Design Principles: Exercise 2

31-08-21 (Week 2)
Darren Liga // 0351480 // Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media
Design Principles
Exercise 2: Balance & Emphasis

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LECTURE

Week 2: Balance and Emphasis

As week 2 falls on the 31st of August which is also Malaysia's independence day, theres is no live lecture, this is weeks 2's recorded lectures summary. 

Balance

 - it refers to the distribution of visual weight in a work of design.

 - a visual equilibrium of the elements that causes the total image to appear balanced.

2 types of balance

    - Symmetrical 

            - this has equal weighs on equal sides of a centrally placed fulcrum

            - has equal arrangement of elements on either side of the central axis (horizontal or 

              vertical)

               resulting in bilateral balance.

            - arrangements of elements is equal around a central point results in radial balance.'

            - equivalent but not identical forms which is arranged around the fulcrum line is 

              described as 

               approximate symmetry.

Fig 1.1: Symmetrical Balance example (7/9/21)

Fig 1.2: Approximate Symmetry example (7/9/21)

    - Asymmetrical

                - Unequal visual weight on each side of the composition.

                - One side of the composition might contain a dominant element, which could be balanced

                  by a couple or more lesser focal points on the other side.

                - It is more dynamic and interesting compared to symmetrical balance.

                - It evokes feelings of modernism, movement, energy and vitality.

                - Offers more variety,  although it can be more difficult to achieve because the relationships

                  between elements are more complex.

                

Fig 1.3: Asymmetrical balace example 1 (7/9/21)

Fig 1.4: Asymmetrical balance example 2 (7/9/21)

Golden Ratio

A theory that artists and designers use to create visually pleasing, eye-catching designs and structures. This theory dates back historically to the time of Pi (1:1.618033987). The reason behind the golden ratio's popularity is the belief that it is natural and creates aesthetically pleasing balance and harmony for the viewer.

Fig 2.1: The Golden Ratio (7/9/21)

The golden ratio isnt just a fancy formula mathematicians developed, it is actually common to be found in nature,  primarily the spiral. It can be seen in pants, the shell of the Nautilus, and even the cloud formation in hurricanes. The golden ratio can be seen all around us, both man-made and natural.

Fig 2.2: Application of the golden ratio in nature (7/9/21)

Over the centuries, many have perceived the golden ratio as the representative of perfect beauty as is uniquely found throughout nature.

Rule of Thirds

This is another type of composition guideline to create more dynamism to a work of design/photography/film and even painting. The rule of thirds starts by dividing a frame equally into thirds, both horizontally and vertically. The subject of the image is then placed at the intersection of those dividing lines or along of the lines itself.

Fig 3.1: Rule of thirds example 1 (7/9/21)

Fig 3.2: Rule of thirds example 2 (7/9/21)

Emphasis and dominance

is used to create dominance and focus in a design work with various elements such as color, shapes or value.

 

Fig 4.1: Emphasis example using color and size (7/9/21)

Fig 4.2: Emphasis example using color (7/9/21)

Emphasis is the part of the design that catches the viewer's attention. Usually the artist will make one area stand out by contrasting it with other areas. 

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INSTRUCTION

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For my 2 artworks i am going with repetition and movement, in my opinion i could maximize my potential in creating these 2 artworks.

Movement

Firstly, i gathered reference for movement that could benefit my design outcome. here are the references:

Fig 5.1: movement ref. 1 (7/9/21)

Fig 5.2: movement ref. 2 (7/9/21)

Fig 5.3: movement ref. 3 (7/9/21)

From the inspiration i gather, i see 1 similarity for movement which is, lines. Lines created by cranking down the shutter speed which could allow light to enter the sensor at a longer rate. After week 3's class i then went to the center of Kuala Lumpur to get the shot that i need for this exercise that emphasizes movement. I did the painful process of trial and error to get the shot i want. Here are the shots i took in Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur.

Fig 6.1: movement trial 1 (7/9/21)

Fig 6.2: movement trial 2 (7/9/21)

After having these terrible shots, i quickly realize what kind of frame i want to capture. I then took trial 2's idea and making it visually better.

