# The Alchemical Design Method

```{post} 2026-05-17
---
tags: Design, Alchemy, Design Process, AI
author: Adriaan Rol
---
```

AI has given us superpowers in execution. The risk is we use them to produce more, faster, without the thinking that makes output worth producing. The missing piece is not a better prompt; it's explicit awareness of the design process. I came across alchemy reading about Jung, whose psychological archetypes are sometimes used by designers running branding exercises. The structure of the alchemical process resembles the double diamond design methodology, which prompted me to test it properly. It exceeded my expectations.

I mapped the seven operations onto the design process and reinterpreted each one. Each operation has a diagnostic use: before asking what to do next, ask which operation you are in. Most failures happen because we run a later operation on material that hasn't completed an earlier one.

The full document is below. Use it as a reference during a project, or share it as context with an AI sparring partner.

**Downloads:** [PDF](/_static/alchemical_design_method.pdf) · [Typst source](/_static/alchemical_design_method.typ) · [Typst template](/_static/alchemical_design_method_template.typ)

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