COMPILATION of ARTICLES on EMPHASIS in DESIGN

Post –783 -Gautam Shah

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1398 De-emphasis in Design
1397 Emphasis in Design
68 Emphasis in Expression
205 Condensation and Elaboration of Content
882 Abbreviation, Condensation and Elimination in Design

1398 DE-EMPHASIS in DESIGN

If, Emphasis is distinguishing ‘few’ things in a set, de-emphasis cannot be the inversion of it, meaning not distinguishing many things. De-emphasis is to reduce the importance or prominence of things or elements. So, emphasis reflects ‘parts to the whole phenomena, but de-emphasis is not the negation or reverse of it. Emphasis is relative, a dilemmic condition.

Can de-emphasis be achieved in design, except by blinding of the perception? The ‘white spaces’ in a crowded creation like low pitch sound or silence, actionless mime or statuesque dance postures, absence arabesque in architecture, are not de-emphatic or de-stressing propositions.

‘De’, as a prefix derives from Latin de (reversing a verb’s action) =down, down from, away, off, undoing. But emphasis vs de-emphasis, is very similar to the raveling vs unraveling, both carry nearly similar actions.

De-emphasis could be a design strategy that aims to divert the attention from specific to a general or nominal situation. This could be any part of the content, shapes, colours, textures, motif, pattern, compositional value (size, scale, extent), or action enforcing buttons, etc. De-emphatic conditions aim to diffuse, discourage, avoid or delay the actions, at least for a while. De-emphasis creates a dilemma or mystery, encouraging deeper involvement, breaking of the continuity, regulations, traditions and consistency.

De-emphatic designs occur, by employing several means like, Asymmetry to challenge the Balance, Separation to counter the relationships of proximity, Breaking alliances emerging from similarity or dissimilarity, avoiding the Repetition forming familiarity, masking or camouflaging the existent Traces, such as links, implied directions, shadows, etc., managing the juxtapositions that ensue Comparisons and Contrasts.

With de-emphasis in compositions, some whites or nothingness emerges. This can be made contributory. And let the Gestaltic closure, allowing the mind to subtly bridge it.

1397 EMPHASIS in DESIGN

The emphasis in design is accidental and intentional.
Accidental emphasis is often not realized by the original designer, but, users with their intensive exposure with the entity realize it. The users, however, have few means to reinforce or de-escalate those effects. Yet if they can manage the process, it becomes mostly accidental.

Intentional emphasis reflects highly personal involvement of the designer, which may not be appreciated by the user. Users, may ‘correct’ by placing things that have greater emphasis.

Emphasis in Design, occurs through several means, like, contrast, juxtaposition, scale, position, repetition, delay, concentration, rarity, oddity, etc. Emphasis occurs by elimination or dilution of less-necessary and comparable things. The elimination of content leaves ‘white-spaces’ which can be filled in by symbols, abbreviations, surrogates or metaphors. The content to be emphasized, can have restricted exposure in time and space. Designers emphasize their input to brand their name and also achieve new insights.
Emphasis in design is used to register ephemeral matters like concepts, new ideas, narratives, anecdotes, couplets, quotations, footnotes, end-notes, linkages and other sensorial effects.

Emphasis in design is often created by de-emphasis, through elimination of introductions, details, situational connections and obvious conclusions. These create curiosity, forcing drawing of personal inferences.

68 EMPHASIS in EXPRESSION

The emphasis in presentations occurs by condensation of the subject matter.

□ Condensation eliminates all less necessary contents, and thereby increases the clarity, reduces the expression size, delivery time, perception effort, etc.

□ Condensation is also done by use of abbreviations and symbols that replace large units of contents. These include idioms, proverbs, metaphors, and signs.

□ Condensation is often used to restrict the access to a specific class of audience, like magicians’ instructions.

□ Condensation is employed to colour a document as a personal style statement.

□ Condensation processes information and makes a very abstract expression. Abstracted expressions are exploited to achieve new insights.

Elaboration is achieved by augmenting the context of difficult to understand concepts, events, situations, or objects. It is also done by using the same word in different context, and using similar words (synonyms and antonyms from a thesaurus) to redefine the meaning. Multiple explanations help amplify content. Elaboration is achieved by inclusion of anecdotes, couplets, quotations, footnotes, end notes, and other sensorial effects.

Emphasis is often created by intentional de-emphasis. Obvious details, concepts, ideas, conclusions are not put forward at the nominal time and space, but are placed at the end, or the audience is allowed to draw its own inferences.

The condensation and elaboration are employed to colour a document as a personal style statement.
Processed information often becomes so comprehensive that it becomes a very abstract expression. Abstracted expressions are exploited to achieve new insights.

