Summary
This article explores the role of decoration in guitar design and the idea of taste.
When does decoration improve an instrument — and when does it become unnecessary intervention?
While modern instruments are often highly detailed and visually elaborate, it is not always clear that additional decoration improves the instrument.
In many cases, aesthetic decisions are not about what to add, but what to leave alone.
Key Principles
- Good materials are not improved by unnecessary intervention
- Decoration can introduce visual and conceptual noise
- Taste is conditioned and changes over time
- Simplicity and restraint can produce more enduring results
- A maker’s role is often to avoid interfering with what already works
Core Idea
A central idea in this approach to guitar design is that:
aesthetic decisions are often decisions not to intervene
Once a material is already working — structurally, visually, and acoustically — adding to it requires justification.
Without that justification, decoration risks becoming an imposition rather than an improvement.
Taste and Change Over Time
Taste is not fixed.
What appears expressive or distinctive at one moment may later feel excessive or unnecessary.
This applies equally to personal expression and to instrument design.
Something added to stand out can later become something that dates the object.
Instruments, unlike many other objects, are expected to remain relevant and satisfying over long periods of time.
Decoration and Intervention
Decoration is not inherently a problem.
The issue is whether it belongs.
When working with materials that are already visually strong — such as rosewood, ebony, or figured hardwoods — additional decoration can compete with or obscure what is already present.
In this sense, decoration becomes a form of intervention.
And the question becomes:
does this intervention improve the instrument, or simply alter it?
Maker’s Perspective
In this approach, the role of the maker is not to impose identity onto the surface of the instrument.
It is to recognise when the materials and form are already sufficient.
This often leads to restraint:
- minimal or absent inlay
- reliance on natural material character
- careful use of contrast rather than embellishment
The aim is not austerity, but clarity.
Contrast in Design Approaches
Different traditions resolve this question differently.
Some approaches emphasise expression, ornament, and visible identity.
Others assume competence and remain visually restrained.
Neither is inherently correct.
But they reflect fundamentally different ideas about what an instrument should communicate.
When Decoration Works
Decoration can work when:
- it is integrated into the structure of the instrument
- it does not compete with primary materials
- it serves a functional or protective role
- it aligns with the overall design language
Organic materials, such as burl purflings, can provide visual richness without imposing rigid or artificial patterns.
Practical Conclusion
In guitar design, more is not automatically better.
A useful working principle is:
if in doubt, do less
The goal is not to eliminate visual interest, but to avoid unnecessary intervention.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is tasteful guitar design?
Tasteful guitar design often involves restraint and an understanding of when not to add decoration.
Does decoration improve a guitar?
Not necessarily. In some cases, additional decoration can detract from the materials and overall form.
Why do some guitars have no inlay?
Some makers prefer to highlight natural materials rather than introduce additional visual elements.
Is minimal design better?
Not always. The effectiveness of any design depends on how well its elements work together.
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About the Maker
Nigel Forster has been building guitars, mandolins and Irish bouzoukis since 1988.
His work is influenced by his time with Stefan Sobell and focuses on soundboard-driven design, structural clarity, and restraint in visual expression.