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Design How-To: Exploring Minimalism
Sometimes, less is more. When living in a harried, cluttered world, it can be a relief to see clean, spare design. In this exercise, John Odam puts his own spin on minimalism when designing five different compact disc covers.
Written by John Odam on October 1, 2003
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This story is taken from "Before & After" Magazine).
Creativepro.com readers can subscribe to "Before & After" at a discount. Click here to learn more.
We live in an era of excess. There's too much noise, too many distractions, and too much to do. Visual clutter surrounds us. While design should stimulate, it can also offer respite -- a cool, calm place that soothes the spirit.
When stripped away of artifice and ornament, good design boils down to line, form, color and the relationships between them. That's the premise of this exercise in design from John Odam, a noted graphic designer whose task here is the interpretation of five different compact disc covers.
In this feature from our partner "Before & After" magazine, see how Odam creates five distinct but simple designs based on the premise that less is more.
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Absolutely Awful!
None of these designs convey the intended message to me. I thought the piano was a printer's error. Minimal design carried to the extreme...no message.
lovely examples of how to work with space...
I enjoyed the Before & After article with John Odam's work. Simplicity is rarely seen in materials these days. Thank you, Creative Pro, for the instruction & inspiration! Now if we can only have a Creative Pro for our clients! :)
Exploring Minimalism
I was unable to open the file once I clicked on the link.
Opening PDFs
Because of the database solution we use, opening a PDF will first launch a window called "jump" and then Acrobat will open after that. There can be a small delay. So it will open, just be a litle patient.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
Pamela Pfiffner, editor in chief