DMA 214: Project 1

Principals Used:

Continuation: Used in frame 1. Elements following the cow in a smooth line are perceived as a group and are interpreted as being more related than elements not on the line. Another group that could be interpreted as being more related than elements not on the line are the circles located on the moon.

Closure: Used in frame 2. Our eyes “close off” the implied edge of the moon. When we look at a crescent moon, or even a half moon, we imagine the moon as a round whole, rather than as a sliver.

Proximity: Used in frame 3. The elements that are closer together on the fiddle are perceived to be more related than elements that are farther apart behind it.

Shared Fate: Used in frame 4. The idea that something outside of a group can be considered part of the group by dynamic forces at work, such as motion. In this case the laughing of the dog in the top right can be associated with the dog in the bottom left.

Similarity: Used in frame 5. The elements that look like a pair of eyes are similar and perceived to be more related than elements that are dissimilar spread out across the background.

Repetition: The lines on the road create the same visual element or effect over and over. This creates a tendency to perceive a set of individual elements as a single, recognizable pattern, rather than multiple, individual elements.

Reflection:

Overall, this project taught me a multitude of things. The most obvious thing I learned was the gestalt principles as I had never heard of these until class. It also made much more sense once we began actually working on the actual projects as it reinforced the ideas presented in lecture. I also never knew about the rule of thirds. This made a huge difference and I feel helped make the frames look far more aesthetically pleasing.

I wouldn’t say this lab was easy but it was definitely simple. It was simple in the sense that creating 6 tiles of a nursery rhyme isn’t too bad. What made it difficult was showing a line of these rhymes with just basic shapes, as well as NO color.

At the end of the day I thought my project came out great. The only thing I would redo would make the lines following the cow in frame 1 arc around the moon.