Style Encyclopedia — Index
Use when a brief asks for a specific era, movement, or aesthetic ("make it Art Deco," "Bauhaus vibes," "90s web nostalgia").
Workflow: find the style below → read its entry in the pointed file → then ALWAYS read Applying Historical Styles to Modern UI (how to translate a style into a usable, accessible modern UI without cosplay).
Quick lookup
| Client says… | Style | File |
|---|---|---|
| Ornate frames, circus/playbill type, chromolithograph richness | Victorian | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Handcrafted, William Morris, ornate borders, artisan | Arts & Crafts | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Organic curves, Mucha, Tiffany, botanical, whiplash lines | Art Nouveau | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Speed, machines, explosive diagonal typography | Futurism | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Absurdist collage, photomontage, anti-art chaos | Dada | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Dreamlike, uncanny, Magritte/Dalí imagery | Surrealism | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Gatsby, geometric luxury, gold, sunbursts, 1920s glamour | Art Deco | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Aerodynamic curves, speed lines, 1930s ocean-liner chrome | Streamline Moderne | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Bauhaus, geometric primary-color modernism | Bauhaus | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Constructivist, propaganda poster, diagonal red/black | Constructivism | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Mondrian, primary color blocks + black grid | De Stijl | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Clean grids, Helvetica, "Swiss design," objective | Swiss / International Style | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| 70s corporate identity, NASA worm, logo + standards manual | Corporate Modernism | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Mid-century, atomic age, boomerangs, Eames, 1950s optimism | Mid-Century Modern | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Googie diners, starburst signs, rocket-age roadside kitsch | Space Age / Googie | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Psychedelic, 60s concert posters, liquid lettering | Psychedelia | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Warhol, comic dots, bold consumer imagery | Pop Art | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Memphis, playful 80s squiggles, clashing pastels | Memphis | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Punk, collage, ransom-note type, grunge | Punk / Grunge (Postmodern) | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Minimalism, Dieter Rams, "less but better" | Functional Minimalism | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Japanese minimal, wabi-sabi, MUJI calm | Japanese minimal / wabi-sabi | Art & Design Movements (c. 1840 |
| Early Mac/Windows, pixel art, terminal green | Early digital (70s–90s) | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Y2K, chrome, bubbles, aqua gloss, translucent plastic | Y2K / Aqua era | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Realistic textures, leather, felt, iOS 6 | Skeuomorphism | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Flat, minimal, iOS 7 / Metro | Flat design | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Flat with shadows/depth, Google-style | Material era ("flat 2.0") | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Soft extruded shapes, soft UI | Neumorphism | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Frosted glass, translucent panels, visionOS-like | Glassmorphism | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Apple 2025 refractive "lensing" glass, iOS 26 look | Liquid Glass | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Raw, harsh, anti-design, monospace, exposed HTML | (Neo)Brutalism | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Dark neon, cyberpunk, synthwave grids | Dark neon / synthwave | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Pink/teal Roman busts, Windows-95 nostalgia, glitch | Vaporwave | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Claymation-soft 3D blobs | Claymorphism / soft 3D | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Modular card mosaic, Apple-keynote layout | Bento grids (trend) | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| AI glow, sparkle icon, soft multicolor gradients | AI "aurora" (trend) | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Pixel fonts, early-web chrome, Y2K nostalgia redone cleanly | Pixel/Y2K revival (trend) | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
| Lime green, low-res type, deliberately "wrong" | Lo-fi anti-design / "brat" (trend) | Digital UI Eras & Trends (1970s |
If the requested style isn't here, research it live before designing — don't guess at a movement's traits.