiterates what accessibility really is: a golden opportunity for better creativity.


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