Survey of Design and Media Art
	Instructor: Lindsay Grace

Lecture 10: Basics of Graphic Design

This is a summary of some of the content from class.

Taken from Looking Good in Print 1998

Steps in the Graphic Design Process

1. · Analyze the audience and determine the purpose of your message.
2. Decide how your message will appear (will it be a printed magazine page, on the back of a shirt, on a web site).
3. Establish goals
4. Organize text and graphics.
5. Choose an appropriate format and layout.
6. Select appropriate typefaces, type sizes, type styles, and spacing.
7. Add and manipulate graphics.
8. Proofread
9. Refine and fine-tune.

Layout: the arrangement of type and graphics

There is no single right way to create a good layout

Remember to:

• Serve your purpose
• Organize information along a visual path (especially true of print layout)
• Attract the attention of your readers

Guidelines for organizing layout

Emphasisze by Size:
Emphasize by Geometry
Emphasize by Value and Color
Emphasize by location

The 7 Elements of Design

Line: any mark connecting two points (dashed, dotted, thin, squiggly, etc)
Shape: primarily 2D

• Geometric: Cricles, squares: symmetrical or asymetrical
• Natural: animals and plants: fluid and irregular
• Abstracted: simplified version of natural shapes: icons

Space: The area around things - gives the eye a visual rest
Size
Texture: The impression or illusion of surface, or the actual surface

• Visual texture
• Tactile texture

Value: The degree of lightness or darkness (think spectrum)

Color

• Color is often the last step.
  

The 4 Basic Principles of Design:

Emphasis
Balance

• Symetrical balance: even distribution on the left and right halves of the visual plane (typically the same objects)
• Asymterical Balance: distribution of different objects on the left and half sides, but demonstrating equal weight
  

Rhythm

• Regular: create calming rythms
• Irregular: creates jarring, juxtaposed rhythm

Unity