MONOLITHIC FORMS

With the misinterpretation of designers as “form-givers” yielding highly complicated, over-styled forms, several aesthetic themes have emerged to bring restraint and confidence to this over-worked design element. One of the most interesting to emerge has been Monolithic Forms. This stylistic mode involves an interplay of key elements: minimalism, massiveness, and primitive geometries. Most often, pure rectangular forms are used, although any basic geometry will be effective. Surfacing and detailing are very minimal, with  simple, unadorned, flat planes being most commonly used. Any parting lines that break the overall form into separate parts should be minimized (by hiding on non-visible surfaces), or even completely eliminated. The visual effect of this treatment is that the form has been carved or milled from a single block of material, retaining a deep sense of mass. Parting lines or extraneous details betray this intent, making the form seem comprised of thin sheets and being essentially hollow instead of solid and massive. Monolithic Forms seemed to originate first in Architecture, with the use of basic, heavy geometries, often suspended above the ground by a structural framework. Interior fixture designers picked up the theme with massive cast porcelain sinks and tubs. Then the Consumer Electronics category adopted this aesthetic mode as well, in hard drives, computer enclosures, high-end audio gear, etc. One challenge with employing this trend is at the initial sketch level: Monolithic Forms are not incredibly impressive when first drawn on paper. Clients presented with a range of nicely sketched rectangles may be inclined to feel the designer didn’t give it their fullest effort. In this case, presenting a convincing set of inspirational images, or even showing more refined realistic CAD renderings may be a better method of getting initial buy-in. Or might we suggest just showing the Monolith from 2001?

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