Page 91 - Graphic Design and Print Production Fundamentals

Graphic Design 79
Like these organic examples, an axis does not need to be a straight line — it can be curved, zigzag, or
circular.

Modular

Modular organization is a compositional method that utilizes rigour (by constraining the shape) and
freedom from structure (modules can be any size and placed anywhere in the space). Modules can also
be uniform and contained within a structure (a grid). A module is a fixed element used within a larger
system or structure. For example, a pixel is a module that builds a digital image.

Bilateral

The bilateral system is based on mirrored symmetry and is therefore both classic and ubiquitous.
Because of its predictability, it is a challenge for designers to work with. Nature exhibits many examples
of bilateral composition — the bodies of mammals, the points of a snowflake, and the fractal symmetry
of plants are all quickly understood, appreciated, and then dismissed by the viewer. To create a
composition based on the bilateral system, a designer must make some part of the composition unusual.
The designer can achieve this by moving the axis to a diagonal, off-centre location, which allows the
negative space on either side of the bilateral composition to be varied. A second method is to introduce
a double axis: the designer uses two columns of bilateral information and varies the size of each.

Radial

The radial system takes its name from the sun — all elements are arranged like rays coming from a
central focal point. This is a dynamic compositional strategy as it references dynamic action. Examples
of the radial form from the natural world, such as explosions, flowers, spiders, stars, and so on, are
all exciting and dynamic. Much like it is difficult to handle the natural objects, reproducing a radial
composition is not that easy. There are problems with legibility unless type is very carefully placed and
scaled. Every line of type starts and ends in a different place, so continuity is also hard to control. For
example, a designer may take a traditional approach so the text reads from top to bottom, or an inverse
approach so the text reads from bottom to top. Arranging the text on either side of centre may also be
effective. It is important to try placing the type in different positions and in different relationships until
it works with the composition and is easy to read.

As in the organizational systems we have discussed, designers can add radial points for a more complex
composition or combine a radial system with one that adds stability, such as a grid, axial, or modular
system.

Dilatational

Dilatational systems mimic the look of still water when a pebble is dropped into it, creating rings of
greater and greater size as they move away from the centre. Like the radial system, this composition has