“Less is more”

Flowery designs on a business card, too many words on a greeting card, too many images on a poster and too much information on a logo. These are few of many things that can make design look immature and unsophisticated. One rule that has always been prevalent in design is “less is More” and you can never go wrong when following this rule. Intriguing design shows its audience what’s been conveyed rather than telling them. The less a designer shows in a particular piece of design, the more others are compelled to ask questions about it. I believe that a certain design is successful when the audience that it’s catering to actually relates to the design.

In a poster for an event or an organization, it’s most important to apply the rule of “less is More.” Today’s generation is always on its toes, running from home to work and work to the supermarket, etc. People today have no time to stand at one place and look at things around them. It’s a designers responsibility to make them look at their poster. The average time that a designer has to capture people’s attention is 4 seconds. So, the poster has to be appealing and simple enough for people to glance at it in 4 seconds and grab their interest. If a poster passes the “4-second test” (as my teacher likes to call it), it’s a successful poster. In order for it to pass the 4-second test, it needs to be special, different from other posters around it. This is where “Less is More” comes in. Keeping the poster to the point and witty is a must. How many times have you seen posters with pictures of a band and big type on it? Or a poster with a picture of books asking you to borrow money for college? Amidst poster like these always stands out a poster with minimal information and a strong message.

Lately, I have noticed that designers that design stationary systems for companies have managed to cut down on the amount of information they have on a letterhead, envelope and business card. I think this is a great idea as the world is changing in terms of the way people communicate now. An e-mail address should be the primary method of contact listed on a business card unless the nature of a particular business demands other methods of contact to be listed as well. The key point here is to keep is minimal. Just like crowding a small room with a lot of furniture can look messy, crowding a business card with a whole bunch of useless information can make it look cluttered and unappealing.

These days, I am trying to observe more and gather information on how the design world is changing in terms of creating more simplistic and sophisticated pieces. I believe in this “type” of design because sophisticated design is the kind of design that actually looks like it’s designed. I hope that made sense.