Gestalt Principles in Graphic Design

Similarity

http://www.andyrutledge.com/gestalt-principles-2-similarity.php

   This article about the Similarity Property said that color, size, shape, texture, dimension, and orientation are not equal in their ability to communicate. Some parts of Similarity are used to mean different things. Similarity is also used to demonstrate organization and to have underlined means. Similarity is just a means of communication.
   In this particular article the author is trying to explain the uses of the Similarity Property. He goes into depth about the fundamentals and how color, size, shape, texture, dimension, and orientation effect the reader. At the bottom of the page he goes on and lists his sources of where he got his information. He uses a lot of web examples to prove his point. Some of his strengths were that he dwelled on the fundamentals which gives a novice like me a good idea of the basics. A weakness about the article would probably be the forces on web design which doesn't really effect me as a graphic designer.
  In this article the author does a fantastic job of supporting his main ideas with facts and images. I wish he could have talked more about graphics like Logos or Typography but the  Web information was interesting enough. The vocabulary wasn't to advanced or lacking, all of the information was easy to take in.

Continuation 

http://blog.templatemonster.com/2012/04/19/gestalt-continuity-law-templatemonster-templates/

   With the idea of Continuation from Gestalt's principles we are taught about how the brain has a "tendency to preceive a line continuing" in a specific direction. Alex Bulat focuses on explaining how our brain picks up these various elements of design, even when there are no lines. He then goes on to explain how this effects graphic design. 

   He makes many claims about how little visual clues lead our brains to understand what is going on. He uses this picture as an example. He notes how our eyes follow where the mans hand is pointing. This, overall, is a very good article. The visuals he shows us are very clear and easy to understand. The only negative would be that I wish he had more information over how this can be uses with logos and other graphic design pieces. The general conclusion of Alex Bulat is that this principle is one of the most important out of the other 6 choices. 

   His arguments are supported but it would be nice if he cited where he got this information and included links. The evidence is very convincing. The vocabulary is also very very easy to read. It could actually be more complex. 

   

Closure 

http://www.andyrutledge.com/closure.php

  The Principle of Closure is literally about drawing conclusions. Closure is used to fill in information using easily recognized patterns. The author then goes on to talk about the different examples which range from history to graphic design. 

   His argument is that closure is not just a fancy graphic design idea. It also has to do with how you can make inferences and decisions while using closure. The main weakness from this article was that is was almost 50% about history and that information should have been replaced with more information about the graphic design point of view. 

   The argument was easy to understand, he used some advanced vocabulary but it wasn't hard enough for me, personally, to not understand. The evidence was convincing because he provided plenty of pictures and explanations. 

Proximity 

https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/book/the-glossary-of-human-computer-interaction/gestalt-principles-of-form-perception

   With this Principle the author mostly explained that proximity is how we precieve parts of an object as a whole. He talks about how spacing and how you place objects explains how our minds group things. 

   He uses multiple examples with pictures and then explains them with text. His basic views on proximity is that we perceive structors based on their environment. One of the weaknesses about this would be that he didn't provide more examples and more in-depth explanations on why he choice the pictures that he did. 

   He supports his main claims perfectly. He cited all of his evidence and at the bottom of the page there were more links regarding this topic. The small pieces of evidence that he did use was thought out well. 

Figure/ Ground 

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2014/05/design-principles-space-figure-ground-relationship/

   This section focuses on the relationship between negative space and the elements within it. The author defines Design as the arrangement of "both shapes and space". The relationship is also complementary. The 2 can either take away or enhance each other depending on the layout. 

   

    There are 3 different types of relationships 

-Stable, It's clear what the main focus of the piece is and it dominates the composition. 

-Reversible, Figure and Ground attracts the attention equally. This creates tension 

-Ambiguous, Equally interesting shapes and based on the viewer either could be the main focus 

   

   Space is also very important, it establishes contrast, creates tension, provides grouping. Space can also be considered sophisticated or simplistic.

Symmetry and Order

This is the idea that we use abstract ideas and objects to portray an idea. You can use similar shapes to make you're audience see the pattern and design around that idea. Here is an example of Symmetry

With this example you can clearly see the invisible triangle because of the pattern and the order of the objects. You can also see the mini triangles outlined in black.