Visual Techniques

- Contrast
- Unity
- Balance
- Flatness
- Simplicity
- Transparency
- Stasis

- Transparency
- Instability
- Variation
- Stasis
- Variation
- Intricacy

                       Both posters show an assortment of similar and different visual techniques. For instance both  posters effectively use transparency as a visual technique. As you can see, in both designs, objects are being placed on top of each other using transparency. Another visual technique seen in both designs is stasis. The activity of the design is expressed through this technique. For example both designs show no real motion giving the viewer a different understanding as opposed to a design which presents movement or energy. On another note both designs are composed of many differences. Unlike the second poster design, balance is well composed in the first example. The "Show and Tell" poster stays away from balance by re-arranging the letters in a large variation of positions, providing an absence of balance. The first poster does the opposite by positioning the letters in the center and on top of each other. Another difference between the two posters is variation. The first design lacks variation while the second poster expresses a large amount of variation with changes in font, color, and positioning. This variation also highlights the greater amount of intricacy in the second poster. Last but not least the first poster exemplifies simplicity  on a greater level than the second poster design. By having a very simple order and a small amount of elemental units, it refrains from the characteristics of complexity.

Week 11 Contrast

This illustration is a great example of contrast. It successfully uses contrast in color and line to highlight the coke bottle and the top half of the man. Using color to create this high contrast, the coke bottle and the top half of the man really stand out. This contrast communicates to the viewer. It takes away confusion and causes the viewer to focus on the coke bottle or the aspects that are colored in. The context also makes the colors of the bottle and top of the man stand out. A lighter background color could of been used to enhance this effect but it then would of enhanced the lines of the portion not colored in a little too much, taking away from the focus of the man and his coke bottle.

This is an excellent example of bad contrast. First of all the contrast is to minimal. The color contrast used makes it hard to read the text. Obviously someone wasn't very cautious when they chose the colors in this design. The color contrast only makes this design unattractive and unsuccessful rather than visually easier to understand or read.  Also the context in this design harms the success of the design making some colors look lighter showing less contrast.

Implied Motion

This image communicates the idea of implied motion in design very well. The motion is not actually shown but suggested through the characteristics of the font design. The type is stretched and folded to illuminate a certain idea through motion. In this case, the squeezing, stretching, and folding of the letters, emphasize the necessity of big spaces for big ideas. Also certain characteristics in this poster such as variation in scale and tone suggest movement. Besides the type, the grey box in the background also helps emphasize the motion. The letters look like they are being squeezed out of the grey box, again emphasizing the point that, "big ideas need big spaces".

This image incorporates a lot of implied motion. The colored lines and other objects such as the elephant, bicycle, and deer emphasize motion. For example the elephant looks like it is moving because of its stance. It is a perfect example of expectation in implied motion. Based on prior experience in the world, we can interpret how an elephant looks when it is moving. The deer also shows movement with the help of the streamline of colors and its stance which makes it look like it is walking. Another element that shows implied motion is the direction of the stars and line. They imply a shooting movement because there direction going upwards.

Dimension/Depth/Space/Scale

         This is a very interesting and unique design. If you cant tell, the wall in the center of the image is actually wallpaper. The wallpaper sets up an illusion which when applied to a wall will make a room look larger. The designer used relative size, linear perspective, and depth cues to achieve the effectiveness of the wallpaper. As you can tell the objects closest in the image appear to be larger than those in the further background. By changing the size of the objects in the wallpaper the designer successfully makes the room look larger because objects closer in distance look relatively larger. Another way the designer enhances the distance of the room is by using linear perspective. He or she makes the lines of the room converge as they reach a farther point. A larger convergence indicates a greater distance.

Tone and Color

         In this particular design for the word "speak" there is a lot of tonal information in the crowd of people. The picture contains a lot of absolute black that shows dimension. The tonal range gives depth to objects such as all the top hats.
        The tone in this design works well with color. The black and white tonal range of the picture works to enhance the boldness or emphasis of the word "speak" with the combination of the color red. The use of color highlights the main feature of the design.
        The color, because it is the only bright color in the design, is used to bring attention to the writing. The context effects the relationship of tone and the font color because of the contrast shared between  the colors black, white, and red. Similar to the concept of where an image context's effects tone in relation to type design.
        Color also interacts with the element of shape. The grid of squares centralizes the type and also fuses the picture with the type in a way.

Graphic Design

       The basic element I want to highlight here is scale. Scale here is used to express increase in exports. The size of the arrows correlate with the the percentages. The number 2,126 is the largest number thus having the largest arrow. As described by Dondis, scale is used as a visual measuring tool. The scale helps the viewer distinguish where the largest amount of exports is going in relation to this image. This also highlights the reference of juxtaposition. The large arrow is next to two other arrows, showing contrast.

        This poster highlights tone. One reason tone was used here was to give off a sense of horror. Both faces are also drawn using tone to build on lines but mainly to highlight a mood. Tone was also used to communicate depth as the face in grey scale is in front of the portrait of the devil.

        In this image I wanted to point out the use of color. The use of color is used to correlate the "return" of a depression that the United States once lived. They make the man holding the sign in black & white to emphasize the depression that occurred in the 1930's. Color is dependent on the context and that is why the designer intelligently made the human figure black & white. The books title, "The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008", uses black & white to relate and highlight similarities that a depression in the 1930's has with a new more recent Depression in 2008. 

Design Success and Failure in Relation to Syntactical Guidelines

           I chose this poster because of my interest in graphic and clothing design. I absolutely love this particular example of graphic design because of its simplicity, use of different fonts, shapes, and the balance the poster portrays. Its horizontal balance is emphasized well with the use of lines and shapes. For example the words in the center, "with the", are beside three circles on either side for balance. Also on each side both center circles are filled in. I also like how the poster stresses the word "chaos" by making the letters a lot bolder and even a little larger. The font is constructed in a vertical manner like that of the idea of the personal vertical and the human relation. I say this because of the top to bottom visual reading that occurs when looking at the poster.

          I chose this piece because of my interest in clothing design. This is a fall 2010 lookbook cover for a street wear clothing company named 10.Deep. I enjoy its simplicity but I wasn't to happy with the picture that they chose for the background. First of all the image of an upside down stairwell throws off the balance the lettering/description gave. It fails to essentially provide a horizontal or vertical construction. Second of all the image they chose also takes attention away from the real focus of the cover which is to describe what the book is. Upon first glance I focused on the upside down stairwell by actually turning my head sideways and not on the actual lettering or description of the book. Lastly, the picture is to random, it fails to put its finger on any target group or consumer. The image holds no importance.