882 Abbreviation, Condensation and Elimination in Design

Elimination, Abbreviation or Condensation in Design makes an expression succinct. The need first arose in writing and speech making. Writing and speech making, use poetry which cannot be impromptu or free of metaphors, so inefficient as a manner of conveyance.
A wit and proverb, both are effective, if are concise in delivery and wording. Both convey a larger meaning in shortest time and with smallest content. In courts, public forum discussions, this was a good practice.
Just to be brief, in time (delivery) and space (content), people first resort to Condensation through scaling. Scaling includes faster delivery of speech, writing in smaller or closer fonts, expression with use of complex Mudras or transient gestures in dance or drama, finer motifs and complex patterns in crafts and buildings.
Detailing the content using Abbreviations like symbols, metaphors, matrices, elaborations and external reinforcements.
For Briefness, the next manner is to exploit the intervening time and space, like pauses in speech, interim quietude, ‘white spaces, transparencies, spatial distancing, etc.
Elimination of the useless, occurs only as an exercise on hindsight, after substantial creation already in place. One begins to strip away, but without losing the essential purpose and identity. The nett result is paintings, sculptures, buildings, furniture, garments, products are redesigned and redefined. There is often lack of any strategy or justification. After the elimination, contents largely miss out on the conveyance (of idea).

205 CONDENSATION and ELABORATION of CONTENT

We primarily express, to communicate and record our experiences. Both of these processes are about recollection and re-enactment. These also help us to organize everything to a concept and recover the missing sets of information. Communication imparts information to someone, or secures a reaction, whereas Recording organizes the information for posterity.
■ Condensation of Content:
Condensation eliminates all unnecessary and less necessary contents, and thereby increase the clarity, reduces the size of expression, delivery or transmission time and effort required for perception. Condensation is also done with use of abbreviations and symbols that replace large units of contents. These include idioms, proverbs, metaphors, and signs. Condensation is often used to restrict the access to a specific class of audience, like magicians’ instructions.
■ Elaboration of Content:
Elaboration is achieved by augmenting the context of difficult to understand concepts, events, situations, or objects. It is also done by using the same word in different context, and using similar words (synonyms and antonyms from a thesaurus) to redefine the meaning. Multiple explanations help amplify the content. Elaboration is also achieved by inclusion of anecdotes, couplets, quotations, footnotes, end notes, and other sensorial effects.
■ Emphasis:
The Emphasis occurs by both condensation and elaboration of the subject matter. Condensation and elaboration, both are employed to colour a document as a personal style statement. Emphasis is often created by intentional de-emphasis. Obvious details, concepts, ideas, conclusions are not put forward at the nominal time and space, but are placed at the end, or the audience is allowed to draw its own inferences.

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782 GOTHS and EARLY MIDDLE AGES

782 GOTHS and EARLY MIDDLE AGES -Gautam Shah

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Goth, were Germanic people, originating in southern Scandinavia. They migrated to areas of Roman Empire during 2nd C. They settled in the Baltic sea area. For centuries they harassed the Roman Empire in Asia Minor. Goths influenced the Roman life style with new social, political, cultural order. The change period, called Early middle ages, marked the fall of the Roman Empire, during 476 to 1000 AD.

Following FOUR blogs are from My Blog site > https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/

431 GOTHS to GOTHIC

870 EARLY MIDDLE AGES

514 GOTHS INFLUENCES

1445 CRUSADES

431 GOTHS to GOTHIC

The word Gothic comes from the Goths. Goths were a Germanic horseback riding tribe, settled in the same area, earlier occupied by equally brutal Scythians.

Gothic, originally meant manners and language of the Goths or Germanic culture. Gothic was perceived as a derisive term for the ‘uncivilized and destructive lifestyle’ of Goths (as per the Greco-Roman scholars). Goths overran the city of Rome, and ‘destroyed its civilization’, but Romans and others continued to believe themselves to be superior to the barbarians.

Goths never accepted the Roman manners or architecture, but as they came to dominate larger territories, began to accept Moorish and other effects. They gradually adopted simple cultural values, artistic customs and Arianism as a form of Christianity. This was a time Dark Ages were setting in Europe, but Goths helped to preserve many features of the Roman culture. The last Gothic kingdom fell to the Moors in AD. 711.

In the 12th C, Abbot Suger rebuilt portions of Abbey church using innovative structural and decorative features. In doing so, he is said to have created the first truly Gothic building.

The Gothic grew as fairly independent style from the Greco-Roman or Romanesque buildings. But this had to wait till 1200 AD, when peace, prosperity and semblance of single Christian began to prevail. The pointed arch, thin columns or piers and fluted roofing vaults, etc. were innovated.
Giorgio Vasari considered Gothic medieval cathedrals as barbarous while calling the neoclassical revival of the 14th 16th C as Renaissance.

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870 EARLY MIDDLE AGES

The Early Middle Ages form an important era of development and radical changes in every sphere of human life across Europe. The period began with the fall of the Roman Empire and ended in the early 11th century, when the life in many parts began to settle down with lesser invasions, fewer migrations, and dominance of Christianity though in diverse forms. A new age dawned with the beginning of the Romanesque period.

