Google shares how the Marshmallow wallpapers were made and give away two new ones

Not too long ago, Google released all of the Marshmallow wallpapers, but how exactly did they make them? Google has decided to share that information with us and it’s a lot more fascinating than you may have thought.

The designer is Carl Kleiner, and he makes these backgrounds in an unusual way. I, and I am sure you too, would of thought the backgrounds were just made in a computer program. However, we would be wrong. Each background is made by hand crafting each piece and photographing it. Literally taking multiple paper-types and with careful lighting, layering, and considered color blocking, made into wallpapers.

Kleiner says:

“We wanted to work with surfaces that have a subtle and sophisticated texture. Organic to the touch and graphic in composition…Painted surfaces, color pigment powders, floating ink and the like”

Google decided to limit the color palette to only the core Google brand colors with pops of neutral grey. The geometric designs are quite complex. To add a sense of depth, colored water was used to create troughs, and grainy powders to suggest pixelation.

I have personally made tons of backgrounds, many for mobile devices, and it is a lot harder than it may seem. The difficult part about them is the other elements on-screen, such as, the icons and text. Kleiner and Google agree, saying:

“To create a robust and thoughtful visual language, imagery needs to be considered as thoughtfully as the graphic UX elements.”

I obviously find it very interesting to learn about how others work and exactly why large companies make certain decisions. However, Google is also happy to share the info. So happy that they are giving away two new exclusive wallpapers!

Source: Google Design

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