2017–present · United States, Global

Corporate Memphis

Also known as Alegria, Big Tech Flat Illustration

The ubiquitous flat-vector illustration of big-tech marketing—loose, big-headed figures with bendy limbs in friendly brand-pastel palettes, doing wholesome activities.

DigitalVernacular/Pop
Original specimen in the Corporate Memphis style

Original specimen, not a historical artifactOriginal specimen in the Corporate Memphis style. Owned; source: Design Style Book (original).

About the style

Corporate Memphis is the nickname for the flat illustration style that saturated tech-company marketing from the late 2010s onward, also called 'Alegria' after the Facebook-commissioned illustration system designed by Buck. It features simplified, big-headed human figures with elongated, rubbery, often disproportionate limbs, rendered in flat vector shapes with minimal detail and cheerful, muted brand-pastel palettes. Figures are typically diverse and depicted in pleasant, low-stakes activities—working, chatting, gardening—projecting an approachable, inoffensive optimism. Cheap to produce, infinitely scalable, and brand-safe, the style spread across startups, apps, and corporate sites until its very ubiquity made it a target of design fatigue and parody (the 'Globohomo' or 'big tech' look). Despite the backlash, it remains a dominant default for friendly, humane-feeling corporate communication.

Notable examples

  • Buck — Facebook 'Alegria' illustration system (2017)
  • Slack — flat marketing illustration style (late 2010s)
  • Pablo Stanley — 'Humaaans' open illustration library (2019)
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Anatomy of Corporate Memphis

The numbered markers call out the design elements that define this style. Hover or tap a marker to see its breakdown.

Original specimen in the Corporate Memphis style

Original specimen, not a historical artifactOriginal specimen in the Corporate Memphis style. Owned; source: Design Style Book (original).

  1. Figures have rubbery, disproportionately long arms and legs that loop into casual, relaxed poses.

  2. Big heads on small bodies give a friendly, almost childlike approachability to the characters.

  3. Muted, gently saturated company colors keep the look soft, safe, and on-brand.

  4. No gradients or shading—pure flat fills make the style cheap, scalable, and infinitely reusable.

How Corporate Memphis connects

Styles form a network, not a tree. Explore the direct neighbours below — click any to travel the map one hop at a time.

  • Evolved from
  • Influenced by

Evolved from Flat Design

Influenced by Memphis Graphic Style

Describe it like this

Prompt-ready vocabulary for describing or re-creating the Corporate Memphis look.

corporate memphisAlegria illustrationflat vector figuresbendy limbsbrand pastel palettebig tech illustrationwholesome activityfriendly flat style