The art and architecture came out of the Roman traditions, and replaced by freshness and vigour of invading and migrating barbaric groups. The church Roman architecture was strongly affected by the pristine built-forms of Goths. It was adopted for the Basilicas. A basilica had cross shaped building with arms, transepts and well-defined entrance. The interiors were now well illuminated and ventilated.
Early middle age is a mix of the Roman, Christian, Pagan and Goths culture. Except for differences in subject matter, the style of representation was emerging to be much the same. A rise in illiteracy resulted in a shift toward greater stylization and abstraction in imagery. The complex narratives, suffused with symbolism took away the naturalistic manners.

‘The human figures thus became types rather than individuals and often had large, staring eyes, “the windows of the soul.” Symbols were frequently used, and compositions were flat and hieratic, in order to concentrate on and clearly visualize the main idea. The art had great power and immediacy’. – Encyclopaedia Britannica.

The period also saw the rough redefinition of geographical and cultural edges of what Europe is today. This was a major change from the singular entity of Roman Empire.

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1445 CRUSADES

Crusades were proposed because by 11th C approximately two-thirds of the Christian territories like, Palestine, Syria, Egypt, and Anatolia were under Muslims invaders. The crusades were supported by the pope. The actual term ‘crusade’ first appeared in the 1210s, in place of ‘crucesignatus’. It was an expedition, ‘marked with a cross, with making of the sign of the cross, or carrying the cross’, towards the Jerusalem in 1095. The first crusades were frivolous excursions for most.

Crusades altered the ecclesiastical structure and the equation of Papal authority versus the local lords.
Crusades became change phenomena. Crusades allowed the participants to experience new lands, cultures, lifestyles, foods, dialects, art, architecture, materials, technologies and science of warfare. Crusades encouraged the practice of pilgrimage to distance holy shrines.

Crusades, over the years, became expensive business, for Pope and the local lords, whereas ordinary warriors could not survive on religious faith or patronage to lords. The entire fabric of Europe changed during the 12th -13th C. There was a great increase in business across lands and sea as the Italian ship seafarers, bankers, and traders spread their activities. In spite of great many political and cultural variations, Europe began to coalesce.

A mix of Christian and Muslim styles occurred in the arabesque and non human form motifs, decorations, illuminated manuscripts and paintings’ compositions. Romanesque (11th -12th C) and Gothic style (12th C onwards), were affected. By the 14th C Turks were able to penetrate into Europe, because they were now conversant with the culture.

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.1514 GOTHS INFLUENCES
Large scale movement of different Germanic tribes marks a remarkable period of change in Europe. It created new social, political, cultural order and changes in the manners of creative expressions. The change period, coincidentally, began with the fall of the Roman Empire from 476 and continued till 1000 AD. The period is called the Early middle ages or Pre-Romanesque era.

The Goths were of different ethnic groups of Germanic tribes. The lands of the Germanic tribes, like, the Goths were invaded from the East by the Huns. After this, several groups of Goths came under Hunnic domination, while others migrated further to the west, or sought refuge inside the Roman Empire. The Goths from eastern lands, the Ostrogoths, founded a kingdom in Italy, while the Visigoths went on to found one in Spain.

Goths, through the pre middle age periods, have been referred to by many names, all deriving from a single ethnonym. Like the early Romans, Goths changed the Christianity in their own manner.
Early medieval age reflects mix art traditions of Romans, early Christian church and the migrated barbarians. Education and literacy were exclusive domains of the monks, and so various forms of arts (like illuminated manuscripts) became the primary method of communicating narratives to the masses. This restricted the spread of functional arts. The period also saw the Basilicas with long naves and transepts forming a cross and elaborate west side entrances.

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SPATIAL and TEMPORAL MEMORIES –Issues of Design 46

Post -781 –Gautam Shah.

Memories relate to mental processes of remembering, retaining and recollecting our experiences. These mental processes are sporadic and do not have any predictable order, logic, proportion or mix. The memories have no latent value, till these are used to relive experiences, traumas or pleasures. The purposes of knowing or visiting the past, largely remains obscure. Often, what is being recalled is of uncertain scale, spread, or character. Memories that animate locations, sites, objects, spaces, places, environments and intra personal relationships, are dominant, but not necessarily vivid. Memories that acutely involve spatial elements have strong context for recall, unlike the memories related to time.

Spatial memories are distinct from Temporal memories (time related). An event is a significant occurrence in a sequence of time. The occurrences of the past are distinguished by the relationship through time. In comparison, a happening (also an event) is a significant spatial reference of existential now.

Spatial memories reveal the state of relationships, between objects, people and environment. These offer relatable facets, at, one to one, one to many, and many to many levels. In contrast to this, the temporal recollections are randomly scattered. The sequences reflect the sensorial strength, personal relevance, altered perception due to cognition and the cause, why-how the memories are recalled. Temporal sequencing begins to be relevant in the context of spatial elements. Spatial setting indicates, location, position, orientation, movement and direction and the difference between objects and live beings. The relationships between objects, beings and environment in space, pose too many variants for any comprehensive consideration.

