Graphic Designer's Essential Reference

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Job:07-26153 Title:RP-Graphic Designer’s Essential Reference PB Edn

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ESSENTIAL VISUAL STRATEGIES

BASIC TECHNIQUES

Organic

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Totality

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Continuum

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Biology

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Water

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Planet

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Cell

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Cycle

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Endless

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Unity

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Fluidity

Logic

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Mathematics

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Artifi cial

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Order

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Intellectual

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Finite

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Rational

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Architectural

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Partitioned

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Solid

All pictorial form carries meaning

—

and that

includes abstraction, or form that doesn’t rep-

resent anything we actually experience in real

life. However, abstract form has the potential

to convey stronger, more direct, and more

universally understood messages, because it is

a distilled representation of something that is

real, so it can transcend cultural and linguistic

barriers. Abstract images are also more open

to interpretation, involving the audience and

helping them to make deeper, richer connec-

tions; for this reason, abstraction can easily

take on the role of symbol or metaphor more

fluidly than representational images. Finally,

the uniqueness and simplicity of abstraction

deliver a powerfully memorable experience,

building recall and equity in designed messages.

Using Abstract Form

The power of abstraction to

communicate universally

—

and to evoke greater

interpretation or association

beyond simple depiction

—

is demonstrated in this

comparison of two simple,

elemental geometric forms.

Combining different kinds

of images adds interest and

contrast to the overall visual

language of a project.

(top) People Design:

Grand Rapids, MI: USA

(bottom) Stein Øvre:

Oslo: Norway

Tip

How to Develop Abstract Form

That Communicates

Distill the essential idea of a message as an emotion:

What is the feeling to be communicated, in one word?

What kinds of forms feel that way?

Consider the idea as an action word: What should

the form appear to be doing? What kinds of forms will

appear to perform that action?

Translate the visual structure of an elemental force or

a kind of place or object into its basic geometry:

What kinds of shapes—dots, lines, curves, and so on—

make up that thing’s physical structure? How many

marks or shapes are needed to recognize what it is?

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