---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: which artfully combines a complete lack…"
description: "\"“which artfully combines a complete lack of aesthetic quality with a total disregard for the utilitarian function for which it is built.”\" — Ben Aarono..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/ben-aaronovitch-3199_beauty_which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack_1554389.jpg"
---

#  which artfully combines a complete lack of aesthetic…

![“which artfully combines a complete lack of aesthetic quality with a total disregard for the utilitarian function for which it is built.” quote by Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/ben-aaronovitch-3199_beauty_which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack_1554389.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/ben-aaronovitch-3199_beauty_which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack_1554389.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/ben-aaronovitch-3199_beauty_which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack_1554389.jpg)

> ““which artfully combines a complete lack of aesthetic quality with a total disregard for the utilitarian function for which it is built.””

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The design is deliberately ugly and useless, highlighting a failure of both aesthetics and function.

**In simple terms:** Bad design ignores beauty and purpose.

Key Takeaway

Avoid creating useless, ugly things.

Themes

design criticism aesthetics functionality

Mood

critical analytical

Type

critical observational

When to use this quote

- product development
- architecture
- art criticism

Key Concepts

industrial design critical theory

Questions to Reflect On

- What purpose might a deliberately ugly design serve?
- When is function secondary to expression?

A Different Perspective

Sometimes simplicity is intentional, not a flaw.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Aesthetic Quality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aesthetic-quality-2153960/) [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Disregard Utilitarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disregard-utilitarian-5817448/) [Lack Aesthetic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lack-aesthetic-1410168/) [Total Disregard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/total-disregard-891618/) [Utilitarian Function](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/utilitarian-function-5817449/)

## Related quotes

> [“culminating in one of those formless red brick shopping centres which artfully combines a complete lack of aesthetic quality with a total disregard for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/culminating-in-one-of-those-formless-red-brick-shopping-centres-which/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [In addressing a task, one almost always has several possible options, sometimes only a few, and they may all be practical and functional. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arne-jacobsen/in-addressing-a-task-one-almost-always-has-several-possible-options/)

[Arne Jacobsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arne-jacobsen/)

> [I've found the secret of happiness, total disregard of everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashleigh-brilliant/i-ve-found-the-secret-of-happiness-total-disregard-of-everybody/)

[Ashleigh Brilliant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashleigh-brilliant/)

> [Like tornadoes and cold sores, good work happens with total disregard to whether I'm 'into it.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merlin-mann/like-tornadoes-and-cold-sores-good-work-happens-with-total-disregard/)

[Merlin Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merlin-mann/)

> [We've fallen into a trap of ever-widening orbits of contact, and there is a total disregard for the present moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-seinfeld/we-ve-fallen-into-a-trap-of-ever-widening-orbits-of-contact-and-there/)

[Jerry Seinfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-seinfeld/)

> [“He’d done it like he did everything else—with passion and total disregard for how much it might embarrass her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaylea-cross/he-d-done-it-like-he-did-everything-else-with-passion-and-total/)

[Kaylea Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaylea-cross/)

> [“Our attraction to that quality which we have come to call 'beauty', and which we associate with the detection of innate unity and harmony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-babbage/our-attraction-to-that-quality-which-we-have-come-to-call-beauty-and/)

[Charles Babbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-babbage/)

> [I don't have an interest in any car that isn't good for the environment, other than maybe an aesthetic quality in a picture book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/i-don-t-have-an-interest-in-any-car-that-isn-t-good-for-the/)

[Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/)

> [For you to sleep well at night, the aesthetic, the quality, has to be carried all the way through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/for-you-to-sleep-well-at-night-the-aesthetic-the-quality-has-to-be/)

[Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/)

> [Every subject at some phase of its development should possess, what is for the individual concerned with it, an aesthetic quality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/every-subject-at-some-phase-of-its-development-should-possess-what-is/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [“Any aesthetic quality is usually enhanced by the presence of a counterpoint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-frederick/any-aesthetic-quality-is-usually-enhanced-by-the-presence-of-a/)

[Matthew Frederick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-frederick/)

> [The aesthetic, the quality, has to be carried all the way through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-aesthetic-the-quality-has-to-be-carried-all-the-way-through/)

[Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/)

> [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/)

[John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/)

> [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

> [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/)

[Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/)

