Universal Principles of Design, Updated and Expanded Third Edition

094 Iconic Representation

The use of pictorial images to improve recognition and recall.

Iconic representation is the use of pictorial images to make actions, objects, and concepts in a display easier to find, recognize, learn, and remember. They can be used for identification (company logo), serve as a space-efficient alternative to text (road signs), or to draw attention to an item within a display (error icons appearing next to items in a list).1

There are four types of iconic representation:

1. Similar icons — Images that are visually analogous to an action, object, or concept. They are most effective at representing simple actions, objects, or concepts and less effective when the complexity increases. For example, a sign indicating a sharp ...