Project 2
Form and Composition
Introduction
The goal of this project was to explore how the positioning of objects in space can convey different meanings through their relation to other objects as well as the space itself. I focused on using Gestalt principles in my design to create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Given specific word pairs, I tried to convey the essence of that word to viewers through only the use of solid black squares in space. It was interesting to see how even through just simple shapes, a lot of meaning can be conveying simply through visual elements like repetition, spacing, position, size, etc.
Initial Sketches (2/8/21)
I made various thumbnail sketches to first brainstorm different compositions I could use for each word pair:
Playful + Serious
Noisy + Quiet
Dangerous + Safe
It was a lot of fun playing around with different visual elements and seeing how the composition’s mood shifted with different uses of sizing, spacing, and position.
Critique 1
During 1:1 critique with Anna, I got helpful feedback on my designs, which led me to narrow down which thumbnails to develop further. For instance the composition of some pieces looked ambiguous, like the one boxed in red. I realized, while I intended for the square in the tight nook to look safely situated — it can also be read as dangerous as the top and bottom blocks appear to squish down on the square.
Another suggestion I got was to include more differences in scale and overlapping to add variety.
Digital Iteration 1 (2/10/21)
From paper sketches, I transferred the designs to digital Illustrator. I learned how to use Clipping Mask to keep the squares contained within the frames.
Critique 2
For my 1:1 critique on my digital iterations with Ji, I got the advice to further refine some of my components so they resemble squares more. For instance, the square in the top right corner for noisy could easily be mistaken for a rectangle due to its proportions that are not overlapped.
In my noisy composition, I got the suggestion to add more angle variety to help create the visual appearance of chaos.
In contrast, my quiet composition is very simplistic, which means the placement of the squares is very important. They are not perfectly aligned/centered here, so I was reminded of the useful grid too in Illustrator that I will use next time to adjust their placement.
Lastly for my figure-ground, there appears to be more white than black space filled, so I will work on adding more black to balance out the composition.
Digital Iteration 2 (2/15)
Taking into account feedback from critique, I updated my digital designs for a second iteration to include better form clarity and square variation.
I decided to incorporate the color yellow for my first pairing. In the context of danger, I wanted the yellow to evoke a feeling of urgency and fear. In contrast, in the context of safety, I wanted the yellow to reflect mellowness and warmth.
Critique 3
During the third 1:1 critique, I got further suggestions to improve the angle and proportion of my shapes in order to better indicate they are squares rather than rectangles. This issue of conveying squares has been a consistent issue in my design, specifically for overlapping squares and squares running off the edge. To fix this, I’ll try to experiment more with their sizing and position.
For my color piece, I realized the color needed to be incorporated into the squares and not the background. So for my next iteration, I would need to consider specific placement of color.
For my figure-ground piece, there was now too much black space over the white. One piece of advice was to also incorporate square shapes into the white space rather than only having black squares, so that the white can better stand out as a figure as well. It was difficult to achieve a balance in my current design, so I decided to start exploring other designs.
Figure Ground Iterations
I began sketching out new ideas for my figure ground piece to incorporate a more effective composition. I looked to the internet for more inspiration and found that a lot of designs include some sort of repetition or pattern which I tried to incorporate into my own brainstorming drawings. For my final design, I used the concept of repeated squares to create a scattered pattern. I tried to outline squares in the white space and not just the black in order to strike a balance between the black and white as figures.
Final Designs (2/17/21)
After incorporating feedback from critique and iterations, there were my final designs:
Reflection
Through this project, I learned a lot about the iterative process of design and how a piece continually evolves over time. Each draft had something to improve upon. The feedback sessions were especially valuable since it was helpful to get an outside perspective of my work.
In addition, I realized how much certain design choices can stand out, particularly when working with such simple compositions. During final critique, I got a suggestion on my safe composition to ground the smaller squares to the larger square below. Before this, I never consider how the small border gap between the squares added to the illusion of floating when I had intended for the squares to feel grounded and safe. I discovered even small details can carry a lot of weight to the feeling of the piece.
My favorite piece actually turned out to be my figure-ground composition. It was the most spontaneous and fun to create. I was very stumped in the beginning trying to come up with ideas. I then discovered the importance referencing examples, as I gathered a lot more inspiration just through looking at other figure-ground pieces.
Another useful step was just sketching out as many ideas as possible in the early ideation phase. Next time when I’m designing, I will make sure to spend more time on the sketching process. In my initial sketches, I was grounded to a similar visual concept for each of my thumbnails. In the future, I hope to explore a range of different ideas and challenge myself to take more risks with my designs.
Overall, this project really challenged me in terms of thinking about visual elements in relation to one another. It was really fascinating to see the impact of different visual components and how so much meaning can be carried through just simple squares.
