ARTICLE SUMMARY: In the beginning graphic design was easy to understand, put simply, Encyclopedia Britannica defines graphic design as “the art and profession of selecting and arranging visual elements — such as typography, images, symbols, and colors — to convey a message to an audience.” Sounds easy enough to understand.

But as time marches on and as technological advances are made things change, processes change, terminology changes, conventions change. But there’s an old saying, “the more things change the more they stay the same.”

THE CHEAT SHEET TO STARTUP GRAPHIC DESIGN ROLES” by Jovan Rocanov is a look back at the beginnings of graphic design and what it has morphed into today. In reality not much has changed at all, the basics remain pretty much the same. Jovan Rocanov‘s focus is to clear up the misconceptions and clarifying what graphic design is today. To help explain he looks at

  • Graphic Design now and then
  • Graphic Design core functions
  • The three core skills define its practitioner

This article shows that no matter what technological advances are made in design, no matter what the new terminology may be used to reflect that new technology, you need to look at the core skills you use to correctly identify and classify what you are, a graphic designer.

Jovan Rocanov does a great job helping us understand graphic design from a historical perspective.

Let us know what you think in the comments.