Minimalism in various mediums: Part 2

This is part 2 in looking at works by artists and designers I like. It was really long so there are two parts. In the next post I'll be summarise what I got from looking at the works of these particular people and how I'm going to apply what I learned from them in my own work.

Patrick Smith
Graphic designer who created a series of six posters. The aim was to depict six mental disorders with “the challenge of defining each in a minimal style.” (Smith, 2010)

Figure I. Smith, P. (2010). OCD. Retrieved from http://www.adaptcreative.co.uk/2010/08/mental-disorder-posters/

Here the squares are arranged in a regular grid with a single square slightly askew. It portrays a well known symptom of OCD, which is obsession with order or something being done in a very specific way.

Figure II. Smith, P. (2010). Agoraphobia.. Retrieved from http://www.adaptcreative.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/agoraphobia-500x707.jpg

Agoraphobia is the fear of large, open spaces. Here the square represents the person while the light peach colour is the open space. The fear is shown by the square huddled in a corner trying to avoid going into the open space.

Figure III. Smith, P. (2010). Anorexia Nervosa.. Retrieved from http://www.adaptcreative.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/anorexia-500x707.jpg

Here, anorexia is portrayed quite well. The line is a representation of a mirror. The circle on the left is the person and the oval is how the person’s skewed perception of their body.

Figure IV. Smith, P. (2010). Depression.. Retrieved from http://www.adaptcreative.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/depression-500x707.jpg

Depression is characterised by a loss of hope in all aspects of life. The grayscale here with no other colours at all portrays this perfectly. The lone square emphasises this by representing the person and how a sufferer would normally feel alone.

Figure V. Smith, P. (2010). Narcolepsy.. Retrieved from http://www.adaptcreative.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/narcolepsy-500x707.jpg

Narcolepsy is when the person uncontrollably falls asleep during the day. The light grey triangles represent people without narcolepsy while the dark grey is the narcoleptic asleep. The light blue background shows that it is daytime.

With the exception of OCD, people are represented by simple shapes in the posters. This is a point of interest because here the shapes are given human attributes. The idea that a simple shape can be seen as a person is interesting. Here, it works because of context. The disorders are named on the posters themselves. Thus, for the shapes to be effectively seen as people there needs to be a certain context for the viewer to see the work in.

This reminds of a game called Thomas Was Alone (Bithell, 2012). There is nothing particularly detailed about the graphics. The art is stripped down and minimalistic, using simple shapes. All the characters are quadrilaterals given personality through their abilities and with effective narration. In turn, their personalities are portrayed so well despite being simple shapes, drives forward the story and creates emotional attachment.




Olly Moss
A graphic designer who created the series below. He is well-known for depicting pop-culture icons and his renditions of movie posters (O’hara, 2010).

Here, his works show the Joker, Riddler, and Poison Ivy in a minimalist style. What I love about these is the minimal use of lines in favour of using suggestion of shapes instead. Rather than using line to depict a shape or form, or just straight up drawing the needed shape, they are suggested by the contours of the existing shapes. It also uses our familiarity with certain shapes to make this more effective. In the case of the series below it would be the human face and key features of these comic book villains.

In my own work I think it would be interesting to explore the suggestion of shapes to make a picture. In one of the stories it may be the best option. Because if I use our familiarity with the human form it could put across the story really well even if only small parts of the character are shown.

Figure VI. Moss, O. (2012). Joker. Retrieved from http://payload132.cargocollective.com/1/10/333658/4940027/-1.jpeg

Figure VII. Moss, O. (2012). Riddler. Retrieved from http://payload132.cargocollective.com/1/10/333658/4940027/-2.jpeg

Figure VIII. Moss, O. (2012). Poison Ivy. Retrieved from http://payload132.cargocollective.com/1/10/333658/4940027/-3.jpeg



Reference List

Bithell, M. (2012). Thomas Was Alone [Microsoft Windows video game]. United Kingdom: Mike Bithell

O’hara, H. (2010). Olly Moss: 2010’s Alternative Movie Posters. Retrieved August 19, 2013, from http://www.empireonline.com/features/2010/olly-moss/

Smith, P. (2010). Mental Disorder Posters. Retrieved August 12, 2013, from http://www.adaptcreative.co.uk/2010/08/mental-disorder-posters/