Project Two
Form and Composition
About the Project
This was an individual project aiming to study composition and form by applying the Gestault Principles to a set of one 4" x 4" bounding square and black squares. The goal of the project was to use any number and size of solid black squares to create compositions to communicate the words: order, tension, congestion, playfulness, and comfort. The squares can overlap, bleed, or be composed in any way to illustrate these words.
Project Process
The project started with hand sketch iterations for each word. Starting with thinking about what describes each word, I tried to explore different options on the spectrum of using as few as one square to multiple squares. I was iterating, I was drawn more to a theme of using less squares on the page so to create a concise and focused form.
Tension
In order to create tension, I tried ways that would throw the composition out of balance, such as making the corner touch the face of the squares and making the figure and ground irregular. I also explored ways to create a story where little squares are under the force of a larger square, and two squares are seeming to push each other off the page. The top right composition was most successful to me because of how both positive and negative spaces make up irregular shapes that draw the eyes to all four corners of the page. In the final iteration, the irregularity of the figure&ground were more emphasized.
Congestion
I thought that the two most obvious ways to convey congestion was either to use lots of little squares or to use one large square that doesn’t fit inside the boundary. Overlapping the figures or leaving only slivers of background were the most effective in delivering the message. In finalizing the composition, I tried to remove any elements that might create tension, such as the slightly off sizes of the two squares.
Comfort
The most difficult aspect of comfort was differentiating it with order. Thinking was words like balanced and static, I thought that it was important to emphasize the idea of being grounded on the page, which is why I chose the final iteration. It also gives a sense of belonging by placing the small square closely next to the larger square.
Playfulness
The sense of movement and having one element break the rule of a group were some concepts that I focused on for playfulness. The bottom center composition is a second iteration of the top left one, and I tried to make the composition more dynamic by drawing the eye to a certain spot on the page. The final iteration was chosen because it showed best the movement and the story of the squares by using a big scale shift and the orientation of each larger square.
Order
Order was the most difficult word out of the five because of how obvious and static the composition could be. The five from the top are the first iterations, where I tried to keep the scale and the orientation of the black squares within a very limited spectrum. In later iterations, I tried to reverse figure and ground, using the black squares to create a more dynamic composition of the residual space. The final iteration stays within the idea of having one clear set of rules that homogeneous shapes of a uniform size follow but still carries a sense of direction for the eye to follow.
Throughout the brainstorming process and different iterations, I had to constantly remind myself to be more bold in shifting the scale. After looking at other classmates’ works at the final critique, I also learned that there are ways to create more of a story with the squares, to use them as small elements that work together to make up a larger image.
