6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 1 Notes to Chapter Three English 308

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 2 Visual Analysis: Two Keys Learning to notice what’s going on visually Learning how to categorize it all

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 3 A Taxonomy for Visual Vocabulary Intra-level—text at the line level Inter-level—text at the paragraph or field level Extra-level—non-textual material Supra-level—whole document

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 4 Three “Coding” Modes Textual—words and numbers Graphic—graphic elements (shading, lines, symbols, pictures, etc.) Spatial—the position of these elements on the page or screen

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 5 Visual Language Matrix Combining the four levels of design with the three coding modes produces the 12- cell visual language matrix. The matrix provides a framework for describing the visual language of any document.

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 6 Matrix TextualSpatialGraphic Intra Inter Extra Supra

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 7 Intra-Level Design: Linear Components Intra-level design controls the local variations of text, character by character, word by word, across a single line or a thousand lines.

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 8 Intra-Level Design: Textual Mode Typeface selection (such as Helvetica, Times, Chicago, Garamond, and so on) shadow Typeface disposition (such as roman, italic, boldface, UPPERCASE, shadow, and so on) Type size (measured in points, such as 10-point, 11-point, 12-point, 24-point, 32-point and so on) Print or display color

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 9 Intra-Level Design: Spatial Mode Local spacing between textual units:

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 10 Intra-Level Design: Graphic Mode Punctuation and other local marks including Underscored or underlined text Strikethrough text Text with gray scale background

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 11 Headings Arial Bold 18 point Intra-Level Design Creating Visual Interest This page has a good deal of text and it is difficult to isolate one word from another. As such, this page is a good example of poor figure- ground contrast, not because of the contrast of colors. The black text on the white background is perfectly suited As is the choice of font No, the problem is in the gray mass of type, where nothing stands out. When there is not visual variety, the eye cannot find anything to focus on. That’s why even paragraph breaks can be an important feature of a page of text. One line indented out of some thirty lines on the page creates visual relief and partially helps explain why paragraphs are a vital feature of any document. At this point, the text will simply repeat itself. Farewell, gentle reader This page has a good deal of text and it is difficult to isolate one word from another. As such, this page is a good example of poor figure- ground contrast, not because of the contrast of colors. The black text on the white background is perfectly suited as is the choice of font, the very common serif font Times New Roman. No, the problem is in the gray mass of type, where nothing stands out. When there is not visual variety, the eye cannot find anything to focus on. Text Times New Roman 12 point Gray-scale background

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 12 Inter-Level Design: Fields and Nonlinear Components Inter-level design helps readers comprehend a text, often by dividing the text into discrete units so readers can structure it.

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 13 Inter-Level Design: Textual Mode Headings to show the hierarchy of the parts Numbers to show sequence

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 14 Inter-Level Design: Spatial Mode Distribution of text on the page Position of headings Spacing between headings and text Leading (space between lines) Indentation Justification Columns Use of tables, charts, etc.

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 15 Inter-Level Design: Graphic Mode Use of graphic elements to cue structure Bullets Horizontal or vertical lines between text Boxes and/or gray-scale around blocks of text Use of graphic elements to distinguish text in charts, diagrams, etc.

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 16 Headings Inter-Level Design Creating Visual Interest This page has a good deal of text and it is difficult to isolate one word from another. As such, this page is a good example of poor figure- ground contrast, not because of the contrast of colors. The black text on the white background is perfectly suited As is the choice of font No, the problem is in the gray mass of type, where nothing stands out. When there is not visual variety, the eye cannot find anything to focus on. That’s why even paragraph breaks can be an important feature of a page of text. One line indented out of some thirty lines on the page creates visual relief and partially helps explain why paragraphs are a vital feature of any document. At this point, the text will simply repeat itself. Farewell, gentle reader This page has a good deal of text and it is difficult to isolate one word from another. As such, this page is a good example of poor figure- ground contrast, not because of the contrast of colors. The black text on the white background is perfectly suited as is the choice of font, the very common serif font Times New Roman. No, the problem is in the gray mass of type, where nothing stands out. When there is not visual variety, the eye cannot find anything to focus on. More space between text before heading than after heading Box around text Bullets

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 17 Extra-Level Design: Data Displays, Pictures, Symbols Extra-level design includes data displays, icons and symbols. These elements operate outside the main text often as autonomous entities with their own visual vocabulary

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 18 Extra-Level Design: Textual Mode Descriptive text for extra-level elements Labels Titles Legends Captions

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 19 Extra-Level Design: Spatial Mode The arrangement chosen for the display Type (chart, graph, etc.) Subtype (pie chart, bar chart, etc.) Size and proportion of display Perspective

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 20 Extra-Level Design: Graphic Mode The visible stuff of the display Shading, texture, and color of elements Axis lines Tick marks Gridlines

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 21 Extra-level Design Axis titles Axis labels Tick marks Chart title Chart legend Gridlines

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 22 Supra-Level Design: The Whole Document Supra-level includes top-down design elements that visually define, structure, and unify the entire document.

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 23 Supra-Level Design: Textual Mode Title pages Headers Footers Page numbers Section Tabs

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 24 Supra-Level Design: Spatial Mode Page size and shape Page orientation Paper (thickness, folds, flaps, pockets, etc.)

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 25 Supra-Level Design: Graphic Mode Any marks, icons, colors, linework, and logos that unify pages, sections, or screens or that create major divisions

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 26 Each Document Unique Each document uniquely combines elements from the twelve-cell matrix. Some restrict variations to the upper left quadrant (school essays for example) Others make use of a significantly richer vocabulary (see especially corporate annual reports, fundraising literature, etc.)

6/9/2015 Designing Visual Language-Chapter 3 27 Matrix Cells Not Airtight Just as each document is unique, not all visual information will fit neatly in only one cell of the matrix. The matrix is just a tool that helps you categorize (and therefore describe) the visual language of a document.