open-design/design-systems/brutalism/DESIGN.md

Design System Inspired by Brutalism

Category: Bold & Expressive Raw, anti-design aesthetic inspired by concrete architecture with unadorned elements, jarring layouts, and functional minimalism.

1. Visual Theme & Atmosphere

Raw, anti-design aesthetic inspired by concrete architecture with unadorned elements, jarring layouts, and functional minimalism.

• Visual style: bold
• Color stance: primary, secondary, neutral, success, warning, danger
• Design intent: Keep outputs recognizable to this style family while preserving usability and readability.

2. Color

• Primary: #DD614C — Token from style foundations.

• Secondary: #DAA144 — Token from style foundations.

• Success: #16A34A — Token from style foundations.

• Warning: #D97706 — Token from style foundations.

• Danger: #DC2626 — Token from style foundations.

• Surface: #FFFFFF — Token from style foundations.

• Text: #111827 — Token from style foundations.

• Neutral: #FFFFFF — Derived from the surface token for official format compatibility.

• Favor Primary (#DD614C) for CTA emphasis.

• Use Surface (#FFFFFF) for large backgrounds and cards.

• Keep body copy on Text (#111827) for legibility.

3. Typography

• Scale: desktop-first expressive scale
• Families: primary=Darker Grotesque, display=Darker Grotesque, mono=JetBrains Mono
• Weights: 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900
• Headings should carry the style personality; body text should optimize scanability and contrast.

4. Spacing & Grid

• Spacing scale: 4/8/12/16/24/32
• Keep vertical rhythm consistent across sections and components.
• Align columns and modules to a predictable grid; avoid ad-hoc offsets.

5. Layout & Composition

• Prefer clear content blocks with consistent internal padding.
• Keep hierarchy obvious: headline → support text → primary action.
• Use whitespace to separate concerns before adding borders or shadows.

6. Components

• Buttons: primary action uses #DD614C; secondary actions stay neutral.
• Inputs: strong focus-visible states, clear labels, and predictable error messaging.
• Cards/sections: use consistent radii, spacing, and elevation strategy across the page.

7. Motion & Interaction

• Use subtle transitions that emphasize Primary (#DD614C) as the interaction signal.
• Default to short, purposeful transitions (150–250ms) with stable easing.
• Ensure hover, focus-visible, active, disabled, and loading states are explicit.

8. Voice & Brand

• Tone should reflect the visual style: concise, confident, and product-specific.
• Keep microcopy action-oriented and avoid generic filler language.
• Preserve the style identity in headlines while keeping UI labels literal and clear.

9. Anti-patterns

• Do not introduce off-palette colors when an existing token can solve the problem.
• Do not flatten hierarchy by using the same type size/weight for all text.
• Do not add decorative effects that reduce readability or accessibility.
• Do not mix unrelated visual metaphors in the same interface.