Arranging Abstract Shapes

14-5-2015                Design:  Learning Activity 03

Part A: This learning activity involved arranging one to four squares in a way that represented a word. The squares were allowed to be of different sizes, they were allowed to be imposed on each other, and they could be cropped. 

Part B: This part of the activity asked that we find business cards and advertisements that represented various words. 

Order:

The typographic parts of this business card are well centred in their fields, this balance helps make things feel orderly. Each aspect (the business name, description of the service, and contact details) is in it’s own part of the card, so it feels like each thing is in it’s place. 

Increase:

The vertical lines in this card seem like they going right into the sky by the placement of the flat line at their bottom and by having them run off the page. “The sky is the limit” is a phrase that comes to mind when viewing this design.

Bold:

The sharply contrasting colours as well as the unusual angle make this card stand out from the crowd. A person who has an obviously contrasting disposition is often bold, as is one who approaches things from a different angle to others. This card may appear bold because it has similar qualities to a bold person.

Congested:

The front of this card has two different kinds of line. The outer lines that aim toward the centre are straight and vector-like. The inner part of this cards design has curvy and somewhat classical lines. The differing kinds of lines feel out of place with one another. The lines of the outer section are aiming into a central point and seem like they could run into each other and bring about a traffic jam style situation. 

Tension:

This design seems to have no central focus and each part runs-on into the next. The fact that there is little apparent order gives the potential for chaos which then gives rise to tension. Most of the text is in the white space, which would be left empty when trying to create a simple and relaxing experience. The aspects of the layout defined separate to the white space are empty. The fact that several aspects of this design defy expectation seems to generate tension.

Playful:

This design is well spaced, focusses on soft colours and rounded lines. Rounded lines are easy on the eye, and bring to mind a child safe space that has no sharp corners that kids can be hurt by. This well spaced design avoids having so much white space that it feels austere and spartan. Using the analogy of a child's play room: children need some empty space to play in as well as enough stuff to play with.