#2d-graphics

#2d-graphics

The 1970s were a sweet spot in product design, especially in France, where makers were beginning to marry natural materials like wood with the new optimism of plastic.

Static images don't show motion. You can't inspect real product structure. You don't see how interfaces evolve over time. You rarely understand what actually works in production. So I decided to go deep. I reviewed every major design reference platform I could find - not just the popular ones - and analyzed how they actually help in real-world work. The conclusion?

Each layered element is independent, all housed within one object on your timeline. Multiple elements can be combined into a Flipbook by using the multi-select function. This allows for users to shift, organise, and retime frames.

Design tokens are all your design decisions, that define a design system's aesthetic properties, everything from colors and font sizes to spacing units and border radii. They are the modern evolution of hard-coded values. They are stored in a central, platform-agnostic repository, establishing a single source of truth for your entire digital product suite. This central management allows teams to consume the exact same design values across all platforms (web, native apps, documentation).

Adobe has improved the tools for Generative Fill, Generative Expand and Remove that are powered by its Firefly generative AI platform. Using these tools for image editing should now produce results in 2K resolution with fewer artifacts and increased detail all while delivering better matches for the provided prompts.

In 2026, the designers who thrive won't be the ones who just create beautiful Figma files. They will be the ones who understand structure, logic, systems, interactions, and implementation. FigmaMake generates surprisingly coherent interface layouts that respect design patterns and component logic. It allows us to create coded interactive prototypes in minutes, allowing to test our experiences faster and see our ideas live. The best part - no need to leave Figma.

Something's been slowly shifting in the design zeitgeist. I've been watching my feed on X and the vibe has changed. More and more, I see designers sharing finished experiments or prototypes they coded themselves, rather than static Figma files. Moving from working on a canvas to talking to an LLM. The conversation isn't "here's a design I made" anymore... it's "here's something I shipped this afternoon."