Design Principles / Final Compilation

on
3 / 02 / 2025 — 17 / 03 / 2025 (Week 01 — Week 07)

Kim Seoyoon / 0357755

GCD 60804 / Design Principles / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media / Taylor's University

Final Compilation  

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INSTRUCTION



BLOGPOST PDF COMPILATION

REFLECTION

REFERENCES

INSTRUCTION 

Module Information Booklet

Link to Blog:


TASK 1 / EXPLORATION

3 / 02 / 2025 — 17 / 02 / 2025 (Week 01 — Week 03)

(a) Chosen Artwork & Reasoning

Fig 1.1 Book review of Either/Or by Elif Batuman. DaduShin. 2022. Colour Pencil.

Reasoning:
The art I have chosen for the first task is an artwork by Dadu Shin from 2022. This work is a book review of 'Either/Or' written by Elif Batuman expressed in a mixed media form of artwork. The reason why I selected this specific artwork to be studied in the first task is because of its variety in texture and colours within the artwork, expressed through the use of colour pencils & other forms of mixed media. There is also a great contrast in the depth & placement of each person surrounding the main character, drawing attention to the main character at the centre. The use of juxtaposition is also present between the main character and the background & people as the main character is the only one drawn firmly and clearly while the rest rather seem blurred out, which may connect with the storyline of the book. I also liked the idea of making differences in the thickness of the strokes for people/ and for the objects which makes the visual experience more interesting.


(b) Design Principles

Here are some notes on design principles from my observation of the artwork:
  • Harmony & Unity: Everyone's eye direction is either looking sideways or the opposite from the viewer, creating a sense of harmony. This is also conveyed through a consistent use of texture on the people. 
  • Movement & Repetition: Through the use of depth in the placement of the people, the idea of movement as well as repetition is presented in the artwork.
  • Emphasis: There is a strong emphasis expressed on the main character placed at the centre, being the only one in black & white which also stands out from the colourful crowd surrounding the main character. This is also done by the textural density on the main character where her body is seen as more solid and opaque compared to the others being rather translucent. 
  • Contrast: There is contrast on the choice of colour on people/ main character, contrast between the texture, contrast between the gestural movement of the people. This contrast between the main character and the rest surrounding her creates an effect almost as if there is a concept of time flowing through; people simply walk by while the main character is standing still in one place. 
17 / 02 / 2025 — 5 / 03 / 2025 (Week 03 — Week 05)

Visual Analysis on 'Book Review of Either/ Or by Elif Batuman':

Fig 1.2 Book review of Either/Or by Elif Batuman. DaduShin. 2022. Colour Pencil.

Observation:
This artwork by Dadu Shin covers a novel titled "Either/ Or" by Elif Batuman. It is in portrait format and the art mediums used for the artwork mostly consist of colour pencils. A woman in a white dress is standing in the centre of the artwork, perhaps a protagonist of a novel is facing in the opposite direction from the viewer. Crowds of people are also passing by the protagonist, expressed with scribbles and hatches of coloured pencil strokes. The main colours of the artwork observed are a cream-yellow background with a slight cyan undertone, and various other colours including blue, green, pink, indigo, orange, and a few shades of grey. Overall artwork gives a soft impression with mixed layers of colours. (122 words)

Analysis:
A strong emphasis is applied to the protagonist in the centre of the artwork, which is expressed through the use of heavy layers of coloured pencil strokes, leaving no translucent space visible on her body. The use of contrast is also added onto the protagonist from the crowds by using a white and black shade that stands out from the rest of the colourful surroundings, as well as a solid shadow being cast on her body compared to the crowd only having a rather soft silhouette form. Harmony is achieved through the use of various hues of colours on the crowds– as well as giving a sense of unity with consistent use of vertical & scribble strokes of coloured layers. Furthermore, the idea of movement is projected through the crowd's eye directions and depth is created from the placement and the size of the crowd. There is also a sense of repetition carried out with the main elements being human figures scattered around the canvas. (165 words)

Interpretation:
The overall novel "Either/ Or" talks about the contrast between the protagonist's way of living an ideal life, whether to live an aesthetic life or an ethical life (Grady, 2022). The novel's overall theme shares about examining existential anxiety, subjectivity, and the pursuit of meaning. The use of two complementary colours, a cream-yellow background coloured over a cyan undertone perhaps implies the two choices of life the protagonist could lead onto. As the protagonist longs to figure out what's best for her, the element of people passing by her could represent the choices of decisions as well as a dive into the thoughts of people that she has met throughout her experiences. Furthermore, the protagonist's eye direction faces on the opposite side from the viewer, suggesting the viewers/ readers of the novel to think about their own perspective of the choices that the protagonist made in the novel as well as to self-reflect on the viewer's life itself. (158 words)
 
(435 words)


TASK 3 / DEVELOPMENT & DESIGN

5 / 03 / 2025 — 17 / 03 / 2025 (Week 05 — Week 07)

(a) Final Design

Kim Seoyoon_Parallel Decisions_Task 3
Digital Illustration on Procreate

Fig 1.3 <Kim Seoyoon_Parallel Decisions_Task 3>, Week 6 (16/03/25)

Fig 1.4 Kim Seoyoon, Parallel Decisions 2, Task 3, Week 7 (17/03/25)

Fig 1.5 Parallel Decisions (PDF), Week 7 (17/03/25)

Fig 1.6 Parallel Decisions 2 (PDF), Week 7 (17/03/25)


TO DOWNLOAD PARALLEL DECISIONS, CLICK HERE


(b) Design Rationale

i) Decisions made in your design
In this final design, I decided to combine the ideas of Exploration 2 and 3 to enhance the theme of the unavoidable choice between living an ethical life or an aesthetic life. Instead of the use of repeated human figures like the original design, I replaced the human figures with the protagonist herself to draw deeper attention and focus onto the main protagonist. I intended to maintain the textures for my version of the design as I think textures play a huge role in the original piece in delivering the sentimental emotion of the protagonist.

ii) Meaning and purpose of the design
The purpose of this design was to convey the novel's storytelling while keeping the visual elements engageable towards the viewers. The repeated pattern of the protagonist symbolizes different capabilities and experiences in her life that she could lead to. These patterns are aligned parallel towards the protagonist's face, suggesting that only one of these options is allowed to be chosen just like how our hands are only able to reach out the same maximum distance at any angle. Other elements like books and trees symbolize and imply the theme of growth and self-discovery like how the tree branches out to grow and there are more pages to flip and learn in your life. 

iii) Design principles employed to create the design
In this design, I employed the principle of symmetry and repetition for the overall element layout. The idea of contrast was also used in differentiating the foreground and the background with the pattern and the protagonist's face. Contrast is also present in the weight and thickness of the lines in the following elements; the protagonist, tree, and the book all having distinct thicknesses of the lines reduces boredom in visual experiences. Emphasis is also carried out with the use of colour contrast where the protagonist in the white dress stands out from the colourful backgrounds while keeping the overall colours in unity with slight coloured shadows on the dress.

(317 words)

BLOGPOST PDF COMPILATIONS

<Kim Seoyoon_202502_Design Principles Blog>

Fig 2.1 <Kim Seoyoon_202502_Design Principles Blog> (PDF), Week 7 (17/03/25)



REFLECTION

What have I learnt in this module?
In this module, I learned various details and knowledge on each principle of design and got to familiarize myself with real-world visual examples that represent the principles. I also learned to carry out step-by-step visual analysis with the support of observation and identifying skills. Working on the analysis also helped me in getting to know the artist's design direction by observing those design principles being present in their artworks/ designs.

What did I enjoy the most?
The activity that I enjoyed the most in this module would be experimenting with different variations during my development process. I got to try out various styles especially utilizing the blending mode and different types of brush on Procreate. When working on an art piece, I usually feel more drawn to use traditional painting but working digitally allowed me to try the digital media tools that aren't on the conventional art aspects. I also enjoyed observing and discovering unique visual elements created by the original artist which inspired me in new techniques and styles. 

What did I not enjoy the most?
There weren't many things that made me feel unenjoyable while working on this module, but if I were to specify one, it would be having to think and decide which version of the design to proceed with during the sketches/ development stage. During this process, I came up with several variations in terms of slight differences in blending mode effects and such, so I always ended up putting all of them rather than forcing myself to pick one. 

What have I learnt about myself through this module?
I was quite surprised with myself that I was able to complete the given tasks in time despite it being only a short semester of 7 weeks. I am glad to acknowledge the growth in my time management skills and hope to improve more.

What has changed and what has not in my learning journey?
I developed my observation skills and now I try to find more perspectives of view to observe on certain artworks or designs when I'm analysing them.

What are my aspirations?
I look forward to utilizing the design principle knowledge and skills that I gained from the given tasks and further developing and uplifting my creativity in future works.

REFERENCES

Aftab, Z. (2024). Gestalt’s Law of Symmetry - Hapy Design. Hapy Design. https://hapy.design/journal/law-of-symmetry/
Gaskin, J. (2024, June 12). A brief guide to emphasis — a design principle. Venngage. https://venngage.com/blog/design-principle-emphasis/
Grady, C. (2022). Elif Batuman’s Either/Or is a portrait of the artist as a young idiot. Vox. https://www.vox.com/culture/23153590/either-or-review-elif-batuman-idiot-sequel

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