Spatial memories help form a transient layout with, edges. This offers a chance to imagine the missing clues. But in larger and complex spatial experiences, it is not easy to recall all the elements, and their organization. The variations due to the directional environment effect makes such recall all the more difficult. On a well-traveled road, the back way scene seems very different.

In narratives (descriptions, stories, poetry, elocution, recitation, films, drama), the time sequences are of different order, as arranged by the authors. Shakespearean plays are set in historically acknowledged (narrated and sometimes drawn or sculpted) spaces. These spaces are established with descriptive imageries within the play and sometimes from the versions that become popular. In architecture, the ‘style of the period’ gets adapted as the spatial image. The original scale, composition and the spatial character are reinforced with evolved motifs, images and symbols. The temporal character of the happening is enlivened by traversing through spatial marks like turns, twists, negotiable distances, hurdles, delays, diversions, etc.

Sensorial perceptions are of many types, and their spatial identities are even more varied. Once it was believed, the spatial character of any presences around us, was due to the duality of sensing nodes (two eyes, two ears), closeness of the related nodes (mouth for taste and nose for smell), or multiple sensing nodes for touch across the body. Later, it was believed, the cognition (process that assimilates the sensorial exposures) refashions the experiences. It is difficult to recreate events like music, touch food tastes, smells, due to their inadequate spatial identity. Though whatever is inadequate, is backed by the recall of the past exposures.

The spatial clues as a combine image emerge from elements like, the surface qualities, edges, form, size, scale, shape, emergence of patterns or arrangements, etc. These are easier to register as totality, but when there is distinct time scale to measure the individual or elemental changes, a scattering of memorable events and confusions occur.

Spatial memory is a form, necessary for recovery of information, conveying the comprehension of perceptions, and logical expression. Spatial memory is necessary for occupying and persisting in a space. The longer (time), one stays, the greater will be comprehension. Spatial memory can also be divided into egocentric (self-centric -one to many) and allocentric (relating to object and object -one to many) actions. Routes descriptions or acknowledgements are prone to errors, and depend on egocentric reference, whereas, formal maps and charts are accommodative to changes and reliable, depend on allocentric reference.

IMAGE and IMAGERY -Issues of Design 45

Post -780 –Gautam Shah
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An IMAGE is a trace or copy at the same or different scale. As a Trace, the image is either a contagious or noncontagious impression. Copies are reflections, where the scale represents the distance between the object and its facsimile.

An Image could be an impression on a media, a mental picture, or notion of something.
Images pressed on a Media are ‘im-pressions’. These are affected, by the receptivity of the media (noise -texture, loss of details, ambiguities), and also by the modalities of transfer.

Mental images occur in Two manners. The processes of cognition, prompt (expectations), select and combine, many different types of perceptions, into a comprehensive image, and at another level, mental images occur as remembrances, endowing new interpretations and relationships with the existing conditions.

A Notion is an abstract derivative or a surrogate formed of few essential features. It provides new insights.

The term image comes from Latin imago, which denotes an imitation, fabrication or a copy. It was supposedly, a likeness of the long extinct original, a pictorial copy of a sculpted figure. With passage of time and geographical distance, the pictorial image (of the divinities or super natural), degenerate into an abstract or altered figure.

Image, imagery, and Imaging, are all different phenomena.

An image, is a real or tangible form, or manifest in the mind. This has strong visual character. An image can be 2D, such as a drawing, painting, or photograph, or 3D, such as a carving or sculptural figure. An image is conditioned by the medium on or through which it occurs. The conditioning results into changes or ‘noises’ (like, unwanted intrusions, scale corruption, colour-textural defects). Images are rel or a visual phenomenon, but Mental images occur as dreams, inspiration or divine realizations, usually, vivid or momentary. These unless captured immediately as imagery can get lost. 

Imagery is an explanatory (literary) device with rhetorical decorations, symbolic connections or metaphors. Imagery transfers a non-visual encounter, to others’ mind. Imageries are used, in writing, speaking, descriptions, and expressions to compensate for the non-visual expressions (such as smell, taste, touch, sound, etc.). Imagery may include symbols for brief presentation and metaphors for succinctness. An Image cannot handle abstract qualities, but Imagery offers comprehensive ‘sense of the scene’.

Imaging is process of capturing a content which can be visual, optical or graphical (as an arrangement of data -a matrix), and is formed through different forms of energy, such as, heat, x-rays, ultrasound, infra red, magnetic, etc. Imaging tools include, magnetic resonance imaging MRI, echo gram, cardio gram, sonography, thermography and tomography. Some forms of imageries, help learning the perception with other senses. Stars beyond certain distance are not seen, but listened through the radio waves. Satellite images offer more data through colour separation.

