TABLE OF CONTENTS:
LECTURES
Elements of Design
Visual Communication is about utilising design to convey purposeful messages to a target audience. As such, the design must be well thought-out and executed. To achieve effective communication through design, it is important to learn about and apply the elements and principles of design.
Elements of design are individual 'Building blocks" while Principles of design are organisational fundamentals that result from or guide the arrangement of the elements.
The Elements of Design:
"Points are the simplest element of design, it is used as a repetitive mark that forms a line. As the point moves in space, other two- and three-dimensional figures and forms are created."
- Line"Lines are marks moving in a space between two points whereby a viewer can visualize the stroke movement, direction, and intention based on how the line is oriented. They describe an outline, capable of producing texture according to its length and curve."
- Shape"A shape is a two-dimensional design encased by lines to signify its height and width structure, and can have different values of color used within it to make it appear three-dimensional."
- Form"Form is a three-dimensional object with height, width, and depth volume. Form is often used when referring to physical works of art, like sculptures."
- Texture"Texture is used to describe the surface quality of the work, referencing the types of lines the artist created. "
- Space"Space is indefinable, general receptacle of all things. In a two-dimensional plane, we see the space of the surface all at once. The actual space of a picture's surface is defined by its edge."
- Color"Value: This is 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."
The Principles of Design:
- Balance
- Emphasis
- Rule of Third
- Repetition, Pattern, Rhythm
- Movement
- Hierarchy
- Alignment
- Harmony
- Unity
- Proportion
INSTRUCTIONS
TASK 1 - Exploration
GESTALT THEORY
Gestalt theory emphasizes that we perceive things as a whole rather than individual components. It seeks to explain how humans organize perceivable elements into recognizable patterns by forming relationships between them.
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| Example of Gestalt Theory (Source: HERE) |
CONTRAST
It is the principle that uses the difference in elements to create visual interest and draw the viewer's eye to a certain area in a design. It can be done with Colour, Lighting, Size, Shape, and Typeface.
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| Example of Contrast (Source: HERE) |
EMPHASIS
It is the principle that guides how visual hierarchy is established, drawing the user's attention to specific elements in a composition. This allows certain elements to stand out and capture the viewer first.
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| Example of Emphasis (Source: HERE) |
BALANCE
It is the principle that covers how elements are weighted against each other on different sides of a design, ensuring that everything appears evenly weighted and stable, creating a sense of harmony and completion.
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| Example of Balance (Source: HERE) |
REPETITION
It is the principle that reuses similar or identical elements in a design. It creates a consistent and unified pattern.
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| Example of Repetition (Source: HERE) |
MOVEMENT
It is the principle of creating a sense of movement with the viewer's eyes through a composition. It helps to guide and move the viewer's eye to specific elements.
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| Example of Movement (Source: HERE) |
HARMONY & UNITY
These are the principles that work together to create a balanced and cohesive composition. Harmony is achieved by repeating similar elements related to each other while unity organizes elements to create balance in a design.
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| Example of Harmony & Unity (Source: HERE) |
SYMBOL
It is a universal form of communication that can be used to convey meaning without language. It can provide information by using shapes or objects that represent something.
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Example of Symbol (Source: HERE) |
WORD & IMAGE
These both have different strengths but are seen working together in many designs. Images are powerful at communicating things from the physical world, and words are great at describing abstract phenomena.
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| Example of Symbol (Source: HERE) |
Design/Artwork Selected
Recently I got into reading mangas and admired the illustration the artist put their work into. One that stands out to me is Yuto Suzuki's work. Below are specifically two manga covers that stand out to me the most compared to the other volume.
(Additional favourite volume covers: Volume 4, Volume 8, Volume 9, Volume 15. Do check them out they look Amazing)
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| Sakamoto Days Vol.3 & Vol.5 (By Yuto Suzuki) |
The illustration for Volume 3 really emphasizes the Space of the character (Heisuke) and the background. In contrast, the illustration for Volume 5 really emphasizes the Movement of the character (Osaragi). Both follow multiple design principles of their own but the final artwork I decided on is Volume 3.
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| Chosen Artwork: Manga Cover Illustration of Sakamoto Days |
Details:
Title: Sakamoto Days - Volume 3
Artist/Illustrator: Yuto Suzuki
Published: 3rd September 2021
Medium: -
Size: -
Source Link: https://sakamoto-days.fandom.com/wiki/Volume_3
Reason for Selecting the Artwork:
(Short answer: "Damn it looks cool, I love the art style, the way they draw the character and the background is so well done, I want to experiment on trying to replicate the style.")
Long answer:
One thing I love about the illustrations made by Yuto Suzuki is the way he uses colour and contrasts. It really makes an artwork pop out and just fun to look at. While going through the illustrations made by Yuto Suzuki, there are many that look amazing and it was hard to choose at first. I was close to choosing a magazine art but then I thought about it more, the thing that made me interested in his work was the manga. So I decide to use a cover illustration from one of his manga instead.
Looking through all the volume covers, they are so well drawn that it was hard to just pick one. I ended up picking this, Volume 3, as my final artwork. Despite being one of the earlier and simpler illustrations, there is so much to analyse on.
Design Principles that can be seen:
Contrasts - The character standing from the background and the plane.
Movement - The bird (Piisuke) flying towards the character; Character falling.
Emphasis - Sniper Rifle (guiding towards and away from character)
Harmony & Unity - Buildings in the background.
Gestalt Theory
FEEDBACKS
Week 1: Briefing. Reminder to look through the MIB and the lecture.
Week 2: Reference through the senior blog, add a quick link to other tasks, Gestalt Theory is incorrect need to find more information.
Week 3: Add table content and reflection, and move quick link to the bottom. For the final artwork try to choose one out of the two so it won't be too complicated when moving on to Task 2.
REFLECTION
Experience
In this task it allows me to understand more about the Elements of Design and Design Principles. It also allowed me to understand how design principles are used to make different artwork stand out from each other depending on which and how they use the principles of design. I enjoyed this task, having me look for different artworks and analyse them to their fullest. Looking forward to the next task.
Observation
There isn't much to observe for this task, but I can see and understand what each principle is and what artwork contains them. In the next task we will be observing more into the artwork we have choosen here.
Findings
In this task, I found out that the element of design and design principles existed almost everywhere in our day-to-day life.
QUICK LINKS:
Design Principles [TASK 1] - Exploration
Design Principles [TASK 2] - Visual Analysis
Design Principles [TASK 3] - Design
Design Principles [FINAL] - Final Compilation