"Things Organized Neatly" makes organization into art

Austin Radcliffe organizes the internet, one pristine photo at a time. The curator of the tumblr “Things Organized Neatly,” Radcliffe takes extremely satisfying photos of, well, things organized neatly.

If the all-too-literal title makes you think more about your sock drawer than fine art, check out some of these photos. These aren’t insta-pics of your closet after ironing; these are visual delicacies capable of quieting any private despair that order can't exist in our chaotic world.

Instruments neatly organized

(All images reprinted with permission from (c) Things Organized Neatly by Austin Radcliffe, Universe Publishing, 2016)

A neatly organized watermelon slice

(reprinted with permission from (c) Things Organized Neatly by Austin Radcliffe, Universe Publishing, 2016)

Radcliffe founded the blog in 2010 when he was a student at the Herron School of Art + Design in Indianapolis. Since then, the site’s grown to around half a million followers, earned him a stint at the Tate Museum in London, won him Webby awards, and now led to a newly published book.

Both the book and the tumblr showcase pictures from all over the world, as well as some of Radcliffe’s own photography. While the book features photos from 13 of Radcliffe's favorite artists, the blog accepts submissions — so if you, too, wish to sort burnt toast or delicately stack Spaghetti-Os, this could be your star turn. Many of the images use a style known as “knolling” where objects are placed at 90 degree angles from one another, leading to a pleasing, neatly organized effect. 

Bike parts neatly organized

(Reprinted with permission from (c) Things Organized Neatly by Austin Radcliffe, Universe Publishing, 2016)

It’s this neat effect that keeps followers returning to "Things Organized Neatly" after six years online. And while Radcliffe didn’t start “Things Organized Neatly” to create a therapeutic outlet, he’s glad to hear that viewers use the site to decompress. “I think there’s a calmness and sort of clarity to see everything that’s been neatly laid out, and clutter’s been erased,” he told CNN. “It’s just a very peaceful, serene way of organizing objects.”

We agree.  

Ties neatly organized

(Reprinted with permission from (c) Things Organized Neatly by Austin Radcliffe, Universe Publishing, 2016)

A map of the U.S. in "Things Organized Neatly"

(Reprinted with permission from (c) Things Organized Neatly by Austin Radcliffe, Universe Publishing, 2016) 

Locks organized neatly

(Teprinted with permission from (c) Things Organized Neatly by Austin Radcliffe, Universe Publishing, 2016)