If you’re looking for some sleek design inspiration, read on to discover 15 minimalist artists who are creating stunning minimal imagery.
In this design roundup, we present the 15 excellent minimalist artists on Shutterstock, offering minimal logos, photography, illustration, fonts, and more that can be used in your projects. Whether it’s a perfectly pared-back background or simple and striking portrait, you’ll find plenty of minimal inspiration for your next clean and classic design.
What is Minimalism?
A design style that emerged from the Modernist movement in the early 20th century, minimalism emphasizes the importance of simplicity and functionality over excess. Clean sans-serif fonts, simple geometric shapes, selective use of color, and plenty of white space are some of the hallmarks of minimalism when applied to design projects.
In branding and marketing, minimalism is often favored for its ability to present communications clearly and stylishly, without any distracting frills or fuss. Because of minimalism’s association with luxury, as championed by fashion designers like Calvin Klein, Jil Sander, and The Row, you’ll also see minimalist styles used to make brands and designs feel more aspirational and high-end.
Minimalism is also an incredibly versatile design style, able to act as a palette cleanser for a wide range of digital and print designs, from websites to magazines. Simply strip back any excess elements from your design, choose some beautiful minimalist photography or Swiss style graphics, and see your design become much more stylish and user-friendly as a result.
Read on to discover our pick of fifteen Shutterstock artists who take a minimalist approach, from architectural photographers to minimal 3D artists.
License these images via, clockwise from left, Lightfield Studios, fotokop, onzon and Antlii.
Minimalist Photography
Minimal photography explores the potential of simple forms, lines and compositions, with many photographers opting for monochrome to showcase the stripped-back simplicity of portraits or architectural shots. The photographers below take different but equally impactful minimalist approaches in their images.
Spanish photographer Ruben Franco Rueda, aka Rubn21, explores a cool and collected minimalism in his photographs, which often feature modernist architecture in stripped-back monochrome.
A minimalist alternative to the photography style of Accidentally Wes Anderson, Ruben’s images look to symmetry and directional lines to create an impact. As well as beautiful standalone images, Ruben’s images can also be used as striking backgrounds for websites and desktops.
License these images via Rubn21 and Rubn21.
Minimalism doesn’t have to be monochrome. Colorful photography which takes an otherwise simple approach to subjects and composition can still retain the same minimalist spirit as a black-and-white image.
Volodymyr Melnyk, aka Master1305, curates an eccentric minimalist aesthetic in his images, which combine retro and surreal influences.
License these images via Master1305 and Master1305.
Photographic collective Lightfield Studios are specialists in simple, dramatic portrait photography. Monochromatic color and minimalist styling fuse with a touch of the theatrical, resulting in portraits that balance simplicity and serious style. Use creative portraits from Lightfield Studio to bring drama to marketing campaigns, social media posts, or event flyers.
License these images via Lightfield Studios and Lightfield Studios.
Minimalist Illustration and Graphics
Minimalist illustrations can communicate ideas and concepts extremely effectively. Useful for bringing character and interest to designs, these minimal illustrations share common minimalist principles such as simplicity, white space and selective use of color.
Taking cues from surrealist artist René Magritte, Italian contributor fran_kie gives modernist surrealism a contemporary twist with topical subject matter and digital effects. These minimalist illustrations tackle a range of subjects, from taboos to everyday scenarios, with unexpected and delightful results.
License these images via fran_kie and fran_kie.
Designer and illustrator Nick Risky looks to Swiss Style graphic design and 1960s psychedelia for his minimal yet mesmerizing graphics. Experimenting with refraction, distortion and 3D effects, these optical illusions present a new way of approaching minimalism, that is altogether more tactile and eye-popping.
These designs could be applied effectively to digital designs such as websites and apps, in place of flat minimal graphics.
License this image via Nick Risky and Nick Risky.
Kyiv-based graphic designer Anatolii Babii, known as Antlii, is a hidden graphic design gem on Shutterstock, with a huge portfolio of minimalist graphics, illustrations and templates that offer agency-standard style for campaigns and design projects.
Featuring colorblock or acid neon color palettes, Anatolii takes a playful approach to otherwise simple geometric shapes and letterforms, giving a contemporary twist to vintage design styles. Anatolii’s designs can be used to bring geometric impact to posters, websites, and brand identities.
