Maximalist or Minimalist? Style Experiments in Art Journal Pages

This week, we experiment between maximalist and minimalist styles.

Every time I open one of my art journals, I feel a sense of relaxation. It’s time for experimentation and risk-taking. In art journals, failure can also be success. Page by page, I learn to know myself better and thus, express things that can also be relevant to others. Now I wanted to experiment with style and picked my Dylusions Creative Journal for that.

Maximalist – Multiply!

I know that I’m more of a maximalist than a minimalist, so I started with that and made a spread with the principle of “more is more”.

I’ve started to be fascinated by buildings, both exterior and interior, and here too motifs began to create a sense of space as they turned into ornaments.

It was so fun to add a new detail on top of another that I forgot to take more pictures of the different stages, but I started with watercolors and soon moved on to colored pencils.

I’m fascinated by abundance and luxury. I connect that with the courage to be brave and let it all out. When I feel like that, the maximalist style is born effortlessly.

Adding details and dividing one shape to many can be done over and over again. I could have refined my drawing even more!

Maximalist or Minimalist – Adult or Child?

For me, maximalism is associated with adulthood and minimalism with childhood, although many probably think the opposite: that as a child you sprawl and as an adult you can prune. But when I look at my childhood drawings, I can say that my poor drawing skills made me a natural minimalist as a child.

But let’s remember that even as an adult, we can grab a light marker and start coloring with clumsy strokes and without outlines.

Minimalist – Simplify!

I colored the shapes of horses directly on a blank piece of paper without outlines. When I colored the background, I then refined the shapes.

As a child, I loved playing with plastic horses and red tights were my favorite accessory.

While making this art journal spread, I felt a deep connection not only to my childhood in the 1970s, but also to my teenage years in the 80s.

Back then, everything was still possible and ahead. The horses galloped wildly in my small room, but my mind was already far away in the outside world.

The controversy between the style and the content is the key here. The picture is clear, and the colors are raw, but the atmosphere is intense and a little mysterious.

It is as if I were each of those four horses. At the same time, a playing child, a baby seeking support, a galloping youth, and an adult whose life is still a mystery.

When I compare these two spreads, I think that I could give the minimalist a little more space, and it would not reduce the expression, maybe vice versa?

What do you think? See the pics below and leave a comment!

Exercise: Maximalist or Minimalist?
Try the same experiment in your art journal!