Imaging and Imagining, are two different things. Imaging is a realistic process of forming an image, using energy beyond the human body system, and so nearly impartial. Imagining is the process of capturing an image with reflection, deflection and absorption of external energy, but the captured image is affected by the ‘noises’. The Imagining could be, unreal, fancy, falsified, illusory or phantasms, a dream like process of realization or recollection. This may be due to the other sensorial associations.

Imagination is unbounded process of mental image formation. It is fast and occurs without any resources. But most such mental images are often unconsciously generated, and forgotten. Imagination can lead to unknown aspects of experiences, things that cause behavioural changes, biases and environmental responses. Imagination is called ‘silent thinking’, which is creative pursuit leading to solution finding, and allow fuzzy logic for disruptive thinking.

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VISUAL TEXTURES -Issues of Design 44

Post -779 -by Gautam Shah

Texture is roughness or surface fluctuations, that also marks surface variations between adjescent elements (such as object-parts, object-background, and current vs past experiences vs expectations).

Roughness (or smoothness) plays an important role in determining how a real object will interact with its environment and how a body will perceive it (through sense of touch and other sensorial perception).

In surface metrology, roughness is typically considered to be the high-frequency, short-wavelength component of a measured surface. However, in practice it is often necessary to know both the amplitude and frequency to ensure that a surface is fit for a purpose. In tribology, rough surfaces have greater area, and so wear more quickly. Roughness (or smoothness) promote adhesion, frictive resistence, and form nucleation sites for increased reactivity.

Textures as Haptic (touch) experience are called tactile texture, physical texture or actual texture. These refer to different densities of micro sized dots, lines, crosses and motifs, in the form of random, repeated, variegated or oriented arrangements. Textures offer haptic sensation on a natural or developed surfaces. These occur on a wide range of materials, including but not limited to fur, canvas, wood grain, sand, leather, satin, eggshell, matte, foods, or smooth surfaces like metal or glass.

Textures relate mainly to the haptic (tactile) experiences, but can also convey other sensorial encounters. Here the textural qualities represent the contrasting conditions. A Contrast is the remarkable differences of perceptions within a class of sensuality. Contrast can be between perception of different sensualities, when these exist synchronically or separately, in time and space. A contrast, as a texture represents distance or difference between two locations or time slots.

Contrasts are explored in narrations, reporting or story telling, where the descriptions replace visual, audio, smell, taste and touch experiences. Audio textures are perceived through persistence of rhythm, sound quality, intermittent poses, starts and ends of delivery, timbre, etc., and all these relate to time scale. Similarly variations in aural qualities are determined by the speaker, singer or sound generating equipment. In addition, the natural and built environments reformat the aural texture (reverberation, echoes).

Many of the aural gaps or breaks that cause aural texture get bridged by the visual corroboration in ‘live shows’. Gestures, postures, garments, etc. visually convey more information for ‘back-benchers’. Video recordings are better than audio captures. Silent keying devices make more sense, if accompanied by micro sounds of actioning through the display device.

Food textures are contrasts of visual, taste, smell, besides the tactile experiences through fingers, tongue, palate, or teeth. Real food textures are offset by the smell, and sometimes through past experiences.

It is a common happening, where the tactile texture is compensated by other senses or even past exposures. The tactile texture is a haptic phenomena and can function through active participation of the body, or indirectly through sensors that amplify or de-amplify the sensation (typ. stethoscope).

Tactile and visual textures, though of different classes of sensualities, often the one needs to be replaced by the other. Visual conveyance of textures is used in digital transfer of information (like, digital merchandising through visual means such as static images, films, videos, non-touching display of products or sensors like cardiogram, thermometers, etc.). There are also few rudimentary reverse processes, like braille language, where tactile data is conveyed.

Visual textures reflect ‘the tactile expression’ of a surface, mainly the roughness (or smoothness). Visual textures cannot reflect other haptic experiences, such as warmth (or coldness), moisture, resilience, electrical charges, etc. Visual textures, sometimes, inadvertently convey many other associated values, such as the degree of smoothness through the gloss, colour differentiation between illuminated and shadowed surfaces through reflection.

Visual texture is a false volumetric variation. This is manipulated by level and direction of the illumination, colour and contrasts between adolescent elements (object-parts and object-background). Visual textures are also formed by morphing directional patterns over objects. The surface quality is affected by the type of gloss, sheen or matt characteristics, which in turn are governed by the angle of illumination, dark-light surface colour, and contrast. Glossy surfaces are perceived as ‘hard’ whereas surface with sheen are sensed as soft or ‘handle-able’.

Artists produce or suggest textures in order to enhance the notion of reality. This is done by intimately connecting the source of light within the scene and also through direction of the shadows for actual architectural space. Painters, since primitive periods of cave painting, have taken advantage of the texture of the substrates (natural or scratched), roughness of pigments and additives, and strokes of colour application. The illumination and shadows are so intimately ingrained that resulting object form and the surface texture, both seem awkward in museum displays (strongly lit from top-down) or son-et-Lumiere (mostly lit from bottom-up).

