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Today we are working on our second project.   I will come around and help you work out design and finalize your designs for you projects.    I am also happy to help out with any other issues you might like assistance with.  If you are just joining us.  Please see project guidelines and lecture materials by clicking on this link:

You are selecting ONE of the following Gestalt Principles:

1. Continuity
2. Similarity
3. Proximity
4. Closure

Here is a refresher of the laws we reviewed in Tuesday's class. 

The Gestalt Principles SIMILARITY / CONTINUATION / CLOSURE / PROXIMITY / FIGURE & GROUND Gestalt is a psychology term which means "unified whole". It refers to theories of visual perception developed by German psychologists in the 1920s. These theories attempt to describe how people tend to organize visual elements into groups or unified wholes when certain principles are applied. These principles are: Similarity Similarity occurs when objects look similar to one another. People often perceive them as a group or pattern. The example above (containing 11 distinct objects) appears as as single unit because all of the shapes have similarity. Unity occurs because the triangular shapes at the bottom of the eagle symbol look similar to the shapes that form the sunburst. When similarity occurs, an object can be emphasized if it isdissimilar to the others. This is called anomaly. The figure on the far right becomes a focal point because it is dissimilar to the other shapes. SIMILARITY / CONTINUATION / CLOSURE / PROXIMITY / FIGURE & GROUND / TOP Continuation Continuation occurs when the eye is compelled to move through one object and continue to another object. Continuation occurs in the example above, because the viewer's eye will naturally follow a line or curve. The smooth flowing crossbar of the "H" leads the eye directly to the maple leaf. SIMILARITY / CONTINUATION / CLOSURE / PROXIMITY / FIGURE & GROUND / TOP Closure Closure occurs when an object is incomplete or a space is not completely enclosed. If enough of the shape is indicated, people perceive the whole by filling in the missing information. Although the panda above is not complete, enough is present for the eye to complete the shape. When the viewer's perception completes a shape, closure occurs. Examples SIMILARITY / CONTINUATION / CLOSURE / PROXIMITY / FIGURE & GROUND / TOP Proximity Proximity occurs when elements are placed close together. They tend to be perceived as a group. The nine squares above are placed without proximity. They are perceived as separate shapes. When the squares are given close proximity, unity occurs. While they continue to be separate shapes, they are now perceived as one group. The fifteen figures above form a unified whole (the shape of a tree) because of their proximity. SIMILARITY / CONTINUATION / CLOSURE / PROXIMITY / FIGURE & GROUND / TOP Figure and Ground The eye differentiates an object form its surrounding area. a form, silhouette, or shape is naturally perceived as figure(object), while the surrounding area is perceived as ground (background). Balancing figure and ground can make the perceived image more clear. Using unusual figure/ground relationships can add interest and subtlety to an image. Figure The word above is clearly perceived as figure with the surrounding white space ground. In this image, the figure and ground relationships changeas the eye perceives the the form of a shade or the silhouette of a face. This image uses complex figure/ground relationshipswhich change upon perceiving leaves, water and tree trunk. GESTALT PDF EXERCISE SHEET

IDEAS:

In the image above we are seeing several phenomena.   The law of closure around the figure, the law of similarity in our mind's need to separate the figures into light blue and dark blue, and finally, the law of proximity allows us to see two groups (or figures) based on how close they are to each other.

 Above we see the edges of the words create "CLOSURE" which signifies to us, the viewer, the shape of the light bulb.

 Above, we are also seeing the law of "Closure" happening.

 We can see the law of continuity applied in the image above.  Because of the placement of the squares in a spiraling pattern, we visualize linear spirals towards the center of the composition.

 In the image above, we are seeing the effects of two phenomena again. because of the direction of the lines, we are seeing continuity create a shape, or closure of the box shape in the center.

 The Above image illustrates the gestalt principle of closure.   The edges of the horizontal lines create the shape of a fish.

 In the above image, we are seeing several phenomena occur.  The PROXIMITY of the shapes force the viewer to group the sets of shapes.   SIMILARITY also helps that process.   We perceive the shapes as a tree with a grouping of leaves at the top of the image.

What principles are you seeing in the above image?

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