Fig 6.3: movement trial i think final (7/9/21)

I was finally happy with this shot for movement. I then proceed to fix this shot in post. I used adobe lightroom to deal with the color corrections, and then further fixing the slight motion blur from the long exposure shot in photoshop.

Final Movement Artwork

Fig 6.4: Movement Final Artwork (9/9/21)

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Fig 6.5: Movement_final.psd (9/9/21)

I made the temperature cooler to further contrast the movement of the trailing red lights while giving the shot a more urban look as it is in the city.

Repetition

For repetition, i found a very interesting illustration by @alessandromalossi. I really like this illustration because it relates to our Design Principles class. I would like to further develop it.

Fig 7.1: repetition reference (13/9/21)

For this part of the exercise, i i would mainly like to put it as repetition although it has balance and emphasis as well. I had this idea from where i am generally located right now and when i made this artwork.

Fig 7.2: KLCC illustration reference (13/9/21)

from here, i traced and played with the building a bit for the illustration.

Fig 7.3: Tracing half side of klcc (13/9/21)

Fig 7.4: Duplicating to make 1 full side (13/9/21)

The tracing part was fairly straightforward as the use of pen tool was demonstrated several times in class, and even in other classes. I initially only traced half a building as the other half is a mirror image.

Fig 7.5: Full silhouette (13/9/21)

I then copied 1 side to the other side as it also has the same shape hence, twin tower.

Fig 7.6: windows repetition (13/9/21)

The repetition starts in design part of the design. I repeated the windows for the building to give it that repetition look with equal sizes.

Fig 7.7: emphasis added (13/9/21)

Although this part has nothing to do with repetition, i added this to give all the elements taught for this week. Balance of the 2 buildings, repetition of the windows to create that look and also balance of the repeated windows. Then finally that last touch of emphasis (1 window with the lights on), showing a design student of taylors staying up at night.

Fig 7.8: background added (13/9/21)

The design before this stage does not really visually represent the night time, i then added a gradient shade of blue and black to give that night time sky visual.

Fig 7.2: KLCC@night (13/9/21)

From the illustration i made, it seemed to "wide" of an angle which i decided to crop in. 

Final Repetition Artwork

Fig7.3: Final Repetition Artwork (13/9/21)

<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SiQkKwLN5l8OiSw00BjqCiF_WOG-a9RW/preview" width="640" height="480" allow="autoplay"></iframe> 

Fig 7.4: KLCC@night.final (13/9/21)

While cropping in, i manage to still incorporate the balance aspect although it is not symmetrical. I achieved this asymmetrical balance due to that white space on the right which makes the whole artwork more interesting compared to having the 2 buildings symmetrical, while using the rule of third composition to crop out this illustration working in conjunction with the golden ratio having the white space 1:1.6 ratio. An aspect of the gestalt theory also applies here as the bridge symbolizes a building that Malaysians are familiar of.

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FEEDBACK

For the movement artwork, Mr. Charles suggested me to add more movement in the artwork but everything else was okay and i could proceed. Repetition on the other hand, he commented that the twin towers could be further repeated in different angles, and for the 1 emphasized window, adding a silhouette of people working.

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RATIONALE

For this second exercise, it a bit more challenging for me compared to the first one. I also used photography for the movement artwork as while doing visual research, i seen some artworks that im interested to produce. I went to Jalan Bukit Bintang to take the shot for movement, doing this movement shot without using tripod was very challenging, took me at least 40 shots to achieve that look.

My second part of this exercise, i was stepping out of my comfort zone and creating an artwork that i never before created using this method. I used Adobe Illustrator to create a silhouette illustration that represents me doing this assignment. From the artwork, the repetitive windows at night, shows 1 emphasis on a window with a silhouette of me working late at night to do this artwork. 

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REFLECTION

While creating movement and repetitive artworks, i have learned several methods of visual communication. I gained more knowledge of design doing this assignment compared to the first one because i had to learn a new skill in illustrator to recreate that artwork for repetition. 

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REFERENCE

https://medium.com/thinking-design/the-golden-ratio-how-why-to-use-it-in-design-3ea6f943f8af

https://www.getty.edu/education/teachers/building_lessons/principles_design.pdf