Karma (design for Depthcore.com)

Dutch artist and designer Rik Oostenbroek specializes in retro-futuristic digital illustrations as part of a personal practice and client-based work. Using a deep, almost psychedelic color palette and intricate, flowing lines, Ooostenbroek creates dynamic images that reference both modern aesthetics and past trends.

Typography

I like the effect that Oostenbroek gets by using bright colors that work as gradients in the images themselves, transforming from opaque to translucent at different points in the artwork. The colors that the artist uses are reminiscent of neon signs, a look that’s emphasized by the black backgrounds on which the figures appear. The black grounds add a sense of drama and turn each image into a sort of icon, floating free of any in-image context.

I also enjoy seeing how Oostenbroek’s very distinctive style translates into different design challenges. In some personal works, his lines are very flowing and gestural. In examples of typography on the artist’s website, the intense movement of the lines is tethered to hard, blocky letter forms, creating a very striking sense of contrast and tension in each word. 

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