Jacqueline’s article at Webdesignledger.com, highlights 14 web design trends for 2010: (1) oversized logos/headers (2) sketch/hand-drawn design (3) slab typefaces (4) typography (5) one page layouts (6) huge images (7) change of perspective (8) interactive/intuitive design (9) modal boxes (10) minimalism (11) oversized footer (12) retro (13) intro boxes (14) magazine layouts.
Several of these trends have always been around in some shape or form, in particular #2, #4, #10 and #12.
#1, #6, #11 are the side effects of the shift towards supersized elements, most notably seen in web design. But we are seeing a similar shift in logo sizes – just compare the badges on a 1990 Mazda and a 2009 Mazda, for example.
Perhaps what we are seeing is a 180-degree turnaround from the era of “less is more”, when the brands that had the small, unobtrusive logos were the coolest (and they could afford to do that because everyone recognised their logos).
Some might suggest that the big brands are starting to lose their foothold in the marketplace, with the proliferation of consumer-created merchandise through channels like MySpace, Etsy and Facebook. (It is now cooler to own the t-shirt designed by some college kid in San Francisco than the one made in China for Nike/Adidas/Puma.) So the big brands need to be bigger to stake their claim – WE ARE THE BIG BOYS AND DON’T YOU FORGET IT.
With the introduction of the iPad, we are going to see a flow-on effect across the various multimedia channels. The changes in electronic book readers will certainly change the way we view everything else – I expect the design aesthetic across the board will get simpler, clearer and less cluttered; at the same time, there will almost certainly be a shift in the opposite direction amongst those who want to emphasise they are DIFFERENT.
Such is the nature of any trend, for any number of people moving in one direction, there will be any number of others moving in the exact opposite direction.