The design and the play article by Paul Rand discusses many different ways to teach, practice, and learn the fundamental principals of design. It mentions that it’s not always a good idea to have total freedom and no rules. For example: how students should be taught rules and given guidelines for how to design, rather than allowing them to rely on their natural talent and imagination. In contrast to this he also states that no matter how hard a student studies, “a students unltimate success will depend largely on his natural talents.” This was confusing to because because in a way he is contradicting himself, but it also makes you think that guidelines set a criteria of what is expected and then the designing aspect of the task is left up to the natural talent you have inside you to come up with your own ideas. This just demonstrates how guidelines provide direction, but still have grey areas that allow students to fill in with their own talents. The play-principle serves as a base for serious problem-solving. For example in Josef Albers paintings he uses the same strict geometric pattern to challenge himself with the use of colors. It is used to trick your eye because without color the painting is ment to give a three-dimensional image with depth, but with using a variation of colors it displays a two-dimensional image to the eye. Overall, the article discusses the power of restrictions in design, while testing an artists natural talent and ability to challenge themselves.

In the article Design and the Play Instinct by Paul Rand, he describes how ultimately a students natural talent is what will ultimately make them successful. Two problems exist with this according to Rand, the first is if you give students too much freedom with there work there final work will be meaningless without any structure whereas if the student is instructed with to much direction they’re creativity is restricted and thus the end result is a meaningless solution. Rand explains that teaching should be mutual between the student and the instructor. Alfred North Whitehead explains, “The pupils, have got to be made to feel they are are studying something, and are not merely executing intellectual minutes.”