The Bout of The Century: Minimalism Vs Maximalism
Minimalism versus Maximalism is the classic design debate; it has raged on for decades, prompting professionals to take sides (or corners) according to the conditioning their minds have received over the years!
To begin with, maximalism appears to be a non-starter. Or, shall we say, it loses the first round. Why? Because it is in the habit of doing that nasty bit of things that ring alarm bells in the minds of design professionals. It eats into the white space held sacred by creative folks. Because- so far as perceptions go- “more” is associated with greed or avarice: a strict no-no. So the next time design engineers want to infuse more colors, more patterns, and more images in your interface, they’d better have a mighty reason to do so!
Minimalism, on the other hand, represents everything our creative designers wear on their sleeves. It carries neatness, professionalism, aesthetics that nobody in their right mind can undermine.
Professionals should keep an open mind and decide things on proof, not on the rulebook. Minimalism, as discussed- starts as a favorite. Google has made it iconic. It has worked well for the search engine.
Minimalism, popularly used in art, painting, sculpture, either downplays or eliminates extravagant elements and sticks to the unadorned basics, even at the cost of repetition. It also describes the style of writing. Sometimes, the prose is simple or minimalist for a reason. Minimalism is widely used in academic journals that have a declared disdain for anything that’s too cliched or embellished. On the other hand, flowery eloquence is more than welcome in fiction.
Literature or writing cannot be limited to a stylistic straightjacket. Each style has use somewhere and at some point.
To conclude, don’t expect results in the first round. Go all the way to round 14. Keep track of inputs. Keep testing the limits of design. Chop and change. Do what is required to win the bout.
