The Web designer I am researching is Janne
Koivistoinen. He has a aesthetic somewhere between snapshot photography and minimalist.
He was born in a little factory city called Varkaus in Finland. He first started
working with computers when he was very young but had no Internet; instead
Koivistoinen explored Windows 95 “to see if there was anything I might have missed”.
As a teen he became very interested in Graffiti, an influence seen in may of
his commercial works with bold colors and a more urban feel. He started publicly posting graffiti inspired
art on Deviant Art.
He started using Photoshop when he was 14
and by the time he was 16 he launched his first website. In 2006 he had his
first commission, a website and rebranding for a Finnish rock festival. The
site was very successful and well liked.
He starts work by brainstorming
descriptions and words he wants to have in the site and then begins a sketch or
starts directly in Illustrator or Photoshop. He completes the layout, and
sometimes the entire design, in only a few hours.
He usually doesn’t have a plain background,
even when he does he uses lighting to attract attention to target links and
subtly add interest.
He likes to use the Fibonacci sequence, subtle gradients,
and the careful use of empty space. His
biggest recommendation for site designers who want to make money is simply “Put
Yourself in the buyer’s shoes”. He comments that organization of files is
necessary and that great commercial sites create emotion.
Sources
Douglass,
Drew. "Inside the Minds of 7 Great ThemeForest Designers: kuimu."
Janne Koivistoinen (kuimu).
http://blog.themeforest.net/general/inside-the-minds-of-7-great-themeforest-designers-kuimu/
(accessed November 22, 2013).
Koivistoinen, Janne. "I enjoy life as a Graphic
Designer." Janne Koivistoinen Portfolio RSS. http://janne.me/ (accessed
November 22, 2013).