Many forms of real textures are created for their visual appeal, rather than their tactile relevance. Surface textural effects are constructed by indenting patterns in plaster work, or through colour differentiation of joints in flooring and masonry works. Large scale architectonic elements used on architectural facades in the form of windows, columns, pilasters, pediments, eaves, projections form textures. Printed patterns with Black and white added (tonal) colours over leather, fabrics, paper, metal sheets, flooring ceramics tiles, etc. enhance the tactile sense.

Chiaroscuro (Renaissance period) uses strong contrasts between light and dark areas through colours, for achieving a sense of volumetric effect in the composition. Impasto is texture forming application to build textures through thick paste like oil colours and strokes with rough brushes or spatulas. Strokes and patches were the basic tools for impressionistic paintings.

Visual representation of textures carry a wide range of indirect messages, remembrances and evoke diverse sentimentalities. Visual textures were means of representing the experiences, or conveying ephemeral imagery, such as in story-telling, writing, record keeping, dance, drama, geographical mapping, selling or merchandising, etc. The fuzzy textural detail in any visual representation implies distance (farness), whereas the clarity reflects the nearness of the object.

Visual textures are also used in murals and paintings to differentiate identically coloured surfaces (walls, clothes, body-parts, terrain features, parts of skies, distances, etc.). Creating visual textures is not an easy process as it can reveal the ‘phony’ sources of illumination. Monochrome arts use etched or engraved surfaces for implying the visual texture. Frottage is a technique of rubbing a pencil, graphite, chalk, crayon, or another medium onto a sheet of paper that has been placed on top of a textured object or surface. The process causes the raised portions of the surface below to be translated to the sheet. The term is derived from the French frotter, which means ‘to rub’.

A Collage is a composition of visual and tactile textures, where the presence of edges become the key elements of expression. Modern day paints and media (paper, colours, constituents) offer both visual (sheen, matt, gloss) and tactile textures.

Colour and texture of soils are visually revealed through the moisture, present state of green cover and ingredients of soils. These was once done by comparing mono focal and bifocal visions. Now aerial remote sensing images are processed through colour separation techniques. Similar techniques are used to study MMR images.

The Visual texture, is also referred to as ‘implied texture’, as it is not detectable by our sense of touch, but realized by our sense of sight. Visual texture is illusionistic impression of a real texture. Any texture perceived in an image or photograph is a visual texture, a static two-dimensional surface. Though video or films, offer little more distinctive experience, due to the variations in capture and illumination. Visual textures are enlivened by other concurrent sensualities, like clicking sound of a key being struck, some food ingredients of a recipe producing a crunching noise, a smell producing cooling (or other sensation) effect in mouth or nose, a seemingly smooth chocolate offering sense roughness on chewing, etc.

Physical and Visual textures, are evident through the contrast. Contrast is the remarkable difference of perception within a class of sensuality. So tactile and visual textures, though of different classes of sensualities, the former needs to be replaced by the later, as we do not have (yet) the means to record or project the other.

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COMPILATION of BLOGS Articles on CONTRASTS

Post -778 -by Gautam Shah

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These articles were originally published (during May2018-Jan2023) on my Blog site > https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/

164 SPACE PERCEPTION and CONTRAST
Space Perception relates to Recognition of Contrast. Contrast makes things conspicuous to attract the senses. Contrast is a scale, due to the differing stimuli. The differences in stimuli occur due to variations of distance, direction, rate of change, shape, size, extent, and effects of environment.
Contrast is obvious, in reference to ‘things’ that are perceived well, against something weaker, duller or of different nature. Contrasts are also contextual, with the phenomenon of foreground and background. Contrasts occur due to the power of persistence of a happening or its recall.
Contrasts, manifest in current design through presence of elements like directions, sequences, repetitions, masking, framing, thematic continuities, sensorial consistencies, associated fables and explicit explanations.
Contrasts also occur through Recall and the clues are intently or casually included in a Design composition. The clues could be similarities, leftover-trails of the past happenings or subtle insertions relevant to a person or group or for particular time and space.

384 CONTRAST in DESIGN
Contrasts occur with an edge that is a spatial position or time delay. Spatial contrasts are experienced concurrently whereas Time contrasts are sequential. Contrasts’ simultaneity may occur as some reference to the past. And, the reference need not be a personal experience. Contrasts’ successiveness in time is not always contagious.
Continuity is antithetical to contrast. The segment across the edge needs to have some continuum to belong to the same composition. The carry-over of form, scale, compositional elements and sensorial effects occur on both the banks of the edge. This ‘varied consistency’ becomes the vocabulary of contrast recognition.
Contrast makes things conspicuous to attract the senses. Contrast to be obvious, occur with some reference. The reference is formed by a ‘thing’ that is stronger by juxtaposition of some weaker, duller or different elements, by its power of persistence in reality, and as a recall. Often clues are included in the composition for the recall. The clues could be similarities, leftover trails of the past happenings or subtle insertions relevant only to the person experiencing it or in that time and space. Other design elements that offer contrast include presence of directions, sequences, repetitions, occlusion by frames, thematic continuities, sensorial consistencies, associated fables and explanations.

