Style combination · Contrasts

Corporate Memphis × Scandinavian Functionalism

Both aim for friendliness, but Corporate Memphis shouts; use Nordic restraint to get warmth from colour and space instead of rubbery figures.

From the research on Scandinavian Functionalism

Mix them and make something Corporate Memphis Scandinavian Functionalism

A sample layout drawn from the recipe: shapes from Corporate Memphis, their arrangement from Scandinavian Functionalism, the finish from Corporate Memphis. Not a real work, and not an image of either style.

What each style brings

Each part of the design comes from the style with the stronger say in it, and each style gives at least two.

Corporate Memphis Scandinavian Functionalism

Type from Scandinavian Functionalism: Geometric sans
Grotesque & neo-grotesque
Colour from Corporate Memphis: Flat fields
Full polychrome
Form from Corporate Memphis: Distortion & exaggeration
Stylised figuration
Composition from Scandinavian Functionalism: Generous white space
Column grid
Surface from Corporate Memphis: Flat

The type

Open fonts standing in for each style’s own type, which is often hand-drawn or commercial.

Display · Scandinavian Functionalism

Together

Jost, standing in for Futura

Text · Corporate Memphis

The flat vector illustration style that became the default visual voice of big tech in the late 2010s: faceless, ethnically non-specific figures with elongated limbs and tiny heads, drawn in bright flat colour among blobs, leaves and confetti. Codified in Buck's Alegria system for Facebook (2017) and spread by open libraries such as unDraw and Humaaans, it was later named, half-mockingly, after the Memphis Group.

Hanken Grotesk; Corporate Memphis used Circular and Airbnb Cereal

The colours

The ground and leading colours come from Corporate Memphis, with a counter-accent from Scandinavian Functionalism. The ink reads on the ground at 4.5:1 or more.

Corporate Memphis Scandinavian Functionalism

#ffffff ground · 36%
#2f2e41 ink · 14%
#ffc857 accent · 18%
#6c63ff accent · 14%
#a63a2a accent · 10%
#ff7f6e accent · 8%

As CSS

:root {
  --ground: #ffffff;
  --ink: #2f2e41;
  --accent-1: #ffc857;
  --accent-2: #6c63ff;
  --accent-3: #a63a2a;
  --accent-4: #ff7f6e;
  --font-display: "Jost", sans-serif;
  --font-text: "Hanken Grotesk", sans-serif;
}

The two styles

A brightly coloured illustration shows a person with a dark ponytail striding with one knee raised and arms spread, wearing a yellow shirt, purple trousers and teal shoes. The words “Move Brighter” appear above them on a white background scattered with colourful dots and curved marks.

2017–present · North America, Global / networked Corporate Memphis The flat vector illustration style that became the default visual voice of big tech in the late 2010s: faceless, ethnically non-specific figures with elongated limbs and tiny heads, drawn in bright flat colour among blobs, leaves and confetti. Codified in Buck's Alegria system for Facebook (2017) and spread by open libraries such as unDraw and Humaaans, it was later named, half-mockingly, after the Memphis Group.

A rust-red cat sleeps curled beside a leafy green plant in a yellow pot on a cream background. Large dark lettering reads “Quiet Days” at upper left, with a yellow circle above the plant.

1930–present · Northern Europe Scandinavian Functionalism Nordic functionalism (funkis) arrived in graphic form with Sigurd Lewerentz's posters and winged emblem for the 1930 Stockholm Exhibition. It adapted Bauhaus rationalism to a social-democratic ideal of beautiful everyday things for everyone. Its graphic language is modernism with warmth: clear sans-serif or humane serif type, generous space, friendly simplified symbols and colours taken from nature, applied to public services, consumer goods and national identities.

More combinations

With Corporate Memphis

All 28 combinations with Corporate Memphis

With Scandinavian Functionalism

All 18 combinations with Scandinavian Functionalism

Every style combination