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If you’re in NYC, I’ll be giving a presentation on our CARI & Y2K work at the Dec. 17th 4:00pm showing of ‘Time Bomb Y2K’ at the DCTV Firehouse Cinema, along w/ a post-screening Q&A! ‘Time Bomb Y2K’ is an excellent archival footage documentary on the cultural context surrounding the Y2K bug!
Flagship McDonald's - Oxford Street, London UK (2003) Designed by SHH Architects Has a Frutiger Aero-Y2K hybrid look; it’s still around but has been extensively remodeled it seems. The highlights include nature-inspired wall graphics, Wi-Fi provided throughout, along with internet and PlayStation terminals on the first floor lounge.
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The official YouTube channel for the Y2K Aesthetic Institute. Account run by Froyo Tam and Evan Collins. Twitter: @y2k_aesthetic Tumblr: y2kaestheticinstitute.tumblr.com Instagram: @y2kaesthetic
- History
- Modern Times
- Visuals
- Fashion
- Media
- Music
- Resources
Y2K has its origins in the underground UK rave scene of the late '80s/Early '90s, as well as the early works of the Sheffield-based Designers Republic. First signs of the Y2K aesthetic going mainstream appeared around 1995 to 1996, with the release of Windows 95, the start of the Internet boom, the original PlayStation and Nintendo 64 being release...
Some have taken an interest in the aesthetic in recent times. Evan Collins coined the term in 2016, having noticed the aesthetic had not yet been explored by the Vaporwave scene as much as earlier, more ubiquitous periods (i.e. '80s/Early '90s aesthetics like Memphis and Synthwave), and wanting to give it more exposure. Collins runs the Y2K Aesthet...
Graphics and Art
Y2K aesthetics use both graphic design and CGI. Graphic designs usually feature thick lines, bold minimalism, and heavy use of iconography. CGI art is more blobby looking, having more gradients in contrast to Metalheart or Chromecore. Common colors used in Y2K art are, but not limited to, chrome, icy blue, ocean, bright oranges, glossy white, and black (for linework). One of the earliest definers of the Y2K aesthetic is the Designers Republic, a Sheffield-based graphic design studio best know...
Toys and Technology
Being that this was the era that the cell phone was first starting to become popular among your average consumer, you can find a lot of nods to the original models of cell phones (such as the original Nokia phones or the clamshell/flip phones) within the Y2K subculture. Also popular around this time was the Blobject - a type of design product (often a household object) distinguished by smooth flowing curves, bright translucent colors (part of the then-popular clear craze fad) such as Bondi Bl...
Blobitecture
Blobitecture, also known as 'blobism’, is a term given to a post-modern architectural style characterized by curved and rounded building shapes, or 'blob architecture'. Blobitecture buildings appear to have an organic form that is soft and free-flowing, yet comes together to produce a complex whole. Blobitecture buildings started popping up around the Late '90s/Early 2000s to reflect a lot of the trends at the time, giving the buildings something of a "futuristic" look at the time (by the sta...
Y2K is a very new concept, but with certain brands that were popular at the time still existing, one could easily predict these brands could potentially play a huge role in Y2K. Basically, you'd either look like a Late '90s/Early 2000s raver or a member of a boy band from the time. There were also alternative streetwear styles in this era, such as ...
Movies
1. Batman Forever(1995) 2. Hackers(1995) 3. Biodome(1996) 4. The Fifth Element(1997) 5. Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery(1997) 6. Batman and Robin(1997) 7. Spawn(1997) 8. Gattaca(1997) 9. Cube(1997) 10. Run Lola Run(1998) 11. Small Soldiers(1998) 12. Pokémon: The First Movie(1998) 13. Blade(1998) 14. Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century(1999) 15. The Matrix(1999) 16. Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace(1999) 17. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me(1999) 18. American Beauty(1999) 1...
TV Shows
1. Space Ghost Coast to Coast(Cartoon Network/Adult Swim, 1994-2004) (animated) 2. ReBoot(Canada, 1994-2001) (animated) 3. Ocean Girl(Australia, 1994-1997) 4. Hallo aus Berlin (BBC Schools, 1996-1997) 5. Transformers: Beast Wars(syndicated, 1996-1999) (animated) 6. Superman: The Animated Series(Kids' WB, 1996-2000) (animated) 7. Sabrina, the Teenage Witch(ABC/The WB, 1996-2003) 8. Dexter's Laboratory(Cartoon Network, 1996-2003) (animated) 9. Teletubbies(UK, 1997-2001, revived in 2015) 10. Buf...
Webfiction
Orion's Arm was the last sci-fi literary work of the 20th century to get a world developed by many people of large scale and embraced internet trends popular at the time and later on to make an aesthetic that is a mix of Y2K, Frutiger Aero, Hexatron, biopunk, weirdcore, randumb, Old Web, robotcore, Technical Scene, baidexweb, Silicon Dreams, Gen X Soft Club, and Abstract Tech. Homestuckused things such as PDAs, CDs, and chat clients inspired by AOL as parts of the plot. 1. Orion's Arm (2000-)...
Since Y2K was about embracing the future, the tone of musicalso reflected this. Electronic music was the go-to genre to capture this era as a musician. Record labels associated with Y2K include System Records and Eldia. The most well-known music associated with Y2K is big beat, a subgenre of electronic music that used "heavy breakbeats and synthesi...
External links to help get a better understanding of this aesthetic: 1. Y2K Institute Twitter 2. Y2K Institute Tumblr 3. Y2K Institute Instagram 4. CROSSNIQ+ Twitter 5. u::r::here Twitter 6. The Designers Republic 7. A collection of TOM 2 era Toonami framing devices
If you're enjoying the content on here, please consider supporting our work on Patreon --- Blog run by Evan Collins & Froyo Tam
Feb 24, 2023 · Learn how the Y2K era's futuristic and optimistic look has influenced web design and how to use it in your projects. Explore color schemes, fonts, shapes, and sources of inspiration from the Y2K Aesthetic Institute and other collections.
Jul 15, 2017 · Channeling the experimental nature of early 2000s user interfaces, this website presents a three-dimensional interactive form of the website’s tumblr feed, revealing information and a timeline of landmark Y2K icons.
