The more pleasing the canvas, the more probable the art
A gorgeous canvas invites you in.
I cannot speak for those who paint or sketch as I have no such skill. But for the written word there seems to be an enormous chasm between note apps focused on the aesthetics of writing and all the rest.
I find it somewhat ironic, or perhaps even tragic, that the pixel-possessed, genius of UX, Steve Jobs would condone one of the least attractive canvases: Apple Notes. My original 1984 Drexel University Macintosh had an app called MacWrite. That app was more inviting and enticing than the Apple Notes of 40 years later.
Consider iA Writer. Its oversized, electric teal cursor. Unapologetically minimalist design. Controls that blend oh so perfectly into the background yet present themselves delicately on demand. If you open the canvas, you practically can't not make art. It's clear the team behind this product is passionately dedicated to gorgeousness in design.
The same is true with the Bear notes app. Delightful typography, elegant themes, and its own beautiful cursor. As with iA, if you open the Bear canvas, you will most definitely make something.
And shouldn't that be a purpose in life - to make art? Whatever art is for each of us. To produce in a way that touches others with our thoughts and words.
We're surrounded by so much that obstructs art-making. Analog noise. Digital noise.
The teams behind Bear and iA Writer designed their own line of fonts. Yet there are thousands of freely available ones that've been created over the years. Why spend the time, effort, and money to craft another font ... just for a writing app? That is what soul-infused design looks like.
Imagine a city planner with such a discerning mindset? Or a public health official. Or a teacher.
We know when we've been touched by the art of an aesthetic mind. A person (or team) committed to the feeling of experience. Not just its form. It moves us to make our own art.