Design Flashcards
The creation and organization of formal elements in a work of art.
Design
The shape and structure of something as distinguished from its substance or material.
Form
The outline or surface configuration of a particular form or figure. While form usually refers to the principle that gives unity to a whole and often includes a sense of mass or volume, shape suggests an outline with some emphasis on the enclosed area or mass.
Shape
The edge or contour of a shape.
Line
The visual and esp. tactile quality of a surface, apart from its color or form.
Texture
The apparent texture of surface resulting from the combination and interrelation of colors and tonal values.
Visual Texture
The physical, dimensional structure of a surface, apart from its color or form.
Tactile Texture
Of or pertaining to shapes and forms having irregular contours that appear to resemble those of living plants or animals.
Organic
Of or pertaining to shapes and forms not representing natural or actual objects.
Nonobjective or Nonrepresentational
Of or pertaining to shapes and forms that resemble or employ the simple rectilinear or curvilinear elements of geometry.
Geometric
Of or pertaining to shapes and forms having an intellectual and effective content dependent solely on their intrinsic lines, colors and relationship to one another.
Abstact
Something that stands for or represents something else by association, resemblance or convention, deriving its meaning chiefly from the structure in which it appears.
Symbol
A mark or figure having a conventional meaning and used in place of a work or phrase to express a complex notion.
Sign
A unified composition of two-dimensional shapes or three-dimensional volumes, esp one that has or gives the impression of weight, density, and bulk.
Massing
Characterized or produced by addition, accumulation or uniting, often resulting in a new identity.
Additive
Characterized or produced by removal of a part or portion without destroying a sense of the whole.
Subtractive
A method or manner of jointing that makes the united parts clear, distinct and precise in relation to each other.
Articulation
The significance or meaning of an artistic work, as distinguised from its form.
Content
The manner of arranging and coordinating the parts of a composition so as to produce a coherent image.
Form (see Robie House)
The systematic arranging of interdependent or coordinated parts into a coherent unity or functioning whole.
Organization
An individual, minute or subordinate part of a whole.
Detail
The organization of elements or parts in a complex system as dominated by the general character of the whole.
Structure
The characteristic structure given to a surface or substance by the size, shape, arrangement and proportions of the parts.
Texture
An underlying framework or structure of connected parts.
Fabric
The basic scheme or concept for an architectural design, represented by a diagram.
Parti
A drawingm not necessarily representational, that outlines, explains, or clarifies the arrangement and relations of the parts of a whole.
Diagram
An artistic or decorative design, esp one having a characteristic arrangement and considered as a unit, of which an idea can be given by a fragment.
Pattern
The arranging of parts or elements into proper proportion or relation so as to form a unified whole.
Composition
A fundamental and comprehensive concept of visual perception for structuring an aesthetic composition.
Design Principle
The state or quality of being combined into one, such as the ordering of elements in an artistic work that constitutes a harmonious whole or promotes a singleness of effect.
Unity
A condition of logical, harmonious, or comprehensible arrangement in which each element of a group is properly disposed with reference to other elements and to its purpose.
Order
The orderly, pleasing or congruent arrangement of the elements or parts in an artistic whole.
Harmony
Harmony in the arrangement of parts or colors that is restful to the eye.
Repose
Logically or aesthetically ordered or integrated to afford comprehension or recognetion.
Coherent
Correspondence in size, shape, or color among the elements in a work or art.
Agreement
The state or quality of being alike in substance, essentials or characteristics.
Similarity
Nearness in place, order, or relation
Proximity
The state or quality of being continuous, such as that exhibited by a line, edgem or direction.
Continuity
Arrangement in or adjustment according to a straight line.
alignment
The state or quality of being identical, homogeneous, or regular.
Uniformity
Uniform in structure throughout or composed of parts that are all of the same nature or kind.
Homogeneous
Uniformly or evenly formed or arranged.
Regular
The state or quality of lacking variety.
Monotomy
The state or quality of having varied or diverse forms, types or characteristics.
Variety
The state or quality of being a whole composed of complicated, intricate or interconnected parts.
Complexity
An artistic composition of often diverse elements in unlikely or unexpected juxtaposition.
Collage
A system of elements ranked, classified, and organized one above another, according to importance or significance.
hierarchy
Stress or prominence given to an element of a composition by means of contrast, anomaly, or counterpoint.
Emphasis
Opposition or juxtaposition of dissimilar elements in a work of art to intensify each element’s properties and produce a more dynamic expressiveness.
Contrast
The state or position of being placed opposite another, or of lying in corresponding positions from an intervening space or object.
Opposition
The state or position of being placed close together or side by side, so as to permit comparison or contrast.
Juxtaposition
A tenuous balance maintained in an artistic work between opposing forces or elements, often causing anxiety or excitement.
Tension
The state or condition of being opposed, inconsistent, or logically incongruous.
Contradiction
A state of utter disorder or confusion.
Chaos
A parallel but contrasting element or theme in a narrative or concept.
Counterpoint
Prominent or conspicuous.
Salient
The major idea, essential part, or salient feature of a narrative or concept.
Point
A deviation from the normal or expected form, order or arrangement.
Anomaly
A state of rest or balance between contrasting elements or opposing forces.
Equilibrium
An equal distribution of weight, relationship or forces.
Equipoise
A counterbalancing weight or force.
Counterpoise
The pleasing or harmonious arrangement or proportion of parts or elements in a design or composition.
Balance
The exact correspondence in size, form and arrangement of parts on opposite sides of a dividing line or plane, or about a center or axis.
Symmetry
Symmetry resulting from the arrangement of similar parts on opposite sides of a median axis.
Bilateral Symmetry
Symmetry resulting from the arrangement of similar, radiating parts about a center point or central axis.
Radial Symmetry
The plan for a building organized around a large or dominant space usually characterized by two axes crossing each other at right angles.
Central Plan
A symmetrical condition occuring in one part of a design, often serving to center an irregular pattern.
Local Symmetry
An imaginary line about which a figure, body, or composition is symmetrical.
Axis of Symmetry
A straight line to which elements in a composition are referred for measurement or symmetry.
Axis
The rhythmic quality of a composition suggesting motion by represented gestures or by the relationship of structural elements.
Movement
The line along which something is moving, pointing, or facing, with reference to the point toward which it is direct.
Direction
A process or change taking place by degrees or through a series of gradual, successive stages.
Gradation
Movement characterized by a patterned repetition or alternation of formal elements or motifs in the same or a modified form.
Rhythm
The act or process of repeating formal elements or motifs in a design.
Repetition
A space between two objects, points, or states.
Interval
A series of linked or interconnected things or events.
Concatenation
The comparative, proper, or harmonious, relation of one part to another or to the whole with respect to magnitude, quantity, or degree.
Proportion
Harmony of proportion or movement.
Eurythmy
Relation in magnitude, quantity, or degree between two or more similar things.
Ratio
The quality between two ratios in which the first of the four terms divided by the second equals the third divited by the fourth.
Proportion
A proportion between the two dimensions of a plane figure or the two division of a line, in which the ratio of the smaller to the larger is the same as the ratio of the larger to the whole: a ratio of approximately 0.618 to 1.
Golden Section or Golden Mean
tHE UNENDING SEQUENCE OF NUMBERS WHERE THE FIRST TWO TERMS ARE 1 AND 1, AND EACH SUCCEEDING TERM IS THE SUM OF THE TWO IMMEDIATLY PRECEDING.
Fibonacci Series
A series whose terms are in harmonic progression.
Harmonic Series
A sequence of numbers whose reciprocals form an arithmetic progression.
Harmonic Progression
A certain proportionate size, extent, or degree, usually judged in relation to some standard or point of reference.
Scale
A unit of measurement used for standardizing the dimensions of building materials or regulating the proportions of an architectural composition.
Module
The size or proportion of a building element or space, or an article of furniture, relative to the structural or functional dimensions of the human body.
Human Scale
The size or proportion of something relative to an accepted standard of measurement.
Mechanical Scale
The size or proportion an element appears to have relative to other elements or components of known or assumed size.
Visual Scale
An applied science concerned with the characteristics of people that need to be considered in the design of devices and systems in order that people and things will interact effectively and safely.
Ergonomics or Human Engineering
The measurement and study of the size and proportions of the human body.
Anthropometry
To ascribe human form or characteristics to nonhuman things or beings.
Anthropomorphize
Any of the dimensions of the human body and its parts.
Structural dimensions
Any of the dimensions determined by bodily position and movement, such as reach, stride, or clearange.
Functional dimension
The correspondence between the size and posture of a human body and a building element or article of furniture.
Static Fit
The correspondence between the sensory experience of bodily presence and movement and the size, shape and proportion of a space.
Dynamic Fit
The sensory experience of bodily position, presence, or movement derived chiefly from stimulation of nerve endings in muscles, tendons and joints.
Kinesthesia, Kinaesthesia, kinesthesis
Relating to or based on the sense of touch.
Haptic
Relating to or based on the sense of smell.
Olfactory
Of or pertaining to spaces, buildings, and facilities fully accessible and usable by all people, including the physically handicapped.
