The Golden Rule

The Golden Rule may also be known as the Golden Ratio or Golden Mean. It is a mathematical ratio that can be found naturally in things like art, shells, architecture, bones, fashion, flowers, the human face, etc.
















I found the Golden ratio quite hard to get my head around and understand at first, but when I did I found it fascinating! Especially how it is constantly being found within nature, because of this I feel it creates a feeling of harmony, and tends to be aesthetically pleasing when used within design.



The Golden ratio is equivalent to 1.618. Below is a video I have found which explains the Golden ratio, as I don't think I would be able to explain it very clearly.

Back at College, new brief; The Design Principles

So first off I would like to apologise for my lack of blog entries at late, I haven't had any internet access, but now I'm back at college it should be a little easier to keep you all up to date. :)


Back at College now, and with that we have begun a new brief, titled Unit 8; Design Principles in Art and Design.


So I thought I would start by explaining the various design principles;
The design principles are tools used to format the elements of design, and they apply to all aspects of design, such as architecture, writing, art, fashion, graphics, etc.


The most commonly applied principles of design include:

• Balance
• Emphasis
• Illusion
• Texture
• Value
• Scale/Proportion
• Rhythm
• Unity

Hussein Chalayan is an example of one designer who applies the design principles to his work. The design principle Balance can clearly be seen through a variety of his designs. He often plays around with symmetry to create a powerful and innovative effect. 

Above is an image of his famous 'table dress', notice how the dress is symmetrically balanced.

Here is Hussein Chalayan's 'aeroplane dress', this incorporates asymmetrical balance, and is, in my opinion, very effective.

I had never really considered that there would be particular principles to design before, I think it's interesting to see how these principles are applied to everyday design.