## More by Ben Aaronovitch

> [“He was from Yorkshire, or somewhere like that, and like many Northerners with issues, he'd moved to London as a cheap alternative to psychotherapy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/he-was-from-yorkshire-or-somewhere-like-that-and-like-many/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [“I left in a hurry before he could change his mind, but I want to make it clear that at no point did I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/i-left-in-a-hurry-before-he-could-change-his-mind-but-i-want-to-make/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [The general public have a warped view of the speed at which an investigation proceeds. They like to imagine tense conversations going on behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/the-general-public-have-a-warped-view-of-the-speed-at-which-an/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [“Something round and dirty and white was resting near my foot. It was a skull. I picked it up. ‘Is that you, Nicholas?’ I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/something-round-and-dirty-and-white-was-resting-near-my-foot-it-was-a/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [Coffee arrived and the espresso was excellent, like an aromatic electric fence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/coffee-arrived-and-the-espresso-was-excellent-like-an-aromatic/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [“Fuck me,' I said to Toby. 'We're living in Isengard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/fuck-me-i-said-to-toby-we-re-living-in-isengard/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [“Peter Grant,’ I said. ‘Recent arrival, slacker and man of very little fame.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/peter-grant-i-said-recent-arrival-slacker-and-man-of-very-little-fame/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [What do you think you're doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/what-do-you-think-you-re-doing/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [“My mum translated this in her head to "witchfinder," which was good because like most West Africans, she considered witchfinding a more respectable profession…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/my-mum-translated-this-in-her-head-to-witchfinder-which-was-good/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [“Right from the start Abigail used to moan and fidget as her hair was relaxed or braided or thermally reconditioned, but her dad was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/right-from-the-start-abigail-used-to-moan-and-fidget-as-her-hair-was/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [“The mark was from the glue that once held a folder into which a library card would have fitted back in the day when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/the-mark-was-from-the-glue-that-once-held-a-folder-into-which-a/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [It's a sad fact of modern life that if you drive long enough, sooner or later you must leave London behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/it-s-a-sad-fact-of-modern-life-that-if-you-drive-long-enough-sooner/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [This I know for a fact: the reason African women have children is so that there's someone else to do the housework.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/this-i-know-for-a-fact-the-reason-african-women-have-children-is-so/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [“There’s always a secret door,” I said. “That’s why you always need a thief in your party.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/there-s-always-a-secret-door-i-said-that-s-why-you-always-need-a/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [ You know, your species \[humans\] has the most amazing capacity for self-deception, matched only by its ingenuity in trying to destroy itself. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/you-know-your-species-humans-has-the-most-amazing-capacity-for-self/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

[Explore all 134 Ben Aaronovitch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

## More Beauty quotes

> [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/)

[Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/)

> [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

> [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/)

[John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/)

> [To fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity, and still be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tool/to-fathom-the-power-to-witness-the-beauty-to-bathe-in-the-fountain-to/)

[Tool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tool/)

> [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/)

[Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/)

> [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/)

[Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/)

> [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/)

[George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/)

> [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/)

[Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/)

> [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/)

[Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/)

> [“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-already-love-in-you-your-beauty-but-i-am-only-beginning-to-love-in/)

[Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/)

> [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/)

[Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/)

> [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/)

[Tumblr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tumblr/)

> [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/)

[William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/)

> [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/)

[Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/)

> [“What about you? What do you do?” I needed to ask questions, draw him out. I needed to find out all the information I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avery-ellison/what-about-you-what-do-you-do-i-needed-to-ask-questions-draw-him-out/)

[Kate Avery Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avery-ellison/)

[Browse all 24,662 Beauty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“which artfully combines a complete lack of aesthetic quality with a total disregard for the utilitarian function for which it is built.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Ben Aaronovitch"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack-of-aesthetic-quality-with-a/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Beauty"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack-of-aesthetic-quality-with-a/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/ben-aaronovitch-3199_beauty_which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack_1554389.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/ben-aaronovitch-3199_beauty_which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack_1554389.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/ben-aaronovitch-3199_beauty_which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack_1554389.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“which artfully combines a complete lack of aesthetic quality with a total disregard for the utilitarian…” — Ben Aaronovitch",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Ben Aaronovitch",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“which artfully combines a complete lack...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack-of-aesthetic-quality-with-a/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/which-artfully-combines-a-complete-lack-of-aesthetic-quality-with-a/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
