--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Design exists to serve some purpose." description: "\"Design exists to serve some purpose.\" — Paula Scher" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d44/paula-scher-7840_design_design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose-3193_3193297.png" --- # Design exists to serve some purpose. ![“Design exists to serve some purpose.” quote by Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d44/paula-scher-7840_design_design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose-3193_3193297.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d44/paula-scher-7840_design_design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose-3193_3193297.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d44/paula-scher-7840_design_design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose-3193_3193297.png) > “Design exists to serve some purpose.” [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Design should fulfill a functional purpose, not exist solely for aesthetics. **In simple terms:** Design must be useful. Key Takeaway Prioritize function in design work. Themes design functionality purpose utility Mood practical thoughtful Type professional inspirational When to use this quote - product development - branding projects - public signage - digital interfaces Key Concepts human-centered design pragmatism visual communication Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance purpose and beauty? - When does function become the sole focus? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on function can stifle creativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Design Exists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design-exists-1167849/) [Engineering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineering/) [Exists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exists/) [Exists Serve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exists-serve-5575962/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Serve Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serve-purpose/) ## Related quotes > [The Postal Service exists to serve every American, regardless of where you live or what you believe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-lamb/the-postal-service-exists-to-serve-every-american-regardless-of-where/) [Conor Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-lamb/) > [ So what is design all about? It \[exists to\] decrease the amount of vulgarity in the world ... to make the world a better… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/massimo-vignelli/so-what-is-design-all-about-it-exists-to-decrease-the-amount-of/) [Massimo Vignelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/massimo-vignelli/) > [Life, by which I mean my life, is a great, or probably the greatest, design, from its very beginning to its end, the end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kedar-joshi/life-by-which-i-mean-my-life-is-a-great-or-probably-the-greatest/) [Kedar Joshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kedar-joshi/) > [Art has no purpose. It exists for its own sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/art-has-no-purpose-it-exists-for-its-own-sake/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [Stories serve the purpose of consolidating whatever gains people or their leaders have made or imagine they have made in their existing journey thorough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/stories-serve-the-purpose-of-consolidating-whatever-gains-people-or/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [“I’ve found I still serve a purpose. I remind people to pray, to calculate the odds, to thank the fates, the gods, good karma,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-guzeman/i-ve-found-i-still-serve-a-purpose-i-remind-people-to-pray-to/) [Tracy Guzeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-guzeman/) > [“You have to change your environment to serve your purpose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ehab-atalla/you-have-to-change-your-environment-to-serve-your-purpose/) [Ehab Atalla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ehab-atalla/) > [Be above it! Make the world serve your purpose, but do not serve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/be-above-it-make-the-world-serve-your-purpose-but-do-not-serve-it/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Grace means that all of your mistakes now serve a purpose instead of serving shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bae/grace-means-that-all-of-your-mistakes-now-serve-a-purpose-instead-of/) [Bae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bae/) > [Signals from spirit all serve the same purpose; to give you back your life as a creator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/signals-from-spirit-all-serve-the-same-purpose-to-give-you-back-your/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [The sad truth is that there are some people who will only be there for you as long as you have something they need.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-john-maxwell/the-sad-truth-is-that-there-are-some-people-who-will-only-be-there/) [Darren John Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-john-maxwell/) > [Christmas is a time when God showed His love for us, and we're ready to show God's love in the communities where we live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-mcpherson/christmas-is-a-time-when-god-showed-his-love-for-us-and-we-re-ready/) [Miles McPherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-mcpherson/) > [People serve a purpose in your life. It doesn't have to be your forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larsa-pippen/people-serve-a-purpose-in-your-life-it-doesn-t-have-to-be-your-forever/) [Larsa Pippen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larsa-pippen/) > [“I walk with a purpose. And a limp. (The limp helps serve my purpose, which is to gain sympathy.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-walk-with-a-purpose-and-a-limp-the-limp-helps-serve-my-purpose/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Some shows just go away - and that's fine. They serve their purpose and their entertainment value, but there are shows that touch people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-cudlitz/some-shows-just-go-away-and-that-s-fine-they-serve-their-purpose-and/) [Michael Cudlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-cudlitz/) ## More by Paula Scher > [Your work gets destroyed by dumb people and it gets enhanced by smart people and it really doesn't have anything to do with marketing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/your-work-gets-destroyed-by-dumb-people-and-it-gets-enhanced-by-smart/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [What makes me say "wow" is usually something I haven't encountered, in a new way... something I haven't encountered before or something I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/what-makes-me-say-wow-is-usually-something-i-haven-t-encountered-in-a/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [I find that I'm at my least creative point when I am doing something that I've done in repetition and I know all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/i-find-that-i-m-at-my-least-creative-point-when-i-am-doing-something/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [I think Apple is a wonderful example of spectacular marketing and I love having my iPod. There are the naysayers who say that "nyah,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/i-think-apple-is-a-wonderful-example-of-spectacular-marketing-and-i/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [I've become much more interested in architecture than I've ever been.