676 CONTRASTS -contextual effects
Contrasts take place as the contextual effect. The contexts occur with juxtaposition. Two entities or different experiences of the same entity must occur in the same or sequential time and space.
Contrasts show up as the variation within the same sensorial experience or between different sensorial faculties. The former occurs in seeing and listening where the nodes are slightly distanced apart. The later types multiple sensorial perceptions, occur because some functions have similarities. Typically, we can, scale-measure a space, through hearing, seeing and touching.
There are many diverse contexts even when the other “thing” is absent, nonexistent, faded, concealed, occluded or camouflaged. Where and when, some details are required, other senses or the past remembrances fill-up the specifics.
We create visual emphasis by accentuation of colour, illumination, texture, patterns, surface exposure duration and extent, etc. We generate audio accents by sound pitch, pressure, time gapping, replaying in different frequencies, etc. Touch experience is controlled by proximity, duration, exposure of body-limbs, extent and additional information such as temperature (warmth-cold), moisture, breeze, etc.
Contrasts occur within the same reference of framing. Such contrasts are of position, orientation, scale or direction. Contrasts also occur as reference to remembrances. Virtual reality contrasts the referential things into slightly familiar set up. Alienation is a state of being cut off or separation from a person or group of people, and this offers a contrast of absence-presence.

686 CONTRAST and CONTEXT
A design creates as well as implies contrasts. The contrast can emerge from co-placement of things, but such simplistic duality of shapes, extent, proportions, etc. cannot be a design. For a contrast to be meaningful there must ensue a valuable connection to something else. The contrast offers a scale and so makes things conspicuous to attract the senses. This is just the beginning of design.
The contrast divergence, occurs in Real and Hyper time-space realms. The hyper realm consists of past experiences and cognitive expectations. The cognition evaluates the strong experience and offers personal and invisible contrast.
Contrast is obvious when it has some reference, a Context. The context is formed by a ‘thing’ that is stronger in juxtaposition of some weaker, duller or different elements, by its power of persistence in reality, and as a recall. The purpose of contrast could be to endow a specific or abstract meaning. Contrast could also come about as an unintentional result.
The contexts often occur as clues, included in compositions for recall of some other (hyper) reality. The contextual clues could be similarities, leftover trails of the past happenings or subtle insertions relevant only to the person experiencing it or in that time and space.
Other design elements that offer contrast include presence of directions, sequences, repetitions, occlusion by frames, thematic continuities, sensorial consistencies, associated fables and explanations.
There are many extreme concepts that are contextually contrasting, like the heaven and hell. A Low or Narrow space is realized in reference to the physiological adequacy, its profoundness, or through anecdotal knowledge. Literature, Art, Architecture, Performing arts exploit the contrasts for enhancing the context.
In Design, one needs to resole the conflict between contrast and context. The depth emerges from contrast due to the foreground-background differentiation. Architectural entities are contrasted in size, scale, style, placement, orientation, and environmental conditions, thematic content etc.
A design has internal and external contexts. Internal contrasts are part of the designed entity, so within the ambit of real experience. External contrasts occur through the embedded or implied metaphoric clues for connection.

1039 CONTRAST EFFECTS
Contrast is perceived when two (or many) different things or experiences manifest simultaneously, Successively or Cumulatively. Contrast is always a relative phenomenon. The relationship is in time-space reference, so relates to past, present, future, expectation, satiation and remembrances. Contrast perception is a way of getting better sense of Size, Shape, Distance, Colour, Texture and Vibrancy.
Contrast is important, to define value of a thing, the base or the other. By defining a base, the qualities of the other, though ‘indicated or unsaid’ come into being. Contrast means noticeable difference. A contrast cannot occur without the ‘other’. Contrast can also happen, when two things face each other or coexist, but must have some physical proximity or virtual linkage.
Leonardo da Vinci, probably, was first to notice that adjacent colours visually affect each other. The colour adjacency conditions occurred in several conditions. First set of conditions occur, when colours of different ‘families’ are seen simultaneously or consecutively. Second situation, happens when two different ‘tones’ of the colour are placed adjacently for depicting the light-shadow conditions. Third state occurs when colours are remembered, usually in a wider context of the things and happenings of the moment and recollected in a different perspective.
Successive contrast is the effect when things or experiences occur one after the other (noted by Renaissance painters like Vinci). This is also due to the after image that is retained by the eyes or mind, even after the event.
Simultaneous contrast is what happens when things or experiences get affected by the surroundings or contextual environment (known to Art World since 18th C).
Mixed contrast appear when very strong or persistent things or experiences leave a trace to alter the next lot of perception. Michel-Eugène Chevreul (1786-1889, colourist+dye chemist) “In the case where the eye sees at the same time two contiguous colors, they will appear as dissimilar as possible, both in their optical composition (hue) and in the height of their tone.” His theories of colour provided justifiable scientific basis for the Impressionist and Neo-Impressionist painters.

