Design Elements and Principles Flashcards
What are the primary colours?
- Yellow
- Blue
- Red
What are he secondary colours?
- Green
- Orange
- Purple
Describe harmonious colours
Colours that appear side by side on the colour wheel, when used in compositions, they create subtle variations.
Describe complementary colours
Colours that are opposite on the colour wheel, these are often used together to create contrast.
What are some key words for describing colour?
- Bold
- Subdued
- Vibrant
- Bright
- Subtle
- Warm
- Cool
- Primary
- Secondary
- Tertiary
- Contrasting
- Complementing
- Eye-catching
- Dominant
- Dynamic
- Calming
- Emotive
What can colour can be used for?
- Define space
- Create contrast
- Create hierarchy
- Create a mood
Describe form
Generally refers to objects that are three dimensional in nature, form is often depicted through rendering and the addition of shadows and highlights to enhance the objects three-dimensional qualities.
What are some key words for describing form?
- Three-dimensional
- Organic
- Geometric
- Dominant
- Subtle
- Tactile
- Solid
- Fluid
- Graceful
- Irregular
- Textured
- Natural
- Manufacturer
- Modelled
- Sculpted
What can form be used for?
- To define space
- To create contrast
- As a model or prototype
What are some key words for describing line?
- Broken
- Flowing
- Bold
- Fine
- Medium
- Repeated
- Organic
- Eye-catching
- Dynamic
- Directional
- Static
- Curved
- Straight
- Sketchy
- Freehand
- Precise
What can line be used for?
- Establishing structure
- Creating pattern
- Rendering
- Indicating
- Directing
- Conturing
Creating formality
What are some key uses for point?
- Differentiate
- Define
- Seperate
- Act as an indicator
- Identify
- Emphasise
- Highlight
What can point be used for?
- A map location
- A bulleted list
- Dot points
- Texture
- Pattern
Describe shape
Representational or abstract shapes that are two dimensional.
What can shape create?
- Hierarchy
- Background
- Pattern
- Contrast
What are some key words for describing shape?
- Two-dimensional
- Defined
- Solid
- Cropped
- Outlined
- Symmetrical
- Irregular
- Open
- Organic
- Closed
- Geometric
- Free form
What is texture used for?
It assists in visually describing the detail of an object, and helps us to understand what an object is made from.
What can texture be?
- Smooth
- Glossy
- Matt
- Uneven
- Metallic
- Coarse
- Tactile
- Reflective
- Dull
What can texture be used to do?
- Create contrast
- Emphasise
- Create pattern
- Enhance and describe form
What is tone used for?
Enhancing the appearance of an object, describing three-dimensional form and providing information about the surface textures of an object.
What can tone be?
- Dark
- Light
- Medium
- Subtle
- Defined
- Dramatic
- Muted
- Soft
- Harsh
What can tone be used to do?
- Render
- Contrast
- Model
- Highlight
- Emphasise
- Define
- Enhance
- Create form
- Describe texture
- Define structure
What can type be used for?
A decorative device, the dominant visual element in a composition or as informative text.
What are some examples of type styles?
- Serif
- Sans serif
- Slab serif
- Script
- Decorative/graphic
- Handwritten
What can type be?
- Contemporary
- Dominant
- Serif
- Sans serif
- Block serif
- Plain
- Decorative
- Script
What can type vary in?
- Point size
- Font
- Typeface
- Readability
What can type be used to do?
- Identify important information
- Create hierarchy
- Create contrast
- Create an emotive response
- Create a logo
What are the design elements?
- Colour
- Form
- Line
- Point
- Shape
- Texture
- Tone
- Type
What are the design principles?
- Balance
- Contrast
- Cropping
- Hierarchy
- Figure-ground
- Pattern
- Proportion
- Scale
What is the difference between a design element and a design principle?
Design elements can be described as the construction materials while the design principles would be the method of construction. The arrangement of design elements in a composition is defined and directed by the application of design principles.
What is balance?
The arrangement of different aspects of a composition to create harmony and visual appeal.
What are the two types of balance?
- Symmetrical
- Asymmetrical
What are the benefits of a symmetrical balance?
It is seen to be stable, static or passive, giving the composition a sense of regularity or conformity.
What are the benefits of an asymmetrical balance?
It creates a sense of dynamic energy that may challenge, provoke or inspire.
What is white space?
A space that does not contain information the may be used to balance a composition or lead a viewer’s eye to crucial information.
What is contrast?
When two very different elements are used together for visual effect. Contrast can create conflict between elements - light versus dark, bold versus fine - which leads to a visually dramatic composition.
Where can contrast occur?
- In type
- In colour
- In tone and texture
- In line
- In point, shape and form
What is cropping?
The exclusion of parts of an element for greater visual effect, cropping adds intrigue to a composition.
What is hierarchy?
Heir achy is the establishment of an order of importance. It can be established in many ways, but when done poorly, it can distract from the intended message of the visual communication.
What is figure-ground?
Is used to describe the relationship between dominant and less dominant elements within a composition. Figure refers to the visual information that is most dominant when placed against the ground, or the less dominant visual information.
May also be referred to as negative-postie space, form-counterform or foreground-background.
What is pattern?
The repetition of elements within a composition, pattern tends to be organised, and it features elements that are repeated more than once.
What is alternation pattern?
Patterns that alternate consist of several different elements used in a changing sequence.
What is proportion?
Proportion in visual communication is about relationships relationships between the scale of parts of an object or a composition. Proportion that has been used effectively creates balance and in turn provides visual harmony.
What is scale?
Scale concerns the size of elements within a composition, it exists because of relationships between different elements in a hierarchy. Scale enables us to make comparisons between elements and objects, and helps us to add meaning.
