I am on Instagram. A lot.
Probably too much. It’s my social media platform of choice at the moment because, as a trained graphic designer, it doesn’t get any better to me than tons of pictures of stuff. My discovery feed is pretty much entirely consumed by 3 topics at this point: NBA-related posts, pictures of vintage guitars and, last but not least, design and art-related pics.
These accounts offer a lot to the casual scroller, from inspiration images to process swipe-through stories to excellent design aesthetics across multiple mediums. Here are some of my favorite design-based accounts at the moment, for all my fellow designers and art-loving peoples!
1. @logoplace – Logoplace is great for inspiration in exactly what the name suggests–various creative and fun logos ideas. On this account, you’ll find logos created for mostly small or fictitious companies. Most of the curated logos in this gallery have a purposefully similar stylistic approach so if you are looking for clean, geometric, lighthearted design inspiration, this is definitely one to follow.
2. @stefansagmeister– Stefan is a world-renowned artist and designer known for his unorthodox style and typographical work. He uses his feed for various purposes but has done short logo reviews and pictures of personal photos in the past as well. I would call this account more “inspiration imagery” than anything but he definitely a fun follow for anyone with artistic inclinations.
3. @goodtype – This is the account for type lovers, and apparently, there are quite a few of us as this account is slowly but surely approaching 1m followers. This account posts beautiful typography from all mediums, multiple times a day. Examples range from digital and print to hand-crafted calligraphy, and they’re all helpful in getting that creative, typographic part of your brain firing!
4. @draplin – Another graphic artist most designers will already know, recognize and love. Aaron James Draplin is an artist known for his fun concepts and affinity for thick lines. He preaches simplicity and loves ancient icons and logos that most people overlook. Check out his feed which feels like a beautiful stream of consciousness from an artistic crazy person (in the best way possible).
5. @dkng – A really cool studio that does amazing vector graphics work. They post a ton of posters, beer can designs, and illustrations. Some of the most useful and inspirational content is the process videos they post which really showcase how super intricate designs can start life as just a rough little pencil sketch on a scrap paper. This is a great follow!
6. @lincolndesignco – Another one of my favorite design studios, Lincoln Design Co. does incredibly creative work for their huge list of clients. Their logo design work is wild, not only because of the quality of the designs but the sheer quantity of designs they create and show for each project. These guys very visibly love their clients and have tons of fun with the work and it definitely shows.
7. @friendsoftype – This is another great typography-focused account that looks at close up depictions of type use and type treatments. Really cool stuff across many different mediums. Looking at this feed definitely builds an appreciation for the finer details and intricacies that go into a typographic work that sometimes go undetected in an overall piece.
8. @gfx.mob / @branding.mob – These two accounts are related but focus on different topics, however I’m grouping them together because they come from the same insta-family. The “gfx” account is mostly digital illustrations but all the posts have very beautiful palettes and similar stylistic trends. The “branding” account features posts of extended branding systems and showcase how products across the systems line up. Both are great inspirational follows!
9. @jonathanfaust – Jonathan is a typographic designer from Denmark. He posts photos and videos of himself creating beautiful, original, typographic designs and even takes user-submitted requests for what text he should transform into an original piece. If you enjoy process videos or calligraphy, check this guy out.
10. @aigaeyeondesign – Most designers will be familiar is AIGA, but EOD is a magazine and website that is published by AIGA. The EOD feed is full of awesome, conceptual, high-level design examples with short descriptions accompanying their posts. They curate a very specific style and tag the designers whose work they repost–making it easy to find more related content. A really great follow for any design lover.
These are 10 of my favorite design feeds, but there are literally hundreds, if not thousands more out there. A cool thing about Instagram is when you follow one of these accounts, they will usually give you a list of “recommended related accounts” to follow as well. Of course, you can always follow us at @gravity_rail_media to see the latest project we’re working on too.
So, go follow these feeds and look for other cool ones along the way. Happy inspiration hunting!