Barrier-Free
The study of the symbolic and communicative role of the spatial separation individuals maintain in various social and interpersonal situations, and how the nature and degree of this spatial arrangement relates to environmental and cultural factors.
Proxemics
The pattern of behavior associated wit hdefining and defending a territory or domain.
Territoriality
The variable and subjective distance at which one person feels comfortable talking to another.
Personal Space or Personal Distance
An act of Congress that became law in 1992, establishing design standards and requirements for all buildings except single-family residences to ensure their accessibility by the physically disabled.
Americans wit hDisabilities Act
The process of planning, designing and creating products, buildings, and environments that are accessible to all individuals, including those with disabilities or special needs, to the greatest extent possible given current materials, technologies and knowledge.
Universal Design
A continuous, unobstructed path from site arrival points and connecting all accessible buildings and facilities within a site.
Accessible route
The parking spaces and passenger loading zones located on an accessible route and complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG).
Accessible parking
The ability, freedom, or permission to approach, enter, or use.
Access
The degree to which a product, device, service, or environment is available to people having disabilities or special needs.
Accessibility
Describing a site, building or facility designed and constructed to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG)
Accessible
An accessible pedestrian space between such elements as parking, seating and desks.
Access Aisle
The ability of such elements as counters, sinks, and grab bars to be altered so as to accommodate the needs of individuals with or without disabilitites, or individuals having different types or degrees of disabilities.
Adaptability
A dwelling unit or sleeping unit that complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) for routes, elements, and spaces.
Accessible Unit
A surface feature built in or applied to walking surfaces to ward visually impaired persons of hazards along a circulation path.
Detectable Warning
The minimum unobstructed floor area required to accommodate a single wheelchair and occupant.
Clear Floor Space
The slope perpendicular to the direction of travel.
Cross Slope
the slope parallel to the direction of travel.
Running Slope
A ramp cut into or leading up to a curb.
Curb Ramp
To conceive, contrive, or devise the form and structure of a building or other construction.
Design
To form an idea or conception in the mind.
Conceive
To form in an artistic or ingenious manner.
Contrive
To form in the mind by new combinations or applications of existing ideas or principles.
Devise
A purposeful activity aimed at devising a plan for changing an existing situation into a future preferred state, especially the cyclical, iterative process comprising the following phases.
Design Process
Identifying a problem and its social, economic, and physical context.
Initiation
Collecting and analyzing relevant information and establishing goals and criteria for an acceptable solution.
Preparation
A systematic series of actions or operations leading or directed to a particular end.
Process
A particular stage in a process of change or development.
Phase
A procedure for solving a problem, such as a statement setting forth the context, conditions, requirements and objectives for a design project.
Program
Discovering constraints and opportunities, and hypothesizing possible alternative solutions.
Synthesis
Separating of a whole into its constituent parts or elements, esp. as a method of studying the nature of the whole and determining its essential features and their relations.
Analysis
Combining of separate, often diverse parts or elements so as to form a single or coherent whole.
Synthesis
Formulating a tentative assumption in order to draw out and test its logical or empirical consquences.
Hypothesis
One of the propositions or courses of action to be chosen from a set of two or more mutually exclusive posibilities.
Alternative
The pattern of change, growth, or development of an object or phenomenon.
Dynamics
An intense effort to complete a design project within a specified time.
Charette or Charette
To work out, expand, or realize the capabilities or possibilities of so as to bring gradually to a fuller or more advanced or effective state.
Develop
To change the form, character or qualities of in order to give a new orientation to or to serve a new end.
Modify
To improve or elaborate in order to make more fine or precise.
Refine
A bend, angle, or similar change in the shape of a configuration, by means of which a change of relationship to some context or condition is indicated.
Inflection
The process of changing in form or structure through a series of discrete permutations and manipulations in response to a specific context or set of conditions without a loss of identity or concept.
Transformation
A preliminary version of a plan or design.
Draft
Simulating, testing and modifying acceptable alternative according to specified goals and criteria.
Evaluation
Evaluative information about an action or process, prompting a return to a preceding phase for alteration or correction.
Feedback
Selecting and implementing the most suitable solution.
Action
To ensure the fulfillment of by means of a definite plan or procedure.
Implement
Assessing how well an implemented solution in use satisfies the specified goals and criteria.
Reevaluation
To express, convey, or interchange ideas, information, or the like by writing, speaking, or through a common system of signs or symbols esp. in a way that is clearly and readily understood.
Communicate
The offering of a plan for consideration, acceptance or actionl
Proposal
To choose fomr a number of alternatives by fitness or preference.
