The misconception about "simple" designs

One of the misconceptions about design is that some designs are simpler and easier than others. The misconception is based on the idea that some designs in themselves are obvious in the sense that they may have few parts, simple and few functions, simple and obvious form,  etc. which would mean that the overall possible design space is highly reduced and the number of difficult judgments and decisions needed are also reduced.

This misconception is serious since it can lead to the idea that simple designs do not need so much designerly attention, effort, resources, and time. Contrary to this misconception, every particular design is infinitely complex. At the level of the ultimate particular, there is an infinite number of variables that need to be decided.

(Opposite to that, if we move towards the universal, the complexity is reduced as the level of abstraction increases, see diagram below)

I think it is liberating for a designer to acknowledge that every design, no matter how "simple", is equally complex and requires an equal amount of attention and effort. Of course, we may have designs that are almost copies or variations of existing designs, then the complexity in design decisions can be radically reduced, but at the same time, that makes the process less of a design process.

So, designers should be careful with stating what is simple, difficult, easy, complex, etc. Stating that a design is simple and then be blamed for a bad design outcome is not a good situation to be in. The default should be that all designs (unless copies or simple variations) are always infinitely complex and hence require full designerly attention and effort.

From the book "The Design Way" by Nelson & Stolterman