Unit II
ART IS
VISUAL
Objectives:
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COMMUNICATION
learn the fundamental differences between fine art and design
understand the basic design process
translate verbal ideas into visual images
develop and refine Cover designs
learn how to articulate your design solution to the Yearbook Committee
Unit II
graphic design: the practice or profession of creating or
developing print or electronic forms of visual information for areas such as
publications, advertisement, packaging or websites. graphic design enhances transfer of
knowledge and visual messages.
Next: Design Fundamentals
Golden Rules of Design:
 Design is a service. It is work. Design to address clients (yearbook club) and target groups
(yearbook consumers).
 Be creative, look for new solutions and ways of thinking.
 Find clear and universal design, stick to visual constants so viewers are quick to identify, and
recognize.
 Keep it short and simple: reduce and simplify to achieve an efficient effect.
 Design comprehensively (attention to fine details), credibly (as a highly-talented art student) and
appropriately (achieving high standards in regard to project requirements).
This graphic design project involves
the presentation of TEXT and
IMAGES to your audience in a welldeveloped LAYOUT created by YOU,
the graphic designer.
The Audience
A Graphic Designer designs for not only personal satisfaction and enjoyment, but for
his/her AUDIENCE….Your audience is….
the ENTIRE school District!
Students
Faculty
Staff
Family Members
Community Members
Presentation Agenda
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The basic Structure of Design
The basic Elements
Laws of interaction between visual elements
Your Project
Examples
The
BASIC
STRUCTURE
of
GRAPHIC
DESIGN
Fundamentals of Design
The basic structure of graphic design consists of three basic elements:
Dot
Line
Area
DOT
-the smallest element of graphic design. Designing with dots or points can create a
wide variety of visual effects. There are various associations that can be made with positioning a
single dot in different areas of a page.
Single point in a center of an area can convey a sense of calm and stability to the viewer
But if you shift the point towards the edge of the
paper it becomes tension and mystery
Repetition
can create textures and make stimulating and vivid effects
through combining of different sizes.
Line
– the arrangement of dots with a constant distance between them. “Every linear expression
derives from a point set in motion” – Andrian Frutiger. Line is much more dynamic in
character than a dot. The simplest form of a line is a straight line ( ______ ).
Vertical line makes an active, light effect
Horizontal – passive and heavy:
Diagonal lines can be read as ascending (bottom left to top right) or descending (top
left to bottom right):
Lines can be bent, curved, connected and intersected, etc. thus bringing various suggestions
of motion and creating different dynamics for a design:
Lines can be REAL (like on the previous pages) or IMPLIED…meaning that the mind
fills the gap between the dots.
Area
– is an enclosed, two-dimensional figure enclosed by a homogeneous surface that is
usually presented in two dimensions and formally limited by one or several linear
segments. Such as circle, ellipse, square, rectangle, triangle.
Circle has no end-point and thus a symbol of infinity. It conveys less tension than any
other areas and is not pulling in any direction. It’s static, balanced and harmonious. The
eye is always drawn to the center.
Ellipse – more dynamic than circle. If placed upright it suggests movement upwards,
but also instability. Placed horizontally it becomes more static and repose.
Square – a rectangle whose sides are parallel, the same length. When the square is
on one of its sides – the perception is of calm, stability, functionality. When turned on
its point, it becomes more dynamic and playful and unstable.
Rectangle – is a four-sided figure with right angles; the lengths of rectangles must
differ clearly to not be confused with square. It can be placed vertically or horizontally.
Almost all paper formats are rectangular. It is more active than a square. When set
horizontally it is more stable, secure, heavy, supporting, etc. When placed vertically –
suggests more lightness, movement, activity and narrowness. When set on one of its
points it tends to break composition apart and bring in a feeling of instability and tension.
Triangle – has the strongest directional component of all. When used in design or
composition, it is always dynamic, with most acute angle as focal point and lesser
angled base as a ground of composition/information. A triangle is used most widely in
portraiture paintings.
Focal
point
Basic Elements of Design
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Layout
Imagery
Color
Typography
Page Layout
In addition to the basic foundations, you will need to
consider layout for an effective composition.
Rule of Thirds
– Composition Grids- Precise locations of text and imagery
– Guidelines- precise location & measurements of text
Click here for more in-depth information about Rule of Thirds
Creative Imagery
Color
Color Theory
Color Schemes and Color Harmony
Color Psychology
Complementary Colors
Red and Green, Blue and Orange, Purple and Yellow — located directly across from each
other on the color wheel. Complementary colors rarely look good when used together
because, when used together, they become extremely vibrant and have heavy contrast,
especially if they are of the same value. Complementary colors are useful when you want
to make something stand out. However, complementary colors are really bad for text.
green and red are complementary colors of same value. used together
not only do they create contrast, but also vibrating boundaries – when
color vibration occurs along the boundary separating contrasting hues
of equal value.
complementary color scheme; because of high contrast is often
used to suggest action and energy (hence a lot of sports teams
have this scheme for their uniforms.)
*Analogous
Red and Orange, Blue and Green, etc. – located right next to each other on the color wheel.
They usually match extremely well, but they also create almost no contrast. They’re good
for very serene, peaceful designs and artwork where you want viewers to feel comfortable.
blue and green are analogous colors. when used
together they produce much more calming effect
than complementary colors. (also, notice how
the green in this example reads much lighter
than green in previous example due to
simultaneous contrast - where appearance of
the same color is affected by the appearance of
other colors surrounding it).
*Triad
uses colors that are evenly spaced around the color wheel. Triadic color
harmonies tend to be quite vibrant, even if you use pale or unsaturated
versions of your hues. To use a triadic harmony successfully, the colors
should be carefully balanced – let one color dominate and use the two
others for accent.
*Split-Complementary
a variation of the complementary color scheme. In addition to the base color, it uses the two
colors adjacent to its complement. This color scheme has the same strong visual contrast as
the complementary color scheme, but has less tension. The split-complimentary color
scheme is often a good choice for beginners, because it is difficult to mess up.
Color Meanings
Color is a part of our visual field. Color can be used as a tool to organize space. We assign color codes to file folders,
traffic signs, and holidays. Consider the power of color symbolism. In different contexts and different cultures a specific
hue may carry a different meaning.
Color is closely associated with mood. Reflect on the connections between a particular hue and its respective value
and saturation and the viewer’s interpretation of its symbolic role in the image. Colors can have positive or negative
attributes.
Warm colors: fire, sunlight, blood, greater luminosity
Cool colors: ice, cold, darkness
RED: excitement, emotion, ardent love, valor, passion, fever, cruelty, wrath, sin, (scarlet letter, red heart)
YELLOW: light, gold, church, sickness, treason, cowardliness, (however, in China yellow is an imperial
color)
GREEN: organic matter, fruitfulness, growth, contentment, tranquility, hope, sadness, decay, youth,
springtime, jealousy, spirituality (blue-green)
ORANGE: radiance, festivities, warmth, intimacy, caution
VIOLET: mystery, oppression, menace, terror, seduction, darkness, pietry, supersition, death, royalty
BLUE: truth, divinity, eternity, loyalty, constancy, calm, shyness, death, coldness
WHITE: light, triumph, innocence, purity, joy, divine power, regeneration, ghost, spirit, sickness, pallor,
(symbol of death in some cultures like Japan)
BLACK: quiet, rest, strength, weight, richness, seclusion, absence of light, powers of darkness,
mourning, death, loss of innocence
The use of text as a visual element and to get information across to the viewer.
Typography
In publishing, text often is the most important element. The goal is to create consistency with
enough visual contrast for viewers to distinguish between the levels of hierarchy, or to
determine level of importance amongst the presented information.
For example, a consistent treatment of headlines makes for an easy recognition of typographic
organization.
INTERACTIONS BETWEEN VISUAL ELEMENTS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Contrast
Orientation and
position
Graphic Shapes and
Linear Elements
Depth, Dimension and
Perspective
Space
Repetition
http://cios233.community.uaf.edu/design-theory-lectures/interaction-of-visual-elements/
Contrast
visual differences and juxtaposed (or side by side) elements. Visual contrast between the
elements makes them identifiable and comprehensible to the viewer.
In design, big and small
elements, black and white
text, squares and circles,
can all create contrast in
design. Contrast helps
different design elements
stand out. Is there enough
contrast between your text
(size and color) and
background (color and
pattern) to keep text
readable? Is everything all
the same size even when
some elements are more
important than others?
Stark contrast between the picture and a black background of a page with text
Orientation & Position
also foster contrast and distinctive hierarchy by commanding attention to a shifted
positioning * for example, diagonal positioning of the text against predominantly horizontal
distribution of the rest of the elements on the page.
- Positioning we aren’t expecting makes us do a double take…
Graphic Shapes & Other Visual Elements
Depth, Dimension and Perspective
– the use of perspective shifts the two-dimensional space into a three-dimensional
representation and thus creates depth ….because elements positioned in a perspective
recede or move out towards the viewer ).
Color
creates visual interest and emphasizes a specific elements of the design, content. It can be
added to graphic shapes, linear elements, imagery, and typography. It can be used to create
rich backgrounds or be used to emphasize areas of the design that need attention.
Space
provides visual contrast and contributes to an effective ordering system. The empty compositional space brings the
visual elements alive. Space is present in all compositions. It provides visual channel and direction for the eye.
-Visual elements can be grouped together with very limited space in-between to create a grouping and a focal point.
-The extra space around visual elements creates a point of isolation, thus emphasizing that element.
-Be careful with space because too much of it and too equal on all sides makes the composition static; too much space
does not activate space and the elements placed into it tend to fade to a background
*Designs that try to cram too much text and
graphics onto the page are uncomfortable and
may be impossible to read. White space can give
your design breathing room. Do you have enough
space between columns of text? Does text run
into frames or graphics? Do you have a generous
margin? You can also have too much white space
if items float on the page without any anchor.
http://cios233.community.uaf.edu/design-theory-lectures/interaction-of-visual-elements/
Repetition & Consistency
- Repetition used to emphasize the subject. Used with slight variation and creatively,
repetition can be an invaluable tool in establishing the hierarchy and highlighting the message
- consistent use of type and graphics styles within a document shows a reader helps them
navigate your designs and layouts safely. Are major and minor text consistent in size, style, or
placement? Have you used a consistent illustration style throughout?
Yearbook Cover Requirements
• Primary Text (must include location and year)
• Secondary Text (saying or quote related to
subject)
• Creative visual Imagery
• Mixed media
http://dx.cooperhewitt.org/lesso
nplan/Logo-Design-Basics-YourName-Here/ (reference)