This enables the eye to flip the figure with the background (hence “reversible”). Reversible –In this case, the figure and background have near-equal density. Stable – In the case of a stable figure, the figure will be clearly identifiable from the background, and one element clearly dominates the overall layout. The relationships between figure and ground can be classified into three categories: Copyright terms and licence: Public Domain. Have you ever wondered why you never find red text on a blue or gray screen? Contrast is the reason.Īuthor/Copyright holder: Klaus-Dieter Keller. This is why the readability of content can be impaired when there is little contrast between the text and the page – it becomes more difficult for us to distinguish the figure from the ground. Contrast provides a distinct barrier between the two. The figure (the text) is at maximum contrast with the ground (the page). This is why most printed pages will use black ink on a white background. The contrast between the figure and the ground. The header stands out more to the eye than the main body of text. In this instance, the header is the figure and the body the ground. For example, header text is normally published in a larger font than body text. The size of the figure when compared to the background. There are two main factors that affect the way we perceive the figure and the ground in any given design: This rule shows that when we look at a design, we perceive the figure from the ground distinctly. The law of Figure/Ground states that we can distinguish an object (the figure of the rule) from background (the ground). The figure is the text itself and the ground the paper on which the text sits. So, for example, text on a page makes use of this law. Please refer to the previous two to learn about the Laws of Similarity, Proximity, Uniform Connectedness, and Continuation. This article is the third in the Gestalt series. The law of Common Fate observes that when objects point in the same direction, we see them as a related group. The law of Closure refers to our tendency to complete an incomplete shape in order to rationalize the whole. The Prägnanz law shows how our eyes can simplify complex shapes into simple shapes. The Figure/Ground law examines how the eye can separate shapes in a design from the background of that design. “The eye tends to build a relationship between elements, it fills in the gaps, and identifies hidden motion in the design.” Figure/Ground, Prägnanz, Closure, and Common Fate are Gestalt Principles that help the eye build these relationships: This third piece is particularly useful because having a good grasp of Figure/Ground, Prägnanz, Closure, and Common Fate will enhance your ability to design with more thoughtfulness, confident that you’re making the best use of some basic human tendencies to access your design and its impact. We’re now going to take a look at some more Gestalt principles, building on what we’ve learned in the first two articles.
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