Select
The mental ability to perceive distinctions, comprehend relationships or distinguish alternatives.
Judgement
The natural or proper action for which something is designed, used, or exists.
Function
The reason for which something exists or is done, made or used.
Purpose
Any feature that provides or increases comfort, convenience or pleasure.
Amenity
Careful, thrifty, and efficient use and management of resources.
Economy
To ascertain or assess the significance, worth or quality of, usually by careful appraisal and study.
Evaluate
A standard, rule or principle on which a judgement or decision may be based.
Criterion
An assumed, given, or otherwise determined fact or proposition from which conclusions may be drawn or decisions made.
Datum
To create a likeness or model of something anticipated for testing and evaluation.
Simulate
A miniature representation, usually built to scale, to show the appearance or construction of something.
Model
A full-sized model of a building or structure, built accurately to scale for study, testing or teaching.
Mock-up
To subject a system or process to such conditions or operations as will lead to a critical evaluation of abilities or performance and subsequent acceptance or rejection.
Test
The faculty or power of comprehending, inferring, or thinking in an orderly, rational way.
Reason
To form or recall a mental image of.
Visualize
The power of reproducing images stored in the memory under the suggestion of associated images.
Reproductive Imagination
The play of the mind through which visions are summoned, especially mental inventions that are whimsical, playful and characteristically removed from reality.
Fancy
To form a mental picture of a future possibility.
Envision
The power of recombining former experiences in the creation of new images directed at a specific goal or aiding in the solution of a problem.
Creative Imagination
A mental representation of something previously perceived in the absence of the original stimulus.
Image
The ability to transcend traditional ideas, patterns, or relationships and to initiate meaningful ideas, forms or interpretations.
Creativity
The creative ability to imagine or express in an independent and individual manner.
Originality
The faculty of forming mental images or concepts of what is not present to the senses or perceived in reality.
Imagination
To regard an idea or concept as having some form of objective reality outside of the mind
Project
To animate or permeate with a particular form, substance, quality or distinction.
Inform
To direct the efforts or attention of.
Address
To attract and hold fast by influence or power.
Engage
The act or power of anticipating that which will or may come to be.
Vision
The faculty of seeing things in their true relations or of evaluating their relative significance.
Perspective
A particular manner or mode of looking at or regarding someting.
View
A way in which a thing may be viewed or regarded.
Aspect
A though or notion resulting from mental awareness, understanding, or activity.
Idea
A mental image or formulation of what something is or ought to be esp. an idea generalized fomr particular characteristics or instances.
Concept
A concept for the form, structurem and features of a building or other construction, represented graphically by diagrams, plans or other drawings.
Design Concept
An underlying organization pattern or structure for a design.
Scheme
The original scheme for a design presented in the form of a sketch outlining its specific character, to be developed in detail in later studies.
Project
Actual performance or application of principles, as distinguished from theory.
Practice
Having objective, verifiable, and independent existence, as opposed to being artificial or illusory.
Real
Abstract though or speculation resulting in a system of assumptions or principles used in analyzing, explaining, or predicting phenomena, and proposed or followed as the basis of action.
Theory
Thought of without reference to concrete reality or a particular instance.
Abstact
A fundamental and comprehensive law, truth, or assumption governing action, procedure, or arrangements.
Principle
An object, activity, or idea used in place of another to suggest a likeness between them.
Metaphor
A similarity in some particulars between things otherwise dissimilar, specif. a logical inference based on the assumption that if two things are known to be alike in some respects, then they will probably be alike in other respects.
Anology
The study of creative processes, esp. as applied to the stating and solution of problems, that involves free use of metaphor and analogy in informal interchange within a small group of diverse individuals.
Synectics
A systematic classification or study of types according to structural features.
Typology
A number of things regarded as forming a group by reason of common attributes or characteristics.
Type
An original model or pattern on which all things of the same kind are coped or based.
Archetype
A reproduction of an original.
Ectype
An early and typical example that exhibits the essential features of a class or group and on which later stages are based or judged.
Prototype
An example serving as a pattern for imitation or emulation in the creation of something.
model
Contextual, causal, or logical relations or associations of something observed or imagined.
Conncetion
The power or faculty of knowing without evident rational though and inference.
Intuition
Meditation or reflection on a subject or idea, resulting in a conclusion inferred from incomplete or inconclusive evidence.
Speculation
The state or quality of being susceptible to uncertainty of meaning or multiple interpretation.
Ambiguity
An aptitude for making desirable and unexpected discoveries by accident.
Serendipity
A fortuitions circumstance, quality or characteristic.
Accident
