Steven Bradley, 2010, smashingmagazine.com

[https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/03/does-form-follow-function/]

Form follows function is a design aesthetic that encourages design to be grounded on the functional, useful forms inherent in the application. This avoids gratuitous decoration but elevates the human task and the meaning of the object as the principle aesthetic.

Wainwright Building by Louis Sullivan, 1981

Modernism in architecture emerged from both principles, “form follows function”(Louis Sullivan, 1896) and “ornament is a crime” (Adolf Loos, 1908). Its goal was to determine the form of a building solely from functional requirements and not traditional aesthetics.

The Bauhaus, founded 1919 by Walter Gropius, was in some ways a reaction against the emotional expressionism of the time, and its design aesthetic was based on simple forms, clean lines, rationality and, of course, functionality.

Marcel Breuer, four side tables, 1926

Interpreting “form follows function”

There are two ways to interpret the phrase “form follows function”:

• Descriptive: beauty results from purity of function. The descriptive interpretation favors simplicity to complexity. It states that beauty results from purity of function and not from ornamentation.
• Prescriptive: aesthetic considerations in design should be secondary to functional considerations. The prescriptive interpretation prioritizes functionality over all other design considerations, including usability, ergonomics and aesthetics.

Success Criteria

A better question than asking for either form or function might be asking for success. What aspects of you design are critical to success? Both function and form can guide design. More often, both follow something else. Ultimately, you need to define your criteria for success, from which the design will evolve.

• Success criteria: Clock example

Applying “Form Follows Function” To Web Design

craigslist.com

What’s the function of a website? Does a website have a single function? The function of a blog is to communicate information. It might also be a means to deliver advertising or to generate leads to sell a service. An e-commerce website communicates information but also wants to sell products.

“Form follows function” might dictate that all e-commerce websites should look the same. But would you design a website for computer networking hardware and one for children’s toys to look exactly the same? Probably not.

Mother Ann Lee, founder of the Shaker movement in the 18ths century in America, proposed another idea. “Every force evolves a form.” Dynamic forces shape eventual forms. These forces could be functional or could be aesthetic, spiritual, communal or random.