1044 POINTILLISM -a technique of colour contrasts
Michel Eugene Chevreul, the chemist, who worked with dyes and colours and who formed the first Colour wheel, wrote a treatise “Law of Simultaneous Colour Contrast, 1839″. There were many great artists since 14th C, who experienced the contrast effect of closely spaced colours. These effects were exploited to represent multiple shades on frontal (illuminated) planes and off the side profiles.
By 1860s many artists were trying to add ‘personalized realism’ to art which came to be known as impressionism. Here they did not mix colours on the canvas or formatted grades of shades, but exploited the contrast-effect of primary vs. secondary colours. Colour contrasts of yellow-blue, orange-purple (indigo), red-blue green (aqua), and purple (pink)-yellow, were used. Few Impressionist painters learnt the craft through book-based knowledge, but mostly through experiment and by emulating others. It was only Seurat who systematically worked on it.
Seurat used a form of painting in which tiny dots of primary-colours are used to generate secondary colours. The colours are closely placed on the canvas as dots or points. The colours blended in the viewer’s eye. It produced greater degree of luminosity and brilliance of colour. The white space, if any were part of the effect.
A set of complementary colours paired are made of cool vs. warm colour. Orange, reds, and yellows are the warm whereas on the opposite side are cool colours like blues, greens, and purples. This is often called simultaneous contrast, ‘the highest contrasts available on the colour wheel’.
Pointillism (first used in 20th C), derives from French pointillisme, or pointiller (mark with dots). Pointillism is also called divisionism and chromo-luminarism. It is usually categorized as a form of Post-Impressionism. Pointillism, as term is used in many other fields. In music, montage (literally ‘putting together’) or sound collage (‘gluing together’), are used to create musical scores. Stipple engraving uses patterns of dots of various sizes and densities to form tonal variations.

1054 COLOURS and CONTRASTS
Monet said: ‘A Colour owes its brightness to the force of contrast, rather than to its inherent qualities’. He also said that primary colours look brightest, when they are brought into contrast with their complementary’.
Colour contrast has drawn attention in drawn art forms as well as architecture, sculptures, ceramics, textiles and craft items. Colour contrast emerges primarily, when a ‘different, lighter or darker colour is placed next to the other one. But colour-contrast also emerges when a colour comes under differing levels of illumination or shadows. These realizations were conspicuous in 3D forms. Such colour contrast perception in natural or other illumination and its shadows are affected by the ‘local’ reflections. The subtle grades of contrast emerge due to varied brightness, from objects in different directions and in different intensities due to many colours of the reflecting surfaces.
Such a realization for emergent colour contrast came to drawn-arts from mosaic arts. Early drawn arts were comparatively ‘flat’, as perhaps the medium of art Fresco (was pigment impregnation onto wet plasters). The colours were zoned with outlines and had little scope for colour mixing or edge diffusion. Details were in Tempera, but had to wait for the surface to dry out thoroughly. As a result, artists, used intense contrasts to ‘add drama and mystery to the paintings’. To sustain the drama of narration, the body contours, folds of fabrics, difference between nearby and far-off objects, colour contrasts were required. Details, which, if added, show many levels of contrasts, created diffused or sober compositions. A way out was to add contrasting backdrops. These were in brighter but contrasting colours, often with gold gilding.

1269 SILHOUETTE -edge of scene
A silhouette is a visual edge. The term is used for imagery of tall entities, usually from a low point. The silhouette is effective for the reductive capture, as it overcomes the inter-zone details. The image imprint is stronger due to the distinct contrast between the object and the background field. The background field is ‘clean or dulled’ due the difference of distances from the observer. The background could also be eliminated.
The Silhouettes was used, in Egyptian art, for figure-presentation and eliminate the ‘angled’ views of the human figures’. The black pottery of Greek antiquity created such images using single colour. Silhouette painting was useful tool for portrait and figure painting, as it truly duplicated the body proportions, lines and curves. This was the reason coinage carry ‘side view’. Police ID pictures inevitably carry a side view besides the front view. Sculptures need side views to replicate a ‘good form’.
Digital face recognition tools began with frontal views, but a silhouette can also extract substantial information about ‘gender and age’. Animation artists add ‘depth’ to the character by including few side views. Shadow play theatre of Indonesia uses 2D cutouts but enrich the silhouette with back ground illumination, transparency of the image and position from the screen.
The scenario has changed during the last century due to the aircraft and satellites. Both have provided means observing buildings and terrains from higher elevations. This has been a key factor in shape forming of not only high rise buildings but also large footprint structures.
The composition of roofs (and entire structure) in making the skyline and silhouