Just like bell-bottom jeans, Beanie Babies, and the “long hair on top with shaved sides” haircut for men currently (all the ladies, you know what I’m talking about), trends are something our culture will always adopt for a day, age, and time. Even the term “trend” has a new definition in the social world: “A topic that is subject to many posts on a social media website within a short period of time” (New Oxford American Dictionary).

Trends are innovative, popular, captivating.

That’s what we’ve found to be true for these graphic design trends! 5 current and ongoing movements in design:

  1. Abstract & Minimalistic

    Using thin lines and fonts adds to this minimalist feel, however it’s the usage of blank and white space that allows the subject matter to have complete, un-distracted focus. We love this usage of clean lines (even with the font) and an accent of color, supplemented by title text that has a high kearning to keep a well-polished, organized look.

Abstract and minimalistic

  1. Responsive Design

    Responsive design is when the user is given optimal viewing abilities across all devices. This creates easy navigation, minimal resizing and scrolling efficiencies, no matter where the platform is being viewed. In past years, inconsistency from mobile to desktop created an unfavorable experience, losing traction and credibility from viewers as they experienced the undependability and inconsistency.

responsive design

  1. Mono-line & Geometric

    Back to clean lines, logos and design elements of 2016 are especially using shapes in different combinations in order to create a unique, subtle design that exudes simplicity in layouts.

monoline and geometric

  1. Bold & Bright Colors

    Bright and taking the spotlight, this year’s preferred color palettes are taking all forms of “bold.” Usually offset by neutral backgrounds, the colors create a strong presence when offset in a simple layout, which of course draws attention to your readers’ gaze.

bold and bright colors

  1. Modern, Retro, & Clean

    As seen in the photo below, there is a distinction between modern and classic design, and this year is leaning full force towards modern. As the digital age has swept into the billions of lives across the world, there’s a lot of forward, out-of-the-box thinking that also needs designs to speak on its behalf with the same example. Content is no longer what holds readers attention, but how the content is displayed—in the most concise, direct, polished way.

modern retro and clean