ANYI SUN
LEGENDARY INTERVIEW
Design Legends ("DL") had the distinct honour to interview legendary designer Anyi Sun ("AS") for their original perspective and innovative approach to design as well as their creative lifestyle, we are very pleased to share our interview with our distinguished readers.
DL: Could you please tell us a bit about your design background and education?
AS : I have an education background in Psychology. After graduation, I started to be really interested in design and therefore pursued a career in user experience design.
DL: What motivates you to design in general, why did you become a designer?
AS : I love creating things. The process of bringing an idea to life is amazing to me. I also enjoy designing things that are valuable to people.
DL: What do you design, what type of designs do you wish to design more of?
AS : I usually design user experience and interface for mobile apps and websites. I would love to work on more projects using cutting edge technology such as AR and VR.
DL: What distinguishes between a good designer and a great designer?
AS : Great designers constantly do reflections - what they are good at, what they need to improve, where do they see their career goes. Then they create actions to address these reflections. They are always in the loop of self-assessment and improvement.
DL: What is the value of good design? Why should everyone invest in good design?
AS : Good design brings delight among customers and delivers business values. Good designs are usually very simple yet clever, and therefore gets positive feedback from customers.
DL: What is your secret recipe of success in design, what is your secret ingredient?
AS : Doing enough upfront user/customer research is critical. To create anything good, you need to understand the people who will be using your product and design and know their pain points and goals.
DL: How could people improve themselves to be better designers, what did you do?
AS : I observe how other designers work, which includes their design process, design artifacts, and the final output. From these observations, I gain insights into how I can improve my own process and be inspired.
DL: How do you define design, what is design for you?
AS : Designing is the process of creating something functional while bringing delight to its users.
DL: What helped you to become a great designer?
AS : My mixed background in other fields helped me gain different perspectives on how things work. For example, I've worked in other industries and I got to see different problems faced by people, and I was able to incorporate these insights with my design.
DL: How do you think designers should present their work?
AS : Designers should not only showcase their final design output but also display their design process. People are often curious about what goes on behind the scene, and providing them this information may add additional context to your design.
DL: How does design help create a better society?
AS : Designers have the ability to create experience and solve problems people face. It is therefore important for us to spend our energies on tackling problems and creating designs that are impactful and beneficial to the society and environment. We have the skills and knowledge to make a positive change.
DL: What would you like to see changed in design industry in the coming years?
AS : More focus on inclusive design and accessibility.
DL: When you have a new design project, where do you start?
AS : My design starts with user research. This is a critical first step for me, as I believe good design stems from a good understanding of your market.
DL: What is the role of technology when you design?
AS : Because I am a user experience designer, most of my work involves designing digital experience. Therefore, I use a lot of different software to create mockups and prototypes.
DL: When you see a new great design or product what comes into your mind?
AS : The design process - what steps they took to arrive at the conclusion. The background of the designer - what education and professional background the designer have.
DL: Which people you interacted had the most influence on your design?
AS : The people who are potential users of my design. I can often get so many insights from talking to them, and understand their goals and needs. They can also provide me feedback on my design.
DL: How did you develop your skills as a master designer?
AS : I like doing projects where I get to practice my design skills. I also enjoy learning from other designers.
DL: When you were a little child, was it obvious that you would become a great designer?
AS : It was obvious that design was a great passion of mine. I enjoyed browsing design websites and learning about design processces. I even designed website banners while in high school
