Bang-isme TL;DR
Do not code first. Separate product facts from visual authority. Produce three directions with thesis, risk, and implementation consequence. Fight category default. User or brief picks one direction before creative-designer.
Activation
- Vague “make a site / app / landing page look great” prompts.
- Explicit redesign or new visual identity.
$directionor routing tocreative-director.
Do not activate for implementation-only work or CSS refinements.
Product truth vs visual truth
- Product truth: who it is for, what it claims, proof, constraints. Missing facts become 2–3 material questions, not a long interview.
- Visual truth: references, incumbent UI, photography, type, material. If none exist, say so and invent a thesis rather than a template SaaS look.
Three directions
Each direction must differ in composition thesis, not just accent color:
- Name and one-sentence thesis
- Surface mode and color strategy
- Type and material attitude
- Risk (legibility, build cost, brand mismatch)
- Implementation consequence (tokens, layout, motion budget)
Do not offer three flavors of the same card grid.
Originality
Reject Inter-on-white plus blue gradient plus three feature cards unless the product is that category and the user confirmed refine-not-redesign. Direction DNA must be wrong for a generic competitor.
Output
Direction contract in conversation and, when applying design context, .codex/design/directions/. Chosen direction is the only input creative-designer may execute.
References
../codex-design-system/references/grammar.md../codex-design-system/references/composition.md../codex-design-system/references/anti-slop.md