Published: 01 June 2022
Location: London, UK
Here at Why Media we have helped brands engage their audience through creative design and digital marketing since 2010. This weekend the United Kingdom will celebrate Her Majesty The Queen becoming the first British Monarch after 70 years of service. To celebrate this, we will be looking into how the design world has changed over the last 70 years!
1950s - Modernism
In the 1950s, Modernism became part of the history of graphic design. This style is characterised by the decision to reject artist styles of the past, emphasising experimentation with new materials and techniques instead. The goal of this graphic design was to create artwork that resembles the nature of modern society. The common elements of modernist graphic designs were precise shapes, bold colours and current fonts such as the iconic Dr Pepper logo in the 1950s.
1960s - Retro Design trends
The 1960s were a huge turning point for graphic design as it introduced bright colours and fluid patterns. The 1960s saw designers dipping their artistic wands into more creative and experiential designs.
An example of this is Roy Lichenstien; his work emphasises the cliched symbols of popular culture with modern elements, bright colours, and a touch of irony, pop art.
1970s - The Groovy Decade
The 1970s had psychedelic influences and were all about bell-bottoms, disco and funk. In terms of design, the decade's style flaunted bold colours, thick lines, flowery patterns, and curvy fonts.
1980s - Synthwave
The 1980s is a decade that stands out in terms of design. It was heavily influenced by futuristic and sci-fi pop culture. It displayed neon colours and a lot of shiny chrome.
1990s - Adobe Photoshop
In the 1990s, graphic design saw a simplification in both feel and style. The 1980s featured a lot of sleek and shiny fonts; the 1990s saw a rise in blocky fonts with shadows and strokes. This was because technology evolved and allowed these designs to be of high quality. Most importantly, Adobe Photoshop was released in 1990, which created a whole new sector of graphic design with the ability to digitally blend and illustrate elements and manipulate photos.
The 2000s - Rapid Movement of Technology
The rapid improvement of technology was very exponential. In this decade, all of a sudden, people were designing simply for print and digital media. It was now essential that your work looked good on something as large as a billboard and small as a mobile screen. New software allowed us to easily create three-dimensional objects and manipulate typography.
2010s - The Shockwave of the Explosion in Technology
After an explosion, there is always a shockwave that follows. The 2010s could be described as the shockwave of the explosion in technology. As there are now capabilities that vastly outdo anything that has ever previously been seen, modern graphic design practices involve a lot of creative photo manipulation and three-dimensional effects. In addition, as animation in design has emerged as a trend, most design work now caters to digital media instead of print.
2020s - Today
From looking at the past 70 years, it is clear that the only thing consistent in graphic design is change itself. With technology drastically evolving and new styles and demands, the art of graphic design is forever evolving. Overall, it's amazing to see how graphic design has evolved over the past 70 years.
Why Media is an award-winning design, marketing, digital communications and PR agency offering tailored solutions to companies on a global scale. We have extensive experience in delivering design and marketing services to a spectrum of companies, including professional services, property companies, financial institutions and shopping centres. We have offices in London UK, Hertford UK, Finestrat, Spain & Brescia, Italy.
Marketing Contact
Name: Claire White
E-Mail: claire@whymedia.com
Telephone: 020 3007 6002
