Every powerful and brilliant machine has an engine that enables it to operate, develop and carry out all the functions it was designed for. Aircrafts have engines that generate mechanical power; computers have hard- and software that empower them to work. DesignContest is an impressive and versatile machine as well, which is why it also needs an engine in order to be functioning.
This engine consists of people who support this platform and make it progress. We decided to show a bit of the inner world of DesignContest to you through the introduction of one of the most important elements of our driving engine: our in-house designer, Lidiya Suslova. She is one of the most committed supporters of the project who has made the platform look the way it does now. Therefore, meet our Lidiya!
Lidiya, I know that you’re keen on interface design and really enjoy dealing with it. Is there any specific reason for this?
Interface is a language of communication between people and machines. When I was a kid, I was interested in how exactly computers are arranged; the way software is functioning and in which magical way PCs facilitate people’s daily routine. That’s why, when I was 9, I took up programming classes and found out I was far more excited about making my projects look beautiful on the screen; their “invisible†programming side took a backseat for me. Once, during my first programming competition at school, I devoted almost all my time to making my programming tasks look appealing, while it wasn’t the most significant criterion of our assessment. But it always seemed to be crucial for me.
Are there any projects that took loads of your energy and efforts?
DesignContest has been the most challenging and time-consuming project for me so far. This is a platform for creating designs on a competitive basis; a huge portal where thousands of designers find ambitious projects which are really fascinating to work on when they have a bit of free time and inspiration.
We had to make a vast number of pages stick to the common style of the project. The difficulty was also concealed in the fact that each page had a different outlook for each kind of users: clients, designers and non-registered visitors had to see the website in various ways. Every single page was created separately in three sizes: for desktops, tablets and phones in order to correspond with a responsive web design, which is why the number of layout drawings got tripled and the process itself took much more time that it was initially supposed to. In addition to that, we had to take care of keeping our 2 front-end developers busy all the time. In order to do that, we constantly had to negotiate, draw, coordinate and supply them with layout drawings. The time difference with our partners responsible for decision-making process didn’t facilitate the procedure as well. Sometimes we had to burn the midnight oil and held meetings till it got really late.
However, we had a clear and ambitious target, an ingenious and creative project and a wonderful team, which enabled us to overcome all the difficulties easily and, what’s more important, together. We succeeded in launching the project on time and are currently working on its new version!
Have you ever experienced troubles with getting down to business due to a lack of inspiration? If so, how did you manage to resolve them?
This is a rather philosophical question. I’m sure that such issues of seeking for inspiration and motivation can refer to any person and this doesn’t depend on the occupation. The most important is to have the job that inspires you and provokes to new achievements. Being professional in what you do means being passionate and loving what you do.
Sometimes, when you want to give up or don’t have any creative ideas, it’s better to get distracted, change your surrounding, take a walk or go to an exhibition, thirst for new impressions and communicate with people who motivate and spur you.
Also, I often get help from being eager to solve a set task; the divide-and-conquer rule in this case works perfectly, when one large task can be split into lots of smaller ones, which makes it possible to fulfil them step by step. And, of course, there is always music to get inspired from!
Is there any project in design you’d like to carry out?
I was always inspired by projects that deal with calligraphy, works of ancient and modern professionals. I’d really like to develop such talent and, of course, devote more attention to a creative work.
What makes you inspired in terms of your work?
I get inspired when the projects we work on get launched and start fulfilling their basic function in finding their audience and becoming useful for people.
 
We thank Lidiya for being an inexhaustible source of DesignContest’s inspiration.
DesignContest is the place where sophistication lives. We’re proud of being a real salvation for those who are overwhelmed with creativity or are seeking for it. Which is why, if you need to add some ingenuity into your life or want to present people with a hint of your own imagination, DesignContest welcomes you!
