Search Results

The conversation about minimalism and maximalism is a very new one, and perhaps slightly irrelevant if only looked at from an aesthetic form standpoint. In a country where all kinds of design languages and styles co-exist, to isolate and study these two extremes is perhaps unidimensional. One must properly research it, and organise it before coming to any clear conclusions on the matter. Having said that, since I’ve been requested to write this article, let me attempt to put on various lenses and break it down, in the best way I can. I also would like to clarify that I look at graphic design in India from a very broad point of view. For me, graphics on architecture and textiles is as much part of Indian graphic design, as are branded seals and typography. The big picture I often get irked when people tell me that graphic design as a field is new in India. Even though I understand that they are referring to the fact that as a formal, well-paying career, it has found new roots in the current age. But if we look at the definition of graphic design as ‘communicating through word and image’, we have been doing this since ancient times. One of the world’s oldest scripts, from our ancient Harappan civilisation — was pictographic, hence proving this region’s long history with graphic communication. Long after the ancients carved out pictographs on rocks and tablets, there have been traders and invaders; colonialists, kingdoms and political parties, religious texts and imperial records — all creating their own communication and even branding. From currencies to languages and scripts, on scrolls, coins, rocks, parchments, temple walls and cemeteries. Within these lie both, very minimal colour blocks, line and dot work; and very elaborate frescos, calligraphy and textile work. Sometimes they both lie in juxtaposition in the same space, often in the same era and culture. It is safe to say that the variety of graphic styles here, correspond to the various cultures, regions, religions, kingdoms and languages we’ve had through history. And hence it’s not just about looking at these two polar opposite aesthetics but looking at the various juxtapositions in between. Maximal v/s Minimal It is also important, if not imperative to ask why this aesthetic. In India form always follows function even though the form is often so beautiful that you may forget that its genesis was in fact, a function. Maximal As one travels through India, you notice that the decadent more maximal aesthetic may appear in instances of Show of wealth and power: decadent carvings on temples and palaces, intricate embroideries and weaves, jewellery, typography on mosque and temple walls etc. Decoration by the common man, often a function of time and the owner’s love for the design object: decorated vehicles (trucks rickshaws, bikes), elaborate block prints on fabric, tattoos on camels, etc. Celebration: henna, elaborate mandaps and pandal decor, festival decor, religious paintings and imagery etc. Marketing and campaigning: Political murals, film posters, hand-painted shop signs etc. Minimal Minimal aesthetics show up when ‘Official’ material influenced by Western Bauhaus standards: Road Signs, Forms, Uniforms, etc. Simple rural artefacts: we are a poor country, hence a lot of the minimalism is a function of poverty, lack of resources and the simple living practices preached by Mahatma Gandhi. Eg — khadi clothing, simple rangolis etc. Religious and spiritual austerity: The maximalism of religious practices is juxtaposed with its minimalism in its purest form. Simple colour-blocked walls at places of worship, pure white clothing in various spiritual practices, basic artefacts etc. Grids and systems: Vastu maps, mandalas, city maps and time tables. I must admit, making these tabulations, although look simple, (and borderline simplistic), are quite a task and were done mostly from my memory and limited to the travels I’ve had across the country. These are by no means comprehensive. One must work on a thesis on this subject for months tot do this any justice. Challenges One of the biggest issues is that Indian design is often seen as craft and to separate the form from the function becomes quite difficult because we are so good at hiding all that function under beautifully rendered forms. This is in my opinion a mark of great design, where form and function seamlessly combine. Secondly, there is such a dearth of structured literature and research material on Indian graphic design in particular, that finding starting points and factual data is difficult. A Tip for a modern Indian Graphic designer I feel, this idea of minimalism and maximalism is forcing a designer to pick a corner, often to match trends. In my practice at LOCAL I have emphasised that one must be equally comfortable in wielding both where required. The ultimate goal is to solve the communication problem for the client. If you either want to distil the communication to its bare minimum (eg. a logo mark), or communicate something sublime, quiet or exclusive, you can use minimalism. But as Indians, we love to decorate and embellish, we don’t shy away from colours, and bold graphics even in our daily lives. So, our graphic design must not shy away from using this philosophy for communication, and hence our innate sense of maximalism must be embraced. In an attempt to create more research and data points for future designers, we have started LOCAL Labs. It is an incubation platform for research ideas and projects. As students of the design community, I urge you to join this movement and help us understand our own context better. And help us all become better graphic communicators.

We humans want to conquer things First the elements of nature. Then the animals and plants We tried to take their best features, outrun them, enslave them. We did this with other cultures, people, ideas. When computers became mainstream - They said our lives would become easier. But what we didn’t account for is the human need to compete. So we decided to work faster than them To keep up. Because we wanted everything, immediately, because now we could. (Even if it meant to burnout.) Image: Taken at the ArtScence Museum, Singapore 2023 Now that AI is there. I know we will first use it to better our work. Then we will try to out-smart it Be more, do more. Don’t know how long we will be able to keep up though as machines becomes smarter and smarter. (Will this ultimately make us sadder?) I think humans don’t really want easier lives, we just want better competitors.

I was invited to speak about something 'Interesting' in London last week. I chose to talk about Identities and labels. In the western world where 'representation' is such a buzzword, what does it mean to be truly seen? I covered a lot of themes that only an audience in London could let me freely talk about. What racism looks like on the ground level and what labels do to someone's experience of a culture. Watch the video for the full talk:

We are now going to migrate all the thought pieces written and created by us on this site so we have it all in one place. Feel free to subscribe to the blog to stay updated with us!

This was the first blog I had published on medium on June 20, 2018. We have come a long way since then. LOCAL will turn 5 this year and I will be writing an updated piece soon. It’s been over eight months that LOCAL has taken off, and it has already been a crazy rollercoaster ride. In these months I have hired 2 lovely young girls to help me on this journey, I’ve managed to plan, obssess and finally get married, go on a honeymoon with half my heart in my startup, try to set up my new home and of course work on 6 restaurants, 2 packaging projects, 2 corporate branding projects and manage to win a campaign pitch with a top international cosmetic company. While we do this we also try to focus on a lot of side projects, walks around Mumbai, studies of indigenous birds for one project or tribal tattoos for another. In addition to this, constant networking, attending events and workshops, dealing with finances, creating systems and oh yes I used to also teach at a design school in Mumbai (who’s academic year has now ended). Yep, that’s a lot to pack into eight months. It’s like there is a crowded, speeding local train and I am hanging from its doors. Just trying to stay aboard. I guess that’s what entrepreneurship is. You control the pace and speed of things in the beginning but as soon as things 'take off’ (now I understand the choice of words) they really do take off – on their own, and all you can do is hang on for the ride. It’s a crazy confusing ride where everyday brings its own challenges. Sometimes the good gets mixed up with the bad and you don’t realise what hit you. Was it the burst of happiness of a new successful pitch or the shot of worry for your team. Here is my attempt to dissect experiences so I can celebrate the good, address the bad and acknowledge the truth. The Good The reasons why I started LOCAL are things we are actually doing. While this article is not about LOCAL’s ideology and values, here are some high points of me starting my own studio which would be true for most design businesses. An ideology-based firm The reason I started LOCAL was because I felt that India needed a design firm with a strong standpoint. A point of view on indian design. So far, we have managed to use India as an inspiration for most of our projects. Even those that are not Indian-themed. The hypothesis that we can be inspired by what we see around us rather than Pinterest boards has been proven true. And that to me has been a huge win for LOCAL. You get to design your own briefs Yes! Finally you can figure out what the client really wants and create a brief that truly solves the problem rather than just doing what the client servicing guy asked you to do. You get to choose and direct projects and clients At LOCAL we are a little picky about who we work with and what we work on. Like any relationship, it has to be a good match with energies vibing. Every project is a chance to create a small part of an ideal world with values and principles that you hold dear. Lets face it, the world is fucked and every day that we go to work, if there is a small way we can fix it, we try to. Egz. “Do we really need 3 layers of packaging? Can we design this with waste? Can we use local artisans to do this? Can we create awareness about this cause through this brand?.. you get the drift. We want to be super heroines. Culture culture culture. You decide what kind of organisation and community you would like to build, it’s like building a family. If you create muck you have to live in muck. Being designers we can design our own lives and so the culture in which LOCAL lives, the values and people we want to be connected with is very important. And deliberately created. Design and research whatever you want! Studio projects! Collaborations! Stickers! Masti! Random research explorations. Lets go walk around Shivaji park photographing aunties today. These are the things that drive us every day. The Bad But like all things, this comes at a (unforeseen) price: No sleep and constant anxiety I wake up at 5:30. Everyday. Not coz I want to. But because my mind won’t let me sleep any longer. Waking up with a to-do list on your mind everyday What wakes me up? A floating soup of tasks which nag me until I wake up and do something about them. No switch off time and no mindspace I’m going to admit it. I am constantly thinking about LOCAL. Even when I deliberately decide not to, my brain gravitates to thoughts of it. I have started to workout and read books, but then I end up reading books on design or entrepreneurship. FML. Difficulty experiencing the moment fully I was thinking about work at my honeymoon in the Maldives. Yes. Those photos on Instagram are rare moments of focusing on honeymooning but overall I was a tiny stressball. (Side note though: I wasn’t thinking about work during my wedding. Thank God) Doing more of the boring stuff and less of the fun Taxation, pitch decks, keeping the team motivated and happy and making sure they meet deadlines, grooaaaannn. Can we design stickers now? Everything seems to connect to work Every single thing in my life is an idea for LOCAL. Like literally. Finding the right team LOCAL is very young and we are still forming its culture and at this point it’s very important that the current team gives it the correct energy and love. I am also careful to pick people we collaborate with or hire because LOCAL is like a child, you want it to be influenced by the right people and energies. Team management and wellbeing For me, I realised I’m more of a mother than I thought. I worry for my team, constantly. I want them to enjoy coming to work and use it as a platform to do whatever their dream projects may be. But often, with client work looming, there is little time for the fun and learning part. It’s a delicate balance and I’m constantly trying to manage it. Sometimes it takes a toll on me when I overdo it. Having said that, often amazing work comes from them when I’m not around. There is a thin line between Micromanaging and Guiding Juggling roles of director, designer, manager, cleaner and team motivator Yes you have to do everything. And while doing so, certain roles that seemed trivial when you worked in a big organisation, now make sense. Social life suffering You will hear your family and friends complain that you never have time for them. Often resorting to terms like ‘badey log' and 'kya? gaayab? forgotten kya?’ and the very worst 'appointment lena padega' Fashion and self-care You were queen fashion bee one moment, you start a company and suddenly you have been wearing only 4 things from your wardrobe. And rather than looking like the Founder you look like someone found you on the streets. The Truth: the greatest challenge I am being brutally honest. Because I do think it’s important for aspiring entrepreneurs to know what you are in for. If your 9–7 seems stressful and demanding, try running one. And if any founder told you that they didn’t feel the same stresses, they must be trying to play it cool or lie or are Rajnikanth. Or mayyybe, they meditate, eat well, have a life, exercise and have their shit sorted. But then again, they probably aren’t a first-time startup. I will say the greatest challenge of starting your own company is separating yourself from your work. We all know we have to. But to actually do it is quite difficult. That’s my personal goal. To have a bigger life beyond LOCAL. To enjoy my new marriage, to travel, to meet my friends more often, to practice my singing. To be truly present in a moment and not have that nagging To-do list wake me up in the morning. I’ll keep you guys posted on how it goes. Here’s me signing off on my first post on Medium. Roshnee