ART asks and inspires - DESIGN answers and motivates
From my perspective, the difference between art and design lies in their core functions: art asks questions and inspires, while design provides answers and motivates action. As designers, we have the liberty to explore various creative paths, but we also have a clear goal: “helping people.”
To offer help through design, it must be both understandable and meaningful. Understandability and meaningfulness are crucial factors in evaluating the quality of a design. When discussing design, I'm referring to both visual appearance and content. Beauty may be subjective, adding richness to our world, but it also adheres to certain principles we've learned throughout life. While rules and guidelines are vital in design, breaking them can be beneficial, provided you understand what you're breaking and have a purpose for it.
I've no doubt you've come across 'Gestalt Theory' or Kurt Koffka's quote, “The whole is other than the sum of the parts,” during your education, especially if you studied design or architecture.
Gestalt Principles
Gestalt principles illustrate how individuals visually interpret the world and our designs, forming the foundation of all visual creations.
Figure-Ground Relationships: This principle addresses how we distinguish a figure (foreground) from its background. It's crucial in design because it helps viewers focus on the intended message or object among competing elements.
Similarity: It suggests that objects with similar characteristics (such as color, shape, or size) are perceived as part of a group. Designers use this principle to create cohesion and unity within visual elements.
Proximity, Uniform Connectedness, and Good Continuation: Proximity indicates that items close to each other are seen as a group. Uniform Connectedness links elements that share visual properties, suggesting they are related. Good Continuation implies that the eye follows continuous paths within a design, aiding flow and comprehension.
Common Fate: Objects moving in the same direction are perceived as a single unit. Designers leverage this principle to suggest movement and guide viewer interaction.
Closure: This principle entails the tendency to perceive complete shapes even when parts are missing. Closure is used by designers to create simplicity and engagement by prompting viewers to "fill in the gaps."
Visual Hierarchy
Visual hierarchy is a vital principle of effective design, determining the order in which a viewer processes visual elements. It's essential to balance the provider’s priorities and the viewer's expectations. For instance, in retail, calls to action and value propositions are paramount for vendors, while product attributes are crucial for customers. Understanding both the business goals and the target audience’s needs ensures designs that resonate effectively.White space
White space, or negative space, refers to the unmarked areas of a design, serving as a powerful tool for separating content without lines or borders. Incorporating white space leads to clean, unobtrusive designs that convey clarity and value. Contrary to some client perceptions, these spaces enhance focus and prevent visual clutter.Hick’s Law
Hick’s Law posits that decision-making time increases with the number of choices available. While commonly applied to navigation, it extends to simplifying overall user interaction. By reducing distractions and presenting clear options, designers create interfaces that are intuitive and straightforward.Fitt’s Law
Fitt’s Law relates to human movement, predicting that the time to move to a target depends on the distance and size of the target. Ideally, interactive elements should be proportionate to their intended use and importance, ensuring accessibility without overwhelming the user interface.And the human movement always did but nowadays with our mobile devices it is close connected to individual factors and aspects - e.g. whether they are right- or left-hander ...
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