DESIGN PRINCIPLE EXERCISE 1

Luisa Audrey / 0348741 / Bachelor of Design in Creative Media
Design Principle

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LECTURE

Week 1:

A WORK OF DESIGN
Elements of Design (Individual "Building Blocks")

• Points

• Simplest element
• Used as repetitive
• two-dimensional & three-dimensional figures created by points.

• Line

• Active/static, aggressive/passive, sensual/mechanical
• Indicates direction, boundaries of shape (spaces), imply volume, suggest motion or emotion
• Can be grouped to depict qualities of light/shadow
• Form patterns and texture

• Shape

Geometric

Organic

• Expanse within the outline of two-dimensional area/ within the three-dimensional object
• Visible when lines enclose an area apparent change in value (lightness/darkness)
• Divided by 2, which is Geometric (circles, squares, triangles, more precise & regular), and Organic (Irregular, curving, rounded, relaxed, and more informal)

• Form

• three-dimensional area
• When form encloses space it is called volume
• The major element in sculpture and architecture
• With two-dimensional media, such as painting, illustration, drawing, the form must be implied.

• Texture

• Tactile qualities of surfaces/ to the visual representation of those qualities
• Can be experienced by touching/ through visual suggestion
• Can be divided into 2, Actual (experienced by touch) and Simulated (Created to look like the real texture)

• Space
• Indefinable
• In drawings, prints, photographs, we see space of the surface all at once
• The actual space of pictures is defined by its edges (height, width)
• Even with these boundaries, an infinite number of spatial quality can be implied

• Color

• Colour is the visual byproduct of the spectrum of light as it is either transmitted through a transparent medium, or as it is absorbed and reflected off a surface
• Hue: Colours of the spectrum, e.g. yellow and green
• Value: This refers to the lightness or darkness from white through greys to black
• Intensity: Also called saturation or chroma, it refers to the purity of a hue

Principles of Design

• Contrast
• Balance
• Emphasis
• Rules of Third
• Repetition/Pattern/Rhythm
• Movement
• Hierarchy
• Alignment
• Harmony
• Unity
• Proportion

Lecture 1.2

CONTRAST & GESTALT THEORY

• Contrast
• Contrast is the juxtaposition of strongly dissimilar elements 
• Without contrast, visual experience would be monotonous
• Contrast can provide visual interest, emphasize a point and express content

• Gestalt
• The human brain is wired to see patterns, logic, structure.
• “Gestalt” refers to “shape” or “form” in German.
• Gestalt principles or laws are rules that describe how the human eye perceives visual elements. 
• These principles aim to show how complex scenes can be reduced to more simple shapes.
• They also aim to explain how the eyes perceive the shapes as a single, united form rather than the separate simpler elements involved

• Principle of similarity
• The human eye tends to perceive similar elements in a design as a complete picture, shape, or group, even if those elements are separated. 
• The brain seems to craft a link between elements of a similar nature.

• Principle of Continuation
• The human eye follows the paths, lines, and curves of a design, and prefers to see a continuous flow of visual elements rather than separated objects.

• Principle of Closure
• The human eye prefers to see complete shapes. If the visual elements are not complete, the user can perceive a complete shape by filling in missing visual information.

• Principle of Proximity
• The process of ensuring related design elements are placed together. Any unrelated items should be spaced apart. Close proximity indicates that items are connected or have a relationship to each other and become one visual unit which helps to organize or give structure to a layout.

• Principle of Figure/Ground
• Objects are instinctively perceived as being either in the foreground or the background. They either stand out prominently in the front (the figure) or recede into the back (the ground). 

• Law of Symmetry & Order
• This law states that elements that are symmetrical to each other tend to be perceived as a unified group. Similar to the law of similarity, this rule suggests that objects that are symmetrical with each other will be more likely to be grouped together than objects not symmetrical with each other.

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Instruction

VISUAL RESEARCH

Week 1 :

We were given a task to produce one design for contrast and gestalt based on our research from the internet. 

First of all, I decided to look for gestalt inspiration through Pinterest.

At first, I thought a pure rainbow could be put as continuation, however after hearing Mr. Charles feedback, I just realized that continuation is not that simple. Here is the first artwork I made.

My first continuation artwork

I tried to improve my art by changing the whole concept so it can fit the continuation principle. After understanding the meaning of continuation, I tried to make a concept where the water inside the bottle turned into a beach to express the freshness of the drink product. The continuation lies within the water where it originally comes from the bottle and then continue flowing until it formed an ocean line.

Next, I started to look for contrast inspiration. I noticed how the majority of contrast art are mostly distinguished by the color difference.

It shows from both pictures that the part where it has the lighter colors looks more conspicuous than the rest. From this example, I decided to make a contrast art with a similar concept.

I tried to make the middle object the center of attention by its placement also the color application. I purposely made a huge difference between the object and the background color palette to emphasize the contrast meaning in the design.

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Feedback

Week 1:

General feedback: We learned how to use the blogger and it is also informed that we need to submit only with the link

Specific feedback: Not given yet

 

Week 2:

General feedback: We learned how to create gestalt and contrast

Specific feedback: Not given yet

Week 3:

General feedback: There is no simple design.

Specific feedback: Try to get the meaning behind the design.

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Reflection

Experience: Even though Mr. Charles's class is a bit more relaxed, he still expects our blog to be neatly organized and frequently updated.

Observations: I realized that sometimes I still lack ideas after viewing my friend's results.

Findings: I found that looking at my friend's art could help me receive ideas and increase my standarts.

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