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/i-ve-become-much-more-interested-in-architecture-than-i-ve-ever-been/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [Some people are in stultifying environments where there are rigid rules and rituals and they need that to thrive, where other people are just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/some-people-are-in-stultifying-environments-where-there-are-rigid/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [Planning is design. As a designer what I tend to do, and what's different from being a painter, is that I interact with other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/planning-is-design-as-a-designer-what-i-tend-to-do-and-what-s/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [Great design is serious, not solemn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/great-design-is-serious-not-solemn/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [I love that the level of mediocrity rises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/i-love-that-the-level-of-mediocrity-rises/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [Words have meaning, type has spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/words-have-meaning-type-has-spirit/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [Beige is the color of indecision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/beige-is-the-color-of-indecision/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [To me what really matters is that it shouldn't matter to you what day of the week it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/to-me-what-really-matters-is-that-it-shouldn-t-matter-to-you-what-day/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [If people that made products didn't market them and sell them we'd have no economy and nobody would be working.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/if-people-that-made-products-didn-t-market-them-and-sell-them-we-d/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [Planning involves considering how other people may use something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/planning-involves-considering-how-other-people-may-use-something/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) > [I'm most proud of the fact that I get to keep growing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/i-m-most-proud-of-the-fact-that-i-get-to-keep-growing/) [Paula Scher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) [Explore all 87 Paula Scher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/) ## More Design quotes > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Plenty of white space and generous line spacing,and don't make the type size too miserly. Then you will be assured of a product fit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giambattista-bodoni/plenty-of-white-space-and-generous-line-spacing-and-don-t-make-the/) [Giambattista Bodoni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giambattista-bodoni/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [The market may never coalesce around one basic design, or even around two or three dominant devices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/the-market-may-never-coalesce-around-one-basic-design-or-even-around/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [The display is the computer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-hsun-huang/the-display-is-the-computer/) [Jen-Hsun Huang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-hsun-huang/) > [Design is not making beauty, beauty emerges from selection, affinities, integration, love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-kahn/design-is-not-making-beauty-beauty-emerges-from-selection-affinities/) [Louis Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-kahn/) > [The beauty of New York is unintentional; it arose independent of human design, like a stalagmite cavern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-beauty-of-new-york-is-unintentional-it-arose-independent-of-human/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/) > [I design some of my own clothes now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiernan-shipka/i-design-some-of-my-own-clothes-now/) [Kiernan Shipka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiernan-shipka/) > [Programmers are always surrounded by complexity; we cannot avoid it… If our basic tool, the language in which we design and code our programs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/programmers-are-always-surrounded-by-complexity-we-cannot-avoid-it-if/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [Design is a very personal thing. It's like art. Your personal choice plays a big role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gauri-khan/design-is-a-very-personal-thing-it-s-like-art-your-personal-choice/) [Gauri Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gauri-khan/) > [“Designing posters, for me, is not only a commercial pursuit but also a philosophical endeavor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fang-chen/designing-posters-for-me-is-not-only-a-commercial-pursuit-but-also-a/) [Fang Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fang-chen/) > [I am not a great believer in dialectical struggle. I am much more of a fusion person. I see it as a dialogue, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-warner/i-am-not-a-great-believer-in-dialectical-struggle-i-am-much-more-of-a/) [Marina Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-warner/) > [Users are not designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakob-nielsen/users-are-not-designers/) [Jakob Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakob-nielsen/) > [I write the way you might arrange flowers. Not every try works, but each one launches another. Every constraint, even dullness, frees up a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/i-write-the-way-you-might-arrange-flowers-not-every-try-works-but/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) [Browse all 5,563 Design quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Design exists to serve some purpose.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paula Scher" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Design" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d44/paula-scher-7840_design_design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose-3193_3193297.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d44/paula-scher-7840_design_design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose-3193_3193297.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d44/paula-scher-7840_design_design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose-3193_3193297.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Design exists to serve some purpose.” — Paula Scher", "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": "Paula Scher", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-scher/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Design exists to serve some purpose.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-scher/design-exists-to-serve-some-purpose/#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 } } ] } ```