With the online presence of all businesses soaring, the element of design is really beginning to shine through in the promotions and merchandise these businesses indulge in as well. Gone are the days of crowded designs and an overload of elements. Instead, more and more artists, individuals, and enterprises are leaning towards Minimal Designs to get across their message.
It’s sleek, elegant, and more often than not packed with wit and humor. Personally, I find this find form of communication effective without trying to show off with an over load of graphics and digital art. Often straightforward, using simple motifs and symbols to get across its message, minimal design gives the technical and specialized art a miss and can be created with a basic knowledge of Adobe Photoshop and sometimes is even hand drawn.
One of the most striking implementations of Minimal Design has to be Minimal Bollywood Posters. Akshar Pathak, a 22 year old Creative Producer and film buff has created a series of alternate Bollywood film posters that are inspired from minimal art. “Minimalism is art – be it music, design, paintings, etc. – stripped down to its bare essentials and it’s made for some truly awesome fan artwork”, says Pathak on his website.
They are largely based on the recall value of a film, taking the most important dialogue, song, image or concept from the film and turning it into a stunning poster that is simplistic and clean. It’s all about spotting the image and making the association. Although they use the bare minimum artwork and imagery, it does need a certain amount of intellect to appreciate the humor of the poster.
“I stumbled across these posters through my friend. They’re not only innovative but also leaving you chuckling almost always. The most brilliant quality about these posters is that they are able to capture the spirit of the movie and are aesthetically appealing. Soothing color choices and minimal wordage add to the appeal”, shares Sonakshi Pandit, a student.
Another venture that capitalizes on this form of art fiercely is the kitsch brand Chumbak. They’re products are almost always utilize hand drawn characters and are again based on the values most Indians are aware of, and find themselves wound up in.
To elucidate, their range of ‘City Mugs’ are a collection of coffee mugs 
which each mug dedicated to a city and the city’s most important monuments, culture, beliefs and attitudes are encapsulated by the use of tiny hand drawings and minimal texts that too in blurbs.
“Being a resident of Ahmedabad, I bought the Ahmedabad city mug on a whim and it is one of my most treasured possessions now, because it weaves into itself some of the most important and special places and things about the city into one mug.
Also, the illustrations are delightful”, shares Trishla Jhaveri, a resident of Ahmedabad who is currently living in Pune.
Even with the evolving tastes and preferences of the audiences, minimal art does target a niche audience. However, there is a marked increase in the number of people who lean towards these designs that are clear cut, defined and hit the nail on the head, without any ambiguity.
