# Modernist design system

Modernist is flat, architectural and set entirely in Archivo: a near-mono red on white, a visible modular grid, zero corner radius and strong 2px rules. Nothing floats and nothing is decorated — alignment and the strength of the dividers do all the organising, labels sit flush left (even inside buttons), and photography prints in pure black and white.

## How to use this

- Link the one stylesheet from every page — `<link rel="stylesheet" href="styles.css">` (adjust the relative path) — and take every color, font, spacing, radius and shadow from its variables (`var(--color-*)`, `var(--font-*)`, `var(--space-*)`, `var(--radius-*)`, `var(--shadow-*)`). Never hard-code a hex, a font name or a px value the tokens already carry.
- Build with the classes below rather than inventing parallel ones; the component pages are plain HTML, so view source and copy the markup.
- `templates/` holds starting points a consuming project can copy whole.
- The whole system was derived from `theme.json`. To change the look, edit the tokens at the top of `styles.css` — every page, the thumbnail and this guide read from them — and keep `theme.json` and the written guidance in step so they don't drift from what the CSS actually does.

## Direction

Modular grid layouts — content in equal-width cells, strong horizontal and vertical rhythm, visible structure. Use strong 2px dividers (`var(--color-divider)`) between major sections. Button labels are flush left — a button wider than its label starts the text at the left padding edge (trailing icon and all), never centered. Wrap hero and inline images in the `.grayscale` class — they print in pure black and white.

## Color

A light ground (`--color-bg` #f3f2f2) with `--color-text` #201e1d and a single accent #ec3013 (this is a mono scheme: no second accent was chosen — the `--color-accent-2-*` variables carry a machine-derived stand-in kept only so both sets resolve; treat them as one role). Each role carries a 100–900 tonal ramp (`--color-neutral-100` … `--color-accent-2-900`) generated in OKLCH on a shared perceptual lightness scale, so the same step of any ramp has the same visual weight. Use the light steps (100–300) for tinted fills, hovers and subtle borders, 500 as the role's base, and the dark steps (700–900) for text on tinted fills and for pressed states; prefer ramp steps over ad-hoc `color-mix()`. For elevation use `--shadow-sm/md/lg` (already tuned to the ground) rather than ad-hoc box-shadows.

## Type

Archivo for headings over Archivo for body text, loaded as `--font-heading` / `--font-body`. Density 1.00× and radius 0px are already baked into the `--space-*` / `--radius-*` scales — use the variables, not raw numbers.

## Icons

Use Lucide icons (https://lucide.dev) throughout.

## Interaction states

Interactive states are themed, never browser defaults: give every interactive element a `:hover` tint and a pressed state from the accent ramp (one step past the base — `--color-accent-600` on a light ground, `--color-accent-400` on a dark one, or a `color-mix()` tint for outlined/ghost variants), and style keyboard focus with `:focus-visible { outline: 2px solid var(--color-accent); outline-offset: 2px; }` — never leave the default blue focus ring.

## Components

| Class | What it is | Shown in |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `.btn` with `.btn-primary`, `.btn-secondary`, `.btn-ghost`, `.btn-icon`, `.btn-block` | Actions — the primary is a solid accent fill | components/buttons.html |
| `.tag` with `.tag-accent`, `.tag-accent-2`, `.tag-neutral`, `.tag-outline` | Small labels tinted from the ramps (mono palette: accent-2 reads the same as accent) | components/buttons.html |
| `.field` + `label`, `.input`, `.radio` + `.dot`, `.seg` + `.seg-opt` | Form fields and choices on native elements — no script | components/forms.html |
| `.card` with `.card-kicker`, `.card-title`, `.card-body`, `.card-meta`; `.elev-sm/md/lg` | Surface-filled content cards; elevation utilities | components/cards.html |
| `.nav` + `.nav-brand` | The header bar | components/navigation.html |
| `.table` | Data tables with themed header and row rules | components/table.html |
| `.dialog-backdrop` + `.dialog` (+ `.dialog-title/-body/-actions`) | A modal at the top elevation | components/dialog.html |
| `.hr` | A strong 2px horizontal rule | foundations/layout.html |
| `.grayscale` | The image wrapper — every content photograph goes through it | foundations/image.html |

States are built in: hovers and pressed states come from the accent ramp, keyboard focus is the 2px accent `:focus-visible` ring, `::selection` is an accent tint, and disabled controls drop to 45% opacity. Don't restyle them per page. The accent-to-ground pair is tuned to at least 3:1 — enough for icons, large text and interface chrome, not for body copy — so for paragraph-size text in the accent use a deep ramp step (`--color-accent-700` on this ground) rather than the accent itself.

## Do

- Let the grid show: equal-width cells, strong horizontal rules between sections, visible structure.
- Keep everything flush left — headings, copy, and the labels inside wide buttons.
- Use the accent sparingly, for the primary action and small emphasis; the system is mostly ink on ground. The one place red runs as a field is the poster statement — the deck's section dividers and the landing's closing banner — where type stays display-grade and the accent carries the page.
- Print photographs in black and white with the `.grayscale` wrapper.

## Don't

- Do not round a corner anywhere — `--radius-md` is 0 on purpose.
- Do not center button labels or hero copy.
- Do not soften the rules into hairlines or drop them for whitespace.
- Do not tint or colorize imagery.

## Files

- `styles.css` — the only stylesheet: the token sheet (`:root` variables, ramps, base type) plus the component layer. Link it from every page.
- `readme.md` — this guide.
- `theme.json` — the parameters these files were derived from (a machine-readable record of the theme).
- `thumbnail.html` — the project cover (brand mark + swatches).
- `foundations/type.html` — the type scale and the heading/body pairing at real sizes.
- `foundations/color.html` — color roles and the 100-900 tonal ramps, with usage notes.
- `foundations/layout.html` — the spacing scale, the grid and how edges are drawn.
- `foundations/icons.html` — the icon set at interface sizes, inline and in buttons.
- `foundations/image.html` — how photographs and figures are treated.
- `components/buttons.html` — buttons, icon buttons and tags in every variant and state.
- `components/forms.html` — text fields, radios and the segmented control on native elements.
- `components/cards.html` — content cards and the elevation steps.
- `components/navigation.html` — the header bar pattern.
- `components/table.html` — a data table with the themed header and row rules.
- `components/dialog.html` — a modal over its backdrop at the top elevation.
- `theme.html` — the theme's parameters rendered as a reference sheet.
- `templates/landing/` — a starter page consuming the system the intended way (`index.html`, its `ds-base.js` loader, and the vendored `image-slot.js` its photograph mounts).
- `assets/photo.jpg` — the reference photograph the imagery page treats.