Design Principles and Collage
The principles of design are a set of guidelines that help a creator become more aware of the dynamics of composition.
Composition: how the pictorial elements are arranged within the frame.
The principle of thirds: is a basic guideline you can follow in creating a dynamic arrangement of elements in a design.
Images are sourced from a great collage exhibition at Wollongong City Gallery called "Shape Shifters" - a retrospective of Australian Collage curated by Angie Cass. And there are also a few images from a book called 'Collage Your Life' by Melanie Mowinski.
There are still a few acknowledgements to include. 7/2/25.
BALANCE: The expression of equilibrium in a composition. Balance can be created in an asymmetical arrangement, such as this example below. The small red dot , though small, balances the large due to its colour and dark tone.
Balance can also be created through the more obvious means of symmetry or by radiating from a center, such as the collage below. Radial balance is often found where the idea of unity and wholeness is being expressed.
CONTRAST: Dramatic difference between the composition of an image. Contrast can work with tone, colour, size, shape, or other element.
MOVEMENT/RHYTHM, sometimes called DIRECTION:
An eye path for the observer to follow through the art work, sometimes created by the use of line, colour scheme, shape or other element.
EMPHASIS: Making an element stand out through colour, space, size or line, or other element. Often this is linked to the focal point or center of interest.
PATTERN: A re-occuring design element which can be an exact repeat or varied. Pattern can create rhythm and a visual beat.
VARIETY: The use of visually dissimilar elements or objects in a composition. The variety can relate to ther type of elements used, or the conceptial ideas conveyed in the compositon.
PROPORTION: The use of unusual size and scale in a composition, often to create unexpected relationships.
Anita Johnson. "We met at the bird telepathy convention." 2024
Ink, pastel, collage.
REPETITION: The reuse of an object or shape within a composition. Often used to create movement or to emphasise a particular component or theme.
Jenny Orchard. "Blue floating conscious mind, into the galaxies, into the trees, 2020" Watercolour, collage and gouache.
UNITY: The use of colours, shapes, textures or any element or technique to tie parts of a composition into a cohesive whole.
Tony Albert. 2018. "Card Up Your Sleeve" Vintage playing cards, coasters & matchboxes on board
David Aspen fine use of the collage technique of tearing ties the composition together and helps to make it unified.
SPACE: is sometimes included with design elements and sometimes included in principles, as it is both, really the first element and also a strong factor in composition.
