Research
Visual Literacy and Information Design Part 1
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University:
Boston University -
Course:
CFA AR 226 | Sophomore Graphic Design Spring: Form, Communication Academic year:
2022
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Views:
473
Pages:
16
Author:
SpaceCadet101
Visual Literacy and Information Design Black and White Exercise
When you think about the color “White” what
comes to mind?
When you think about the color “Black” what
comes to mind? White
White, an inherently positive color, is associated with purity, virginity, innocence, light, goodness,
heaven, safety, brilliance, illumination, understanding, cleanliness, faith, beginnings, sterility,
spirituality, possibility, humility, sincerity, protection, softness, and perfection.
The color white can represent a successful beginning. In heraldry, white depicts faith and purity.
As the opposite of black, movies, books, print media, and television typically depict the good guy in
white and the bad guy in black.
The color of snow, white is often used to represent coolness and simplicity. White’s association
with cleanliness and sterility is often seen in hospitals, medical centers, and laboratories to
communicate safety. The color white is also associated with low-fat foods and dairy products.
To the human eye, white is a bright and brilliant color that can cause headaches. In cases of
extremely bright light, the color white can even be blinding.
Throughout the western countries white is the traditional color worn by brides, to signify purity,
innocence, and virginity. In eastern countries, the color white is the color of mourning and funerals.
In certain cultures, white is the color of royalty or of religious figures, as angels are typically
depicted as wearing white or having a white glow. A white picket fence surrounds a safe and
happy home.
The color white affects the mind and body by aiding in mental clarity, promoting feelings of fresh
beginnings and renewal, assisting in cleansing, clearing obstacles and clutter, and encouraging
the purification of thoughts and actions. Black
Black is associated with power, fear, mystery, strength, authority, elegance, formality, death, evil,
and aggression, authority, rebellion, and sophistication. Black is required for all other colors to
have depth and variation of hue.
The black color is the absence of color. Black is a mysterious color that is typically associated
with the unknown or the negative. The color black represents strength, seriousness, power, and
authority. Black is a formal, elegant, and prestigious color. Authoritative and powerful, the color
black can evoke strong emotions and too much black can be overwhelming.
In heraldry, black is the symbol of grief. The color black can be serious, professional, and
conventional, but black can also represent the mysterious, sexy, and sophisticated. Black is a
visually slimming color for clothing and like other dark colors, in interior design, black can make a
room appear to shrink in size.
The color black affects the mind and body by helping to create an inconspicuous feeling, boosting
confidence in appearance, increasing the sense of potential and possibility, or producing feelings
of emptiness, gloom, or sadness.
In western countries black is the color of mourning, death, and sadness. Black often represents
the emotions and actions of rebellion in teenagers and youth. The color black can represent both
the positive and the negative. As the opposite of white, movies, books, print media, and television
typically depict the good guy in white and the bad guy in black. In more recent times, the good guy
is shown in black to create mystery around the character’s identity. Black
Other meanings associated with the color black:
z
z
z
z
z
z
z
z
z
z
z
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The phrase “black tie” refers to a formal event or dress code.
The saying “pitch black” references no light or no visibility.
The term “black-hearted” describes an evil person.
A “black belt” is an expert level in martial arts.
The expression “blackwash” is to bring things out in the open.
The phrase “in the black” refers to having money or profiting and doing well in business.
A “black box” is a piece of equipment or apparatus usually used in airplanes.
A “black eye” is damage to an eye, including bruising and discoloration, or damage to
one’s reputation.
A “black sheep” is an outcast from a family or from society.
The expression “men in black” refer to government agents.
A “blacklist” is a list of people or organizations to boycott, avoid, or punish.
The term “blackguard” is used to reference a bad guy or a scoundrel.
The word “blackmail” refers to obtaining something by threat.
The word “blackout” means a loss of electricity, loss of visibility, turning out the lights,
loss of consciousness, or the act of erasing or deleting something.
The phrase “black market” refers to the illegal trade of goods or money. Cultural Perspectives Cultural Perspectives Visual Literacy & Information Design
Why learn about Visual Literacy?
Our students predisposition
Information Density and Efficiency
Information is increasingly being represented and perceived in visual
terms
z Media
z Technology
z Globalization
z Etc.
Better Understand and Use Visual Disciplines to Achieve Our
Objectives (Learning, Communication, Business etc.)
Graphic Design, Illustration, Photography Information Design, etc. Visuals Produced Yearly
Information Graphics
z
z
Tufte - 900 billion to 2 trillion are published annually
worldwide.
TV and Computers = 1.4 to 3 Trillion
Visual Age
“Show me Don’t Tell Me”
Tim Harrower
The Newspaper Designer’s Handbook Visual Literacy & Information Design
Visual Literacy - The ability to understand, create and use visual
images; to think and learn in terms of images
Self
Others
Visual
Thinking
Visual
Learning
Visual
Communications
Self & Others
Other terms you may
come across:
Visual Thinking
Visual Language
Visual Rhetoric Visual Literacy & Information Design
Visual Rhetoric:
Refers to conveying information through the visual aspect of a
document presentation rather than through its verbal aspect.
Document design
Use of graphics
Visual depiction of data
“The Perfectly Designed Document”
Is Rare
Rarely a result of a single brilliant moment
Result of User-Testing
Series of Drafts and Revisions Verbal - Visual Continuum Visual Literacy & Information Design
Amount of Learning
Realism in Visuals
High
Low
Unrealistic
Moderate
Highly
Realistic Visual Literacy & Information Design
Amount of Learning
Realism in Visuals
High
Low
Unrealistic
Moderate
Highly
Realistic Visual Literacy & Information Design
Pre-attentive Processing
Form
Line Orientation
Line Length
Line Width
Collinearity
Size
Curvature
Spatial
Grouping
Added Marks
Numerosity
Color
Hue
Intensity
Motion
Flicker
Direction of Motion
Spatial Position
2D Position
Stereoscopic Depth
Convex/Concave Shape from
Shading Visual Literacy & Information Design
Visual Attention
Orientation
Curved/Straight
Shape
Shape
Size
Number
Gray/Value
Enclosure
Convexity/Concavity
Addition
Juncture
Parallelism
Visual Literacy and Information Design Part 1
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