I recently read an article on the Principles Of Minimalist Web Design at Smashing Magazine.
Minimalist websites are some of my favorites. Communicating a clear concise message without a ton of technological clutter is often a challenge. Simplicity is often a hard thing to achieve. Technology plays a vital role in immersive web experiences, but is easily overused and often the sign of amateur. Just because you can add a drop shadow in photoshop doesn’t mean every element in your layout needs to be floating around.
Speaking of clean minimalist websites, here is a great immersive experience that Cornett IMS (my employer) produced for the University of Kentucky’s see blue initiative. This is a great example of how to push the limits of creativity, with technology that is intuitive and not overpowering.