October 12, 2003 | View Comments (0) | Our Thoughts
All of this comes about because I read an entry at this site. Sorry he does not have permalinks so I cannot give you the direct link to the entry.
A website design should give users some kind of experience when they visit it. The design itself should give the site a personality all on its own. This personality however should not get in the way of the true purpose of a site, which is for the users to use. I am not a minimalist person because I have too many different moods and personalities. Many of my friends will tell you that they did not get to like me until they really got to know me. My personality sometimes gets in the way of who I really am. With websites you might not have the luxury of users coming back to get to "know" the site.
Minimalism allows users to use the site. It allows users to use the site through great usability and really does not cause the user to put much thought into what he has to do to get the job done. Once you add the word "design" to minimalist then you are taking things to a higher level. Minimalist design does not mean white backgrounds or two column layouts. Minimalist design means that everything on the page serves a specific function without hindering the users experience or getting in the way of the message that the site is trying to deliver.
Many clients will not see the beauty of a great minimalistic site because to them they are plain and for their own personal reasons they may want something cool to show their friends or play with. Show them 2advanced and they start drooling. The problem with basing your opinions solely on the "look" of a site is that aesthetics are all relative to how the individual sees them. Many will agree that certain minimalistic sites are beautiful because they are "clean" and place form with function, not over. Everyone I know likes a clean site.
Apple designs minimalistic computers, but not too many people go around shouting how ugly they are. I would even argue that VolksWagen makes minimalist cars. The point is minimalism can be plain, but good minimalistic design is not.
In regards to this site the background is white solely for one reason. The site itself is called whitespace so I figured I would stick with that theme. Could this site use a little more color to add some emotion to it? Most definitely. Would it hurt to add an image here or there for visual appeal? No it would not. But until I find some other colors that go along with the message of the site or some images that do not take away from the content this site will remain the way it is. Surprisingly (or not) much thought went into this design. From the logo, to the header colors, to the fonts, and where borders should be added. Designing a minimalistic site is not hard. However, designing a minimalistic site that offers a great experience is. I am not defending the look of this site because it is my site and everyone has their opinions. I am defending my ideals of minimalism and why I hold it in such great regard.
The absolute most challenging thing is to do something simple. Because simple has to be perfect. If it's not perfect you see it a mile away. It's easier to create something complex, which of course can be really interesting, but for me, always feels like a more subjective solution.
I can not recall where I got that quote from, but I know it was from a famous graphic designer and it certainly struck a chord with me.
Not all sites should get the minimalistic treatment. There is a good reason why 37signals does not have any multimedia sites in their portfolio. They just do not do that type of stuff. That is not their specialty. I design towards my strengths and so should everyone else. Just please do not think that just because a site is minimalistic that it did not take the same amount of time or even more time to design than "complex" sites.
If you need some inspiration for minimalistic sites that offer great visual appeal then maybe you can have a look at these:
If you think any of those sites are unappealing then fine. Obviously we just have different design tastes. But they are all minimal because they serve their purpose and there is nothing I can see that I would take out from to enhance the design. That to me is minimalism at its best.
Looking at a rainbow I see seven color bands that come together to form something beautiful. There is nothing complex about a rainbow and yet it is beautiful. Ever witness a sunrise/sunset at the beach? There are 4 main elements at work here: water, horizon, sun, and sky. Four things is all that are required to make something beautiful. I am not a minimalistic individual, but I sure do love minimalistic things.
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