Why think about structure #

First focus: practical introduction #

There are many concepts to build from while practicing information architecture. I have two that delight me beyond all others: people using information, and the structures.

The first, people using information, is a very complicated subject, and is the bulk of this book. And frankly, information structures have become such an implicit part of how I look at things that it won’t be as understandable without the fundamental blueprint. 

So, the fundamental blueprint it is: the palette for building information structures. In my mind, they are truly just the basics: black, white, red, yellow, and blue pigments that can be mixed to form the shades needed. And, yeah, not everyone will be able to get particular shades succinctly, and some of the resulting shades might be loosely representative.

This is fundamentals, though. Through fundamentals we start understanding how to mix purple from red and blue. Lighten that purple to lavender with white, darken it to an aubergine with black, develop a tonal with both black and white, add the smallest touch of yellow to make it earthy.

It’s a common practice in art to restrict palettes to truly understand color; to restrict to black and white to understand form and light. There were weeks in my early studio classes where we weren’t allowed to draw a line, and weeks where we only drew lines. There’s freedom, clarity, and confidence that comes from exploring and truly understanding the viability of fundamentals. That viability becomes not only how they are “supposed” to be used according to their overt and simplistic strengths, but how they can be used to form unexpected strengths and nuanced expression.

Expertise does not blossom in following the rote patterns of what someone else has laid out as how-it’s-done. Bringing it back to art, color-by-number is absolutely viable as a part of a learning curve, but moves out of mind many cognitive loads and decisions. Once the particular learning curve is managed, color-by-number is only be useful for replication and speed, and maybe to build shaky confidence or avoid risk. To truly become an expert, you have to be willing to make your own color decisions, learn the unique qualities of different art mediums, develop your own lines and forms, and how to build shade and light from color and texture. There is joy to be found in staring at the abyss of a white page, knowing that the potential is unconstrained.

Part of moving to the white abyss is not only the freedom of the blank page, but also learning how to critically think about your own work. Mistakes will happen and require rework; how can it be fixed, who has information, and how can they share it and their understanding? Some mistakes might even become “happy accidents” that can be learned and folded into intention.

These last two paragraphs are learning curves that never really end. Navigating them well is eased by really understanding the fundamentals.

Someone else might have a different set of what they consider fundamentals in information architecture. Try to draw something, and you’ll understand it takes more than just familiarity with pencil and paper, but also your own mind. We build continually.