Brutalist Framework: FOSS Framework for the Brutalist Web Design Style

Brutal CMS Documentation

COMING SOON: Documentation for working with Brutal CMS.

Architectural Aspirations

Intro to Brutalism in Web Design

Building Brutality

To build brutality with Brutalist Framework, you'll need basic background and understanding of the following skills:

• HTML5
• CSS3
• Javascript & jQuery
• Basic PHP
• XML & CSV
• Creativity
• FTP (or web host file management)
• LAMP / WAMP / MAMP Server
  (optional, but needed for running PHP on a local machine)

BF is ideal for beginner and novice web designers and developers who aspire to build their background, experience, and skillset in web design. BF is most ideal for:

• Personal blogs & websites
• Creative landing / splash pages
• Small business websites
• Other bizarre & miscellaneous projects

A Concrete Purpose

Any creative project is made from a solid framework composed of raw components that can be used to create a product with a concrete purpose.

BF was created to provide a free and open resource to beginner and novice web designers and developers to encourage their professional journey and realize their true creative potential.The purpose of BF is to:

• Encourage creativity
• Embody distinctive design
• Enhance crude conventions

BF is intended as a solid foundation and starting point for developers to construct and create crude websites or web applications.

CRUDE Philosophy

Brutalist web design philosophy follows the CRUDE convention:

Creatively Cynical & Confrontational
Raw, Rugged, & Real
Uncompromisingly Unconventional & Unpolished
Deliberately Deconstructive & Dysfunctional
Extremely Exciting & Enthralling

This distinctive approach to web design is for those who desire and aspire to embody their unlimited creative potential. These more creatively cynical and raw designs may not be widely accepted by most target audiences. Through the brutality of trial and error can a brutalist design truly evolve into something successful.

BETA Release

While exploring Material Design trends and resources, we stumbled upon the term "brutalist web design", and quickly found that we identified with this newly emerging trend. Seeing the lack of a simple and raw "framework" designed specifically for this trend, we conceived the concept of a "Brutalist Framework". By late fall 2016, a "BETA" version was released.

1.X Versions

The first official version was released on April 12, 2017. Development of the initial release continued through 2019.

2.0.2.0 Released

Version 2 introduced significant changes to the design and structure, as well as the introduction of bIcons.

Blueprint Grid Released

A new multimethod grid layout system project was created: Blueprint Grid. This was to become a separate, standalone project.

Resident Evil Versions

Versions 2.3 - 2.3.3 are known as the "Resident Evil" versions, due to the pretty pondering perched kitty and Umbrella Corporation interface.

First e-Book Launched

In January 2022, we created our first e-book: Intro to Brutalism in Web Design, which was to be the first of multiple reference guides relating to brutalist web design.

Brutal CMS Introduced

Development of the BETA version of a flat-file CMS written in PHP was introduced as a separate project.

3.0 Released

Involving a complete re-structuring and re-work of the core components, version 3 introduces basic PHP components and content based on XML and CSV files.