Visual Grammar: Relations part 1

The next chapter in Christian Leborg’s book, Visual Grammar, talks about the relationships of objects with the audience, the other objects in the composition, and the format of the objects. Once again Leborg breaks down his definition of relationships by giving us thirty examples of how objects relate to one another. We will discuss the first fifteen this week, and end with the last fifteen next week.

1. Attraction- objects in group attract/repel one another.
2. Static-balanced, not in motion. Forces are equally attracting and repelling causing them to cancel each other out.
3. Symmetry/Asymmetry- Objects identically arranged on both sides of an axis are symmetrical. If objects lack symmetry, they are asymmetrical.
4. Balance- all objects appear equal. Balance can be created between two of the same form with different positions, or between two contrasting forms.
5. Groups- formed when objects are repeated. Group named after how the objects are arranged.
6. Fine/Coarse- determined by the space between structural lines.
7. Diffusion- irregular disbursement of objects in the composition.
8. Direction- structure actively defines direction.
9. Position- groups of objects can define a position in the layout of the composition.
10. Space- objects working to create positive and negative space.
11. Weight- using upper and lower areas to shape how the viewer experiences the world- creates illusions of objects being heavier or lighter.
12. Amount/Dominance- objects in a composition can create dominance, however, large groupings of objects are not always the most dominant.
13. Neutral- when objects don’t stand out against each other.
14. Background/Foreground- position of the objects determine which objects are perceive a