The Economist's slick illustrations prove that minimalism will always be a winner

As we head towards the new year many publications are getting retrospective on the past twelve months – including The Economist. Supporting its 'best of the year' roundup series, the digital publication has released a series of ingenious illustrations that embody clean, concise and clever design.

The Economist is known to produce some of the best magazine covers of all time, and these thoughtful illustrations on its online platform demonstrate the newspaper's eye for style. Despite what the maximalist trend predictions say, for me, nothing beats stripped-back illustration oozing with minimalist class.

Created by artist Ricardo Tomás, each illustration has a unique design that cleverly gestures to the topic – for instance, the best albums of 2024 Illustration features a line of medals replaced with LP records. My favourite of the designs is the illustration for the best books of 2024, featuring a rosette made of layered hardbacks.

The striking subtlety of Ricardo's illustrations is a testament to the power of bold illustration, proving that clean visuals can have a big impact in editorial illustration. For more design inspiration, check out this Italian magazine cover that gets increasingly disturbing the more you look at it.