Vitaly Friedman
Vitaly loves beautiful content and does not give up easily. Born in Minsk, Belarus, he studied computer science and mathematics in Germany. While writing algebra proofs and preparing for software engineering at nights in the kitchen, at the same time he discovered passion for typography, interface design and writing. After working as a freelance designer and developer for 6 years, he co-founded Smashing Magazine back in 2006, a leading online magazine for designers and developers. His curiosity drove him from interface design to front-end to performance optimization to accessibility and back to user experience over all the years.
Vitaly is the author, co-author and editor of Smashing books, and a curator of Smashing Conferences. He is creative lead of Smashing Magazine and front-end/UX consultant with the European Parliament and Smashing Media, in Europe and abroad, working with Haufe-Lexware, Axel-Springer and a few other companies.
He also runs Measure UX and Smart Interface Design Patterns, friendly video libraries on UX and design patterns, along with a live UX training for UX and product designers.
Oh, and surely you don’t want to miss his full-day workshop at beyond tellerrand titled “Designing For Complex UIs In 2025”.
Talk: The Invisible Side of Design
As designers, we tend to get distracted by aesthetics of our creations, and often do not pay enough attention to the other, invisible side of our work. This talk discusses the significance of purpose, substance and context in our design decisions. It argues about the value of storytelling, content strategy and thorough editorial work. It also provides practical examples of and insights into the invisible side of design.
