One frame does the jobs you juggle.

Painted

Brush and pigment. Reads as a real canvas.

• Oil PaintingThick impasto on visible canvas weave. Museum wall
• WatercolourWet bleed and granulation on cold-press paper
• Colour FieldVast stained expanses, soft boundaries, near-abstract
• GouacheFlat opaque matte colour, visible brush edges
• FrescoChalky earth colour cured into lime plaster
• Egg TemperaHatched matte colour on chalk gesso, fine craquelure
• Reverse GlassFlat colour behind glass, hard dark outlines
• Scratched PlasterWhite lime skin scratched to dark plaster below

Printed

Pressed ink. Flat colour, honest registration.

• RisographTwo spot inks, visible misregistration, paper show-through
• LinocutCarved relief block, bold black, visible tool marks
• CyanotypePrussian blue contact print, one hue, brushed edges
• EtchingAcid-bitten lines, ink relief, embossed plate mark
• ScreenprintThick flat inks, coarse halftone dots, off-register
• Wood EngravingWhite lines cut out of a solid black field
• NewsprintCoarse black dot screen spread into yellowed stock
• Stone LithographCrayon grain on stone plus one flat tint
• MezzotintVelvet black scraped back into light, no lines

Drawn

Hand and pigment stick. Quiet, tonal, close.

• CharcoalSmudged tonal drawing, fingerprints in the grain
• Ink WashA few decisive brushstrokes and a lot of empty paper
• Pen & InkFine crosshatching, everything built from lines
• Red ChalkWarm iron-red chalk on ribbed laid paper
• Soft PastelChalky pigment dust sunk into paper tooth
• Chalk StudyBlack, red and white chalk on grey paper
• Oil PastelGreasy sticks smeared and scratched through

Photographic

Camera and chemistry. Plates, film, darkroom accidents.

• TintypeDark iron plate, pour streaks, blown white sky
• InfraredWhite foliage, near-black sky, halation bloom
• OscilloscopeGreen beam, brighter where it slows, blooming
• DaguerreotypeMirror-bright silver plate, tarnish creeping in
• Cross-ProcessedCyan-green shadows, acid yellow, crushed contrast
• PinholeSoft everywhere, cloud and water smeared to silk

Craft

Thread, glass, wood. Made by hand, held together.

• TapestryRibbed wool weave, hatched colour, slit colour edges
• SashikoWhite running stitch on faded indigo cotton
• Patchwork QuiltFlat pieced cotton, quilting lines, batting loft
• BatikWax-crackle veins and cream resist outlines
• Stained GlassBacklit glass held in black lead lines
• Crewel EmbroideryRaised wool stitches on visible linen twill
• Glass MosaicCut glass tesserae with grout lines between
• MarquetrySawn veneer, grain as shading, scorched edges

Designed

Geometry and machines. Graphic and deliberate.

• BauhausPrimary colours, hard geometry, nothing decorative
• Art DecoStepped symmetry, strong verticals, metallic accent
• Paper CollageTorn and cut paper shapes, visible layering
• Dithered PixelsPure black and white pixels, no grey anywhere
• Pen PlotterMachine-drawn hatching with pen-lift blobs
• Flow FieldTen thousand short strokes bent by one current
• BlueprintViolet ammonia lines on a curled white sheet
• TeletextChunky colour blocks on a coarse character grid

Type-led

The words are the artwork. Little or no imagery.

• Condensed CapsHeavy condensed white caps on near-black, one word in red
• Gold EditionThe same block in brushed gold. Reads as the premium edition
• Single Word HeroOne word cropped at both edges, the rest small beneath
• Outline GhostHollow outlined letterforms, one solid word for contrast
• Colour FieldOne flat saturated colour carrying the type. Swiss poster

Photo-led

A photograph carries the mood, type sits over it.

• Athlete DuotoneAnonymous athlete in hard duotone, caps overlay, red accent
• Cinematic OverlayMoody wide scene, type in the lower third on a soft scrim
• Split PanelHalf photograph, half solid colour holding the type

Editorial

Documents, lists and structures. The quote as an object.

• Rules ListA short set of rules under a heading. Gym-wall energy
• Numbered StepsBig numerals with short lines beside them
• Front PageBroadsheet headline. Masthead, deck, columns, one halftone
• Dictionary EntryOne word defined. The quote as the definition body
• VersusTwo columns, hard centre rule, one side in the accent
• ScoreboardSplit-flap board. Mono type in flat panels

Quiet

Restrained, warm, room to breathe.

• Minimal ZenLarge type at low contrast in vast empty space
• Paper LetterpressHeavy cotton stock, deep impression, one muted ink
• Script + SansOne handwritten line against condensed caps
• Scripture SerifClassical serif on parchment, small reference line