From Smashing Hub:
Six Expected Web Design Trends in 2013
As a net artist and educator it’s important for me to stay somewhat current with all that is new on the web. I certainly would not classify myself as a programmer, and I also wouldn’t really say I’m a web designer, either. But, I do teach students the basics of what they think of as “web design” (and what I think of as a craft that drives experimentation on the web), so these types of articles appeal to my inner geek.
Some “trends” have been in the making for a while. For instance, check out Josh Emerson’s responsive dog or the gigantic buttons fit for touch pads and mobile screens I advised for our CSUF Communications web page two summers ago. (Aside: no, the page that is currently there was not designed by me, but the big buttons—at least upon first implementation—were).
Big buttons circa 2011.
I’m always happy to see typography land on any type of “what’s in” list. Even in introductory courses I teach students to use Google’s web fonts (and in advanced courses Font Squirrel is applicable). Artists are inspired by type as much as designers—see Christopher Clark’s Web Typography for the Lonely.
Punch Out, one of Christopher Clark’s typographic plays.
Something that might become a stable, new trend or a fly-by-night artifact of the early twenty-teens (we won’t know until 2014, I suppose): parallax scrolling. This effect has been used successfully on commercial and journalism web pages. I tried to use something like it a year ago in a net art work, Waiting for You at the Mystery Spot, though I think my interpretation is lacking compared to the excellent visuals created by commercial teams or at least someone who can call herself a programmer.
Snow Fall:
The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek by John Branch
Programmer, developer, designer, artist, craftsperson…however you identify yourself in relation to making stuff for the web, these types of articles can be handy for their inspiration and many links to more information. Ask not what the web can do for you, but…well, you get the idea.