E.g. Google has minimal web design (just a search box). How do you define minimal design? How does this relate to minimalism in general? Is Facebook also minimalism at least from the beginning?
Answer
As a style, people often describe very thin lines and neutral shades of color as minimal. If you emphasize everything, nothing gets emphasized. Minimalist art is about emphasis. I suppose you could relate this to web design by saying minimalist design emphasizes content (text, video, sound).
Minimalism in design sprung from WW2. There was a new emphasis on mass production after the war and designers rejected the heavy ornamentation of the past. That's where Helvetica comes from. It's a very "neutral" typeface. It works with everything. It's like wearing jeans. Modernism is basically a lack of ornamentation in design and minimalism is an artistic movement.
As far as advantages and disadvantages, that depends on the audience's background. Your taste changes over time, especially where you focus your attention. If you listen to a lot of music, for example, your taste for music becomes more sophisticated and you might dislike what's played on the radio. The more design one learns, the greater preference for simplicity.
We live in a complex world. Not everything can be simple. Expert users are going to want more complexity and features as they learn the system. Users want the system to be simple and easy to learn just starting out.
No comments:
Post a Comment