Composition and Design Principles ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Everybody immediately responds to subject matter in art. A picture of a butterfly and a picture of a snake do not get the same response. In addition to subject matter*, the formal aspects of visual composition are like the grammar of a language. In writing, a story is written with words - subject matter. The use of design principles applied to the visual elements is like visual grammar. TEACHING TIP Art vocabulary can be taught along with every project. *Glossary: "Subject matter" is similar to "topic" or "content" when teaching art. Six Visual Elements (art elements) top of page We think of the elements as the basic visual material with which to make art. Some Design Principles or design rules (some creative artists purposely break rules) top of page This list is an example list. Balance is the consideration of visual weight and importance. Variety - You create variety when elements are changed. Depth.
The Gestalt Principles The Gestalt Principles Gestalt is a psychology term which means "unified whole". It refers to theories of visual perception developed by German psychologists in the 1920s. These theories attempt to describe how people tend to organize visual elements into groups or unified wholes when certain principles are applied. These principles are: Similarity Similarity occurs when objects look similar to one another. The example above (containing 11 distinct objects) appears as as single unit because all of the shapes have similarity. Unity occurs because the triangular shapes at the bottom of the eagle symbol look similar to the shapes that form the sunburst. When similarity occurs, an object can be emphasised if it is dissimilar to the others. The figure on the far right becomes a focal point because it is dissimilar to the other shapes. Continuation Continuation occurs when the eye is compelled to move through one object and continue to another object. Closure Examples Proximity Figure and Ground Figure
Composition and Design Principles ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Everybody immediately responds to subject matter in art. A picture of a butterfly and a picture of a snake do not get the same response. In addition to subject matter*, the formal aspects of visual composition are like the grammar of a language. In writing, a story is written with words - subject matter. Like good literature and good poetry is more than words and subject matter, art is more than pictures. The use of design principles applied to the visual elements is like visual grammar. TEACHING TIP Art vocabulary can be taught along with every project. *Glossary: "Subject matter" is similar to "topic" or "content" when teaching art. Six Visual Elements (art elements) top of page We think of the elements as the basic visual material with which to make art. Some Design Principles or design rules (some creative artists purposely break rules) top of page This list is an example list. Motion. Depth.
Graphic Design Basics Part 1: Elements Graphic design is a very wide domain and getting a job as a graphic designer is not an easy task. Besides the many skills you will have to learn, getting a job on the web also requires personal attributes such as resistance to stress, creativity and self-motivation. But before your personal skills will be evaluated, the practical ones are the first to be looked at; and the most important, obviously. Therefore today we start a short series of articles in which I will talk about the basics of graphic design. Today we review the most popular elements of the industry. The main job of a graphic designer is to design visual elements for the web and print, such as layouts for websites (which are most of the time “translated” into real websites by the web designers), posters, brochures, flyers or advertising campaigns (both in web and offline). There are in total six elements of a design which you need to be aware of: the line, the shape, the color, the texture, the value and the space. 1. 2. 3.
Clean Up Your Mess - A Guide to Visual Design for Everyone ARTSEDGE: Formal Visual Analysis: The Elements & Principles of Composition Overview In any work of art, all of these elements and principles will be present, but some will be more obvious than others. When engaging in formal analysis, students should select the elements they feel are most strongly represented in the piece they are analyzing. A good place to start formal analysis is to look at a work of art and take note of how your eye moves around the object. Where does your eye go first, and why were you attracted to that part of the image? What colors, textures, and shapes appear in the image? Formal analysis is an important technique for organizing visual information. The Elements The elements of formal analysis are building blocks that can be combined to create a larger structure. Line is the most basic building block of formal analysis. Value is the degree of light and dark in a design. Shapes are created when lines are combined to form a square, triangle, or circle. Forms are three-dimensional shapes with length, width, and depth. The Principles
Basic Color Theory Color theory encompasses a multitude of definitions, concepts and design applications - enough to fill several encyclopedias. However, there are three basic categories of color theory that are logical and useful : The color wheel, color harmony, and the context of how colors are used. Color theories create a logical structure for color. For example, if we have an assortment of fruits and vegetables, we can organize them by color and place them on a circle that shows the colors in relation to each other. The Color Wheel A color circle, based on red, yellow and blue, is traditional in the field of art. There are also definitions (or categories) of colors based on the color wheel. Primary Colors: Red, yellow and blueIn traditional color theory (used in paint and pigments), primary colors are the 3 pigment colors that cannot be mixed or formed by any combination of other colors. Secondary Colors: Green, orange and purpleThese are the colors formed by mixing the primary colors. Color Harmony 1.
Visual Design Basics Visual design focuses on the aesthetics of a site and its related materials by strategically implementing images, colors, fonts, and other elements. A successful visual design does not take away from the content on the page or function. Instead, it enhances it by engaging users and helping to build trust and interest in the brand. Basic Elements of Visual Design The basic elements that combine to create visual designs include the following: Lines connect two points and can be used to help define shapes, make divisions, and create textures. Principles for Creating a Visual Design A successful visual design applies the following principles to elements noted above and effectively brings them together in a way that makes sense. Unity has to do with all elements on a page visually or conceptually appearing to belong together. Example of Pulling it all together Additional Information
Gestalt Principles: Visual Perception And Design Composition and the Elements of Visual Design Proportion - Golden Ratio and Rule of Thirds Proportion refers the size relationship of visual elements to each other and to the whole picture. One of the reasons proportion is often considered important in composition is that viewers respond to it emotionally. Proportion in art has been examined for hundreds of years, long before photography was invented. One proportion that is often cited as occurring frequently in design is the Golden mean or Golden ratio. Many photographers and artists are aware of the rule of thirds, where a picture is divided into three sections vertically and horizontally and lines and points of intersection represent places to position important visual elements. On analyzing some of my favorite photographs by laying down grids (thirds or golden ratio in Adobe Photoshop) I find that some of my images do indeed seem to correspond to the rule of thirds and to a lesser extent the golden ratio, however many do not.
Learn Design Fundamentals and improve the clarity of your visual communication Being able to design a website is more than writing html and css. Your website has to communicate multiple messages to an audience and your design uses a visual language to communicate. Do you speak that visual language? A website needs to engage a visitor in conversation within 2 seconds. In such a short amount of time the only communication between site and visitor are the visuals of your design. I entered the world of web design as a front end coder. Fortunately I was aware of my limitations and spent several years learning all those things you would usually learn earning a degree in graphic design. At the time there was very little information about design fundamentals available online. Some books taught me a lot and others not so much. My goal with this book is to help you save some of the time I had to spend to get started. Design Fundamentals is a living book.