How Material Textures Elevate Your Design: Trends, Tips, and Best Practices

What is Material?

Simply put, material is the perceived texture of an object, a combination of material and feel. In rendering, it refers to a set of surface visual properties such as color, texture, smoothness, transparency, reflectivity, refraction, and emission.

Design Space Material Trends

The current trend, often called Chic Brutalism or refined brutalism, merges the meticulous detail of delicacy with the raw, industrial aesthetic of brutalism, creating a "low‑key luxury" look.

Brutalist architecture, popular in the 1950‑60s, used prefabricated concrete for mass‑produced, easily assembled buildings. Modern designers have refined this raw material into sophisticated forms, giving rise to 21st‑century refined brutalism.

Why Use Material in Design?

Materials can dramatically improve a work's sense of quality, detail, and realism. They are widely applied in industrial, architectural, fashion, and interior design, as well as in branding to differentiate products and accelerate iteration. Luxury brands like PRADA leverage texture as a brand signal.

Common Pitfalls in Material Usage

Using too many material types; overload dilutes visual impact.

Misunderstanding the information a material conveys; mismatched textures can confuse the audience.

Prioritizing material over the main subject; material should support, not dominate.

Material in Brand Creative Posters

Approach 1: Make material a prominent part of the background to add visual layers, contrast, and a sense of spaciousness, often suitable for beverage branding.

Approach 2: Use subtle material or texture as a hand‑drawn element, providing depth without overwhelming the main content.

Material in Typography

Applying material to fonts can add depth and distinctiveness, but it must align with the overall theme; otherwise it can detract from the design.

Creative Photography and Material

Macro photography combined with real objects and hand‑drawn textures is a growing trend for creative posters.

C4D Material Usage

C4D offers over 150 Redshift‑compatible material presets—ceramic, concrete, asphalt, self‑illuminating, fabric, leather, steel, organic, paint, paper, plastic, plaster, rubber, stone, etc.—providing rich, fine‑grained textures that are easier to use than those in 3ds Max or Maya, and are popular in flat‑visual posters, IP design, and e‑commerce.

Practical Tips for Using Material in Flat Design

Choose material that matches the overall style (e.g., marble for minimalist interiors, metal for gaming posters).

Consider product type: blue‑toned marine textures for fresh food, warm reds for food‑related designs.

Adapt to seasonal themes: cartoonish textures for children’s Day, Chinese‑style motifs for Dragon Boat or New Year.

After selecting a material, sharpen it and experiment with layer blending modes (multiply, overlay, soft light, screen, linear dodge, hard light) to achieve the desired effect.

Conclusion

Material serves as an auxiliary element that enriches detail, enhances visual hierarchy, and adds texture to designs. When used appropriately—aligned with the theme, product, and overall composition—it elevates the visual impact without overwhelming the main subject.