Skeuomorphism is a word derived from two Greek terms “skeuos” (meaning container or a tool) and “morphē ” (meaning shape), it’s a concept of implementing real-life elements into the digital world to create a sense of familiarity or resemble a real-life object in the digital world.
What Is Skeuomorphism?
Types of Skeuomorphism
There are no proper classifications of Skeuomorphism but you might find two different variations in terms of the design of Skeuomorphic graphics or illustrations.
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Physical Skeuomorphism: Physical skeuomorphic designs usually mean to incorporate real-life objects into the digital world, this includes replicating the exact look and feel of the object and mainly focusing on colour, shape and textures. The classical example can be using materials to replicate “Leather and Wood”. The Physical skeuomorphic designs are mostly in use in Operating Systems and Games and give it real-life functions to make the platform more approachable for users and have an easier transition from older platforms and versions.
The Physical Skeuomorphic designs are also called the “aesthetic” skeuomorphism which is just a pure copy of a real-life object, for example, the camera icon on your smartphone which is a direct copy of a real-life camera or a calculator icon. However, due to bland textures and color effects the physical skeuomorphic designs are felt outdated and hence there is a transition to the newer kind of Skeuomorphic designs called “Digital and Functional” skeuomorphic designs. -
Digital and Functional Skeuomorphism: The digital Skeuomorphism, on the other hand, focuses more on textures, visual effects, a blend of colors and innovation rather than just being a simple copy of a real-life element, this has made the designs much more attractive rather than just being a copy of a real-life elements. This design has unlocked developers to make designs more interactive and enable the use of more animations.
The other popular type of Skeuomorphism is the “functional” skeuomorphism most commonly found on the IOS clock icon graphic where the clock hand position is always synchronized with your local time, these features act more as a brand value rather than the functionality.
Applications of Skeuomorphic Designs
- User Interface Design: Skeuomorphic designs are highly employed in designing interactive user interfaces to create user-friendly experiences and designs, elements such as buttons, sliders, and icons are mostly inspired by real-world elements.
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Mobile Applications and Gaming: Mobile applications need textures, colours, shadows and animations and hence these designs are implemented to make the platform more realistic and interactive making the users feel more connected to the digital platforms. The most common reason brands add such designs is to give the user a sense of premium-ness of the product or to introduce a sense of familiarity with the real-life objects. Another field where Skeuomorphic designs are implemented is the gaming industry where real-life objects like TVs, cars, wallpapers, and background scenery are frequently used to represent real-life objects which enhances the user’s overall gaming experience.
These designs help in improving the learning curve of the users who are unfamiliar with a specific digital working environment or a tool, these graphics help in bridging such gaps. - Iconography: Icons play a very pivotal role in “user interfaces” and designers always try to make icons more recognizable and relatable, the biggest example is the “Recycle Bin” icon on all operating systems that mimics a waste bin in real life.
Drawbacks of Skeuomorphic Designs
Despite designs being attractive and improving user experience the drawbacks can’t be ignored, there are some important points that we must consider before implementing such designs
- Clutter: Overusing such designs creates clutter on the application’s UI and destroys user experience with unnecessary details and designs.
- Impact on the device: Such designs demand unwanted usage of both memory and processor which may slow down the device put pressure on other sensors and result in long-term problems with the device and applications.
- Overdoing Skeuomorphic designs: Implementing these designs on simple applications is not always suitable, it is always recommended to avoid it in unwanted situations, example these designs may not be meaningful for your phone’s Weather application as this doesn’t have only one single physical counterpart and is expected to keep it simple.
Skeuomorphism vs Flat Design
Skeuomorphism is an exact replication of a real-world object, but what do you call an object that is similar to a real-life object but not an exact recreation? Yes, we call it “Flat Design” and a great example of it is the logo of “Instagram” which is based on a real-life camera, other examples would be the logos of Gmail and Telegram.
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Conclusion
In con, caution Skeuomorphic designs are being implemented on a very large scale trying to bring the digital world close to the objects of real life, they are used to enhance user experience and also add an essence of premiumness for the users. It’s not wrong to consider “Flat Designs” as a creative outcome of Skeuomorphism.