License these images via Antlii, Antlii, and Antlii.
Minimalist Logos
For sleek brand identities or high-end branding, you can’t go wrong with a minimalist logo. Stripped-back logos not only look fantastic, but are exceptionally user-friendly. They’re widely usable for digital and small-scale projects, such as social media icons and app logos. You can discover clean and minimal logo designs from these highlighted Shutterstock artists, who specialize in type or pictogram-based designs in simple geometric or line art styles.
A specialist in minimalist logo designs, Shutterstock artist Ahmad Jirjis aka Logojoss, should be your first port of call for readymade or editable logos. Taking inspiration from the minimalist branding favored by some of the world’s biggest brands, Logojoss renders his simple logos and monograms in high-contrast monochrome or rainbow-hued gradients to create highly versatile, clean designs.
License these images via Logojoss and Logojoss.
If you’re looking for a more organic interpretation of minimalism, artist Vasya Kobelev’s delicate, line-based logos and illustrations will help you achieve an airy look in your brand designs. Perfect for lifestyle or retail brands, or as stylish social media icons, Vasya’s minimalist logo designs take their inspiration from natural forms and boho styling.
License these images via Vasya Kobelev and Vasya Kobelev.
You can also find a wide range of minimalist logos on the portfolio of Shutterstock contributor iamguru. The artist favors a colorful approach, which is well-suited to corporate, charity, or media branding.
They retain the minimalist aesthetic with use of simple forms, while achieving a sense of energy and movement through the use of fluid geometric shapes.
License these images via iamguru and iamguru.
Minimalist 3D Designs
3D backgrounds and architectural compositions bring texture and depth to designs, and can act as fantasy backdrops to product mockups, typography, or photography. These quirky and eye-popping images blur the lines between minimalism and maximalist color, but remain in the minimalist camp with modernist references and geometric detailing.
3D artist onzon creates surrealist dreamscapes of modernist fantasy architecture, featuring pastel-hued arches, stairways, and piazzas. Pushing the boundaries of what minimalism can offer, these kooky invented worlds provide endless creative potential for designers looking to make unusual website layouts or backgrounds for print designs.
License these images via onzon and onzon.
For minimalist product presentations or packaging mockups, look to the work of photographer and designer Paulina Kopijkowska, aka fotokop. Serene and minimal 3D scenes for demonstrating products and concepts, this artist’s beautifully crafted scenes are essential creative to have on hand for last-minute pitches.
License these images via fotokop and fotokop.
With a focus on natural materials, including marble, stone and wood, the 3D artwork created by Shutterstock artist Aurora72 have a tactile minimalism that will compliment simple packaging designs or product concepts. If you’re looking for a product podium that doesn’t feel obtrusive or overly on-trend, these timeless 3D designs are well worth a look.
License these images via Aurora72 and Aurora72.
Minimalist Fonts
Clean sans-serif fonts or chunky display typefaces can bring sleek futurism to designs, and make the perfect teammate to monochrome photography or minimalist graphics. Vector fonts are highly versatile and can be integrated with ease into logo designs or illustrated headlines.
Shutterstock artist geen graphy creates modernist-inspired vector fonts oozing with sleek, minimalist style. These futuristic display fonts can be used in place of geometric fonts like Helvetica and Futura for a more interesting design result. Or, pair your sans-serif typefaces with more traditional serif font styles for the perfect balance between minimalism and maximalism.
License these images via geen graphy and geen graphy.
Designer Yehor Lisnyi, known on Shutterstock as artyway, creates quirky display fonts within a minimalist style, helping you to bring character to your designs while maintaining a clean look.
Explore his portfolio of futuristic fonts for sci-fi-themed designs, while modernist type styles like Dots will help you to create suitably minimal modernist typography.
License these images via artyway and artyway.
While sans-serif typefaces will help you achieve an ultra-clean, minimalist look, did you know you can also tap into the minimalist trend with serif fonts? Once considered traditional and fussy, serifs have had a sleek makeover and now come in a variety of minimal options.
Shutterstock artist Rokhmad Priyanto, known as rahmad creative, has a mouthwatering array of slick serif typefaces available to choose from. Ranging from Art Nouveau to Art Deco-inspired styles, all of these typefaces have more fluid ligatures and transitions than conventional serif fonts.
License these images via rahmad creative and rahmad creative.
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