Twinbru’s ethos of closing the imagination gap is coming to life as the virtual and physical worlds become more enmeshed. As the concept of the metaverse becomes mainstream and more industries create an increasingly digital presence, it is easier to expand ideas and quickly bring them to life through digital design.
Just like any other creative sector, digital design shifts and evolves alongside changes in technology and society. We are in an exciting time where digital design is hyper-realistic and is used for entertainment, marketing, new business development, product testing, education and much more.
Let’s take a look at some of the digital design trends that are on Twinbru’s radar.
NFTs
Non-fungible tokens present a unique opportunity for designers and artists to monetise their creativity. The business of crypto art offers more safety and security as digital creations can’t easily be replicated and, as the sector is still fairly new, there’s a great return on investment for unique NFTs. While this may seem only applicable to artists, NFTs are also a way for interior designers and architects to increase the reach of their work and offer clients a concept that doesn’t need to exist yet. There’s also a growing demand for NFT architecture as investors snap up virtual properties in the metaverse and seek design plans that can exist in the digital and physical worlds.
2D and 3D together
Graphic designers are letting their imaginations run wild as they create illustrations and abstract surrealism scenes for online audiences to enjoy. The quirky designs offer an escape from reality alongside a glimpse into the future of how brands and individuals can present information or concepts in a way that is visually captivating. This unique art is a departure from the flat 2D vectors of recent years and there are more designs that have both 2D and 3D elements together. While 2D is relatively easier to design, adding even a single 3D element elevates the visuals and offers more depth. It’s a much more interesting design result and gives designers a happy medium between the efficiency of 2D design and the visual appeal of 3D design.
Texture
Rendering various textures is much easier and far more accessible than ever before. Surfaces with familiar textures offer an extraordinary sensory experience from digital design and can either be entirely practical in their application or playful with surreal designs. Twinbru is setting the industry standard for digital fabrics and, through our partner platforms, gives 3D designers incredibly high quality and realistic fabric textures. The additional advantage of our fabric digital twins is that they are the digital replicas of physical fabrics that can be used in the real-world version of a design. Texture is also important for the metaverse to offer immersive experiences in virtual environments where the senses are engaged as much as possible.
Minimalist nostalgia
Design styles from previous eras always come back around in cyclical trends. What is unique about design trends now is that include more retro influences from more eras and it is refreshed with a minimalist approach. Something that is uniquely 60s or 70s in style stands out much more when it’s pared back to allow the key design feature to take the spotlight. It also gives minimalist design a pop of colour from the distinct colour palettes of earlier decades. This trend is evident in the redesign of company logos, in interior design as well as graphic design, where people want that nostalgic feel but enjoy it in a more clean and crisp environment.
Trending for longer
Trends do come and go but they are lasting a bit longer than usual. Consumers have more freedom to express their personal style and trends are more important for how they make one feel rather than being restricted to specific colours, forms or textures. This means the design can be much more inclusive and also more unique.
With digital design, the trends we’ve highlighted have an impact on various industries, from social media to furniture design. Digital designers are working in the gaming industry, are collaborating with architecture firms and are even making a name for themselves by sharing their work on social media, including platforms like Behance and TikTok. They influence the trends and heighten mainstream awareness through the power of digital connection.
Show us your work
Twinbru is excited to see the incredible talent of digital designers from around the globe. Our Pinterest boards and Render library are great sources of inspiration but we also want to showcase the work of designers to our digital communities.
Tag Twinbru in your designs on social media if you’ve used our fabric digital twins and we’ll share it with the world. Design is to be celebrated and enjoyed and we can’t wait to see how the trends develop in a very exciting future.