Week Three

 

This week in class we looked at the principles of design. We talked about the first 2 principles: Balance and Unity/Harmony. We discussed where you can see those principles in the designs around you and how those principles affect how a space makes you feel. We learned that designers must understand these key concepts in order to create an aesthetically pleasing and meaningful interior. The principles act as rules or guidelines to follow to achieve a successful and pleasing design.

Balance

Balance is about creating a sense of equilibrium in a space. It is adjusting the placement of different objects and elements in order to balance the visual weight in a space. You must also consider the line, color, shape, and texture when creating balance. There are 3 main types of balance: symmetrical/formal, asymmetrical/informal, and radial.

Symmetrical balance is used mainly in more formal spaces. Each side of the space becomes a mirrored image of the other. Symmetrical balance is easy to achieve because usually it involves repeating elements. Symmetrical balance can be satisfying but also has the possibility of becoming static and boring.

In asymmetrical balance the visual weights of lines, colors, adn textures are balanced without needed exact duplicates of objects. This type of balance is more dynamic and interesting, but also more difficult to achieve.

Radial balance is when elements and objects are centered around one point. It sometimes involves more curvilinear elements to emphasis the radial balance.

Unity and Harmony

Unity is when a space flows together and becomes an integrated whole. The different parts of the room such as furnishing, style and decoration all come together to become unified. Harmony is created through a common theme or style. Elements like color, texture, or focal points can produce harmony. A space that has unity and harmony often feels safe and welcoming.

Sketching Interiors

In Chapter 3 of Sketching Interiors, we learned about negative space and positive form in sketching. We learned to drop out the left side of the brain which perceives objects for how we know they are and instead use the right side of the brain to perceive spaces. We can draw the spaces around the object instead of the object itself to achieve this. Negative space is known as toned background and is the empty space around objects. The composition is very important for the drawing to be successful. A good composition often has a balance of positive and negative spaces. Using a viewfinder can also help you find a good composition. Shading is also an important part of sketching. Layering strokes and cross-hatching helps you create multiple values in a sketch. This week we had to practice a negative space drawing of a chair.