Music As Design Inspiration: Examples and Challenges

I have access to various sources when it comes to finding design inspiration. The internet is a great place to start, with Pinterest offering artboards and social media platforms artists use to showcase their work. I often browse through these platforms to get ideas for creating my artwork. I also refer to art books and typography guides, but sometimes they can be too expensive or difficult to find, especially for specialized topics.

Personally, I find music to be a great source of inspiration. I love the different genres, the beautiful lyrics and sounds, and the art form of sheet music. I have been a part of choirs, musicals, and marching bands and have enjoyed every moment of it. There is so much to music that people tend to overlook.

I use music to inspire my artwork. Listening to music allows me to imagine different motifs and scenes that can be applied to my designs. The lyrics, beat, or vibe of a song can help me come up with concepts and ideas. Listening to music also helps me remember ideas that I have and need to put down on paper.

One example of my design work is my House of Cards project. I based it on a song called Cabinet Man by Lemon Demon, which has a retro game feel to it. I had to use my interpretation of the song to create a design system for my cards.

However, using music as design inspiration can be challenging. It takes a lot of effort to create a visual representation of the music, and there are often multiple interpretations of lyrics and musical notes. This can make it difficult for others to understand the meaning behind your design work without context. Moreover, music is primarily an auditory experience, making it more challenging to visualize the idea, especially if it is instrumental.

Despite these challenges, music helps me create a concept and tell a story through my design work, and I highly recommend it to others. Using a song to solve a design problem can be a fun and exciting challenge. I encourage everyone to try it out by selecting a favorite song that inspires visual motifs and creating a set of products or packaging with it.