frontend-design

name	frontend-design
description	Create distinctive, production-grade frontend interfaces with strong art direction. Use when building or restyling web components, pages, dashboards, landing pages, React apps, HTML/CSS layouts, or any UI where originality, polish, and visual quality are critical. Enforce anti-slop rules, section-level layout diversity, typography quality, and interaction design.

Build real, production-grade frontend code with intentional visual direction. Counter common GPT/Codex failure modes: text-heavy layouts, repeated section architecture, generic style fallback, weak contrast, and shallow interactions. Prioritize user constraints over this skill: framework, libraries, coding style, architecture, and file conventions always win. This skill defines design outcomes and quality bars, not mandatory implementation tooling.

Portability and Conflict Resolution (Required)

• Apply design guidance through the user's chosen stack and conventions.
• Do not force specific tools or libraries unless the user asks for them.
• Express decisions as transferable intent (hierarchy, rhythm, contrast, interaction feedback), then map to local primitives.
• Implement tokens/themes using the project's native system (variables, utility config, theme objects, component tokens, etc.).
• If preferences are missing, choose a minimal-dependency approach and keep it easy to migrate.
• Reuse existing project patterns before introducing new abstractions.

Workflow (Required)

1. Lock context quickly.

• Identify audience, core task, tone, platform, and constraints.
• If context is missing, make practical assumptions and proceed.

2. Generate five distinct directions internally before coding.

• Force real divergence in section architecture, composition, type system, and color strategy.
• Pick one direction and commit.

3. Define a direction contract before implementation.

• Concept statement (one sharp phrase).
• Font pair (display + body).
• Token palette (dominant, support, accent, neutral).
• Spatial rule (asymmetry, strict grid, split narrative, or layered canvas).
• Signature element (one memorable motif).
• Section graph id (from the Section Graph Library below).
• Primary interaction mode (from Interaction Modes below).

4. Implement a token system first.

• Define reusable primitives for type scale, spacing, color, radius, borders, elevation, and timing in the project's preferred format.
• Build components from those primitives, not ad hoc values.

5. Implement section architecture with deliberate breaks.

• Enforce the selected section graph.
• Add at least two macro composition breaks after the hero.

6. Add interaction depth.

• Add at least one hero-level interaction moment.
• Add at least two component-level interactions for pages, one for small components.

7. Run quality gates and revise once.

• Do not stop at first draft quality.

Hard Guards for Known Failure Modes

Text-heavy output:

• Keep hero headline <= 12 words.
• Keep hero supporting copy <= 24 words.
• Keep above-the-fold body copy to two short blocks maximum.
• Convert long explanations into cards, bullets, metrics, or visual modules.

Section architecture repetition:

• Treat each concept as a unique section graph, not a palette variation.
• Do not repeat the same section order across concepts.
• If generating multiple concepts, no duplicate section graph ids.

Structural monotony:

• Do not use the same hero composition more than once across concepts.
• Do not run three consecutive sections with the same container style (for example: card-grid, card-grid, card-grid).
• Add at least one full-bleed or off-grid section in each concept.

Readability regressions:

• Reject low-contrast text and clipped typography.
• Reject blur/noise effects that reduce legibility.
• Reject decorative layers that obscure content.

Generic defaults:

• Do not default to Inter/Roboto/Arial/system as primary identity unless explicitly requested.
• Do not default to purple-pink-blue neon gradients.
• Do not default to generic "SaaS hero + three cards + CTA" structure.
• Do not use fake terminal aesthetics unless context explicitly justifies it.

Reliability regressions:

• Do not ship broken scroll behavior.
• Do not hide critical content behind fixed overlays.
• Do not ship obvious horizontal overflow on mobile unless intentionally designed and controlled.

Section Graph Library (Use as Families, Not Templates)

Use one graph as a structural spine, then style it uniquely.

• G1 Narrative Split: Hero split -> Capability rail -> Workflow strip -> Proof grid -> Pricing -> Footer.
• G2 Editorial Flow: Manifesto hero -> Sticky chapter sections -> Model table -> Membership CTA -> Footer notes.
• G3 Cockpit Stack: Command hero -> Status panels -> Inspector rail -> Queue/process timeline -> Pricing dock -> Footer.
• G4 Gallery First: Media hero -> Collection mosaic -> Detail spotlight -> Compare slider -> CTA bar -> Footer.
• G5 Poster Web: Typographic hero -> Framed statement blocks -> Feature ribbons -> Offer slab -> Footer tape.
• G6 Neo Utility: Hard-edge hero -> Utility matrix -> Constraint/protocol section -> Feature ledger -> Pricing card wall.
• G7 Quiet Luxury: Minimal hero -> Signature benefit band -> Refined cards -> Testimonial quote plane -> Pricing strip.
• G8 Story Scroll: Hero scene -> Sticky storytelling sequence -> Key metrics board -> Offer reveal -> Footer.
• G9 Swiss Data: Typographic masthead -> Data rows -> Comparison matrix -> Spec blocks -> CTA row -> Footer.
• G10 Hybrid Canvas: Asymmetric hero -> Floating module cluster -> Tooling/process section -> Proof collage -> Pricing.

Macro Composition Breaks (Required)

Each concept must include at least two of these:

• Dense to sparse transition (or sparse to dense).
• Grid to freeform overlap transition.
• Light to dark surface transition (or inverse).
• Static section followed by motion-led section.
• Text-led section followed by media-led section.
• Orthogonal layout followed by diagonal or layered composition.

Interaction Modes

Select one primary mode per concept. For multi-concept outputs, do not reuse the same primary mode.

• I1 Kinetic typography hero.
• I2 Scroll scene transitions (sticky sections or progressive reveals).
• I3 Interactive comparison surface (tabs, segmented control, or switchable views).
• I4 Procedural background motion (subtle and readable).
• I5 Cursor-responsive accent behavior (restrained, never distracting).
• I6 Card choreography (stagger, parallax, or progressive detail reveal).
• I7 Data-panel live state feel (status, counters, or activity rhythm).

Modern Pattern Atlas (Recent, Reusable)

Use these as pattern families, not copy-paste templates.

• Bento product narrative: asymmetrical modular blocks with clear hierarchy.
• Editorial mono-luxe: serif headlines, precise grid, restrained ornament.
• Neo-brutalist utility: sharp borders, flat planes, heavy contrast, intentional rawness.
• Quiet luxury SaaS: muted neutrals, premium spacing, subtle motion.
• App cockpit: dense command surfaces, inspector rails, status modules.
• Kinetic typography hero: oversized type as primary visual engine.
• Story-scroll narrative: sticky scenes and section-driven transitions.
• Gallery-first interface: media-dominant composition with lightweight chrome.
• Soft-material depth: layered surfaces, controlled blur, tactile lighting.
• Swiss data grid: strict rhythm, typographic rigor, restrained accents.
• Experimental poster-web: expressive type, overlap, framing, and composition tension.

Composition Rules

• Establish a clear first-view focal point.
• Use one spatial thesis consistently.
• Balance one dense zone with one breathing zone.
• Use scale contrast, overlap, or framing to create hierarchy.
• Design mobile intentionally; do not only collapse desktop.

Typography Rules

• Pair one display face with one body face.
• Keep font families to two maximum.
• Use a fluid or stepped type scale appropriate to the stack and platform, with intentional line length.
• Apply case, tracking, and weight as part of brand voice.
• For five-concept outputs, assign explicit type pairs up front and do not reuse the exact same pair on more than two routes.
• Give each route one visible typographic signature move (for example: drop cap intro, split italic phrase, vertical kicker, or condensed all-caps strapline).
• Control hero line breaks intentionally so the first fold reads as designed rhythm, not browser-default wrapping.
• Run a typography audit before final output; if two routes share nearly identical hierarchy, weight map, and rhythm, revise one route.

Color and Surface Rules

• Tokenize palette in the project's native theming system (bg, fg, muted, accent, accent-2, surface, border semantics).
• Keep one dominant chroma and sparse accents.
• Validate text/control contrast.
• Use gradients or textures only when conceptually justified.

Interaction and Motion Rules

• Add one orchestrated entrance sequence.
• Add meaningful hover/focus/active states.
• Keep a coherent timing system (for example: 140ms, 220ms, 360ms).
• Prefer native platform motion primitives first; add heavier JS animation only when state complexity requires it.
• Respect reduced motion preferences.

Multi-Concept Protocol

When asked for multiple designs:

• Generate all concepts in one run.
• Default to five concepts unless the user specifies a different count.
• Enforce unique fingerprints across concepts:
• Section graph id
• Hero composition type
• Primary interaction mode
• Typography family
• Palette temperature
• Section rhythm
• If concepts are shown in one app, provide a lightweight, stack-appropriate concept switcher.

Delivery Checklist

• Production-ready implementation that runs in the requested stack without manual fixes.
• Domain-specific copy (no placeholder or vague generic slogans).
• Visible focus styles and readable contrast.
• Desktop and mobile both polished.
• Scroll behavior verified end to end.
• One post-build refinement pass completed.

Self-Critique Quality Gate (Score 0-2)

• Distinctiveness
• Section-graph uniqueness
• Layout originality
• Text economy
• Typography craft
• Interaction quality
• Accessibility and contrast
• Responsiveness
• Scroll and overflow reliability

If any score is below 2, revise before final output.