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2021 trends - RETRO FUTURISM

Retro futurism, the sci-fi dreams of a bygone era, is appealing for the spectacular ways in which the past got it wrong. By now, we were expected to have flying cars, ray guns and robot maids. Instead, we have Roombas.

But through the ages, retro futurism as a visual style has prevailed due to its bold imagination with a surprisingly optimistic outlook — at least more so than our current visions of doom in shows like Black Mirror. The retro futurists believed in human progress, to the extent that even scary green martians in flying saucers would be no match for our scientific ingenuity.

Stylistically, this optimism finds its expression through an emphasis on bright colors, computer-inspired typography, and curves — from fishbowl space helmets to arches and domes.

Rather than returning us to an idealized past, 2021’s retro futurism promises to transport us back to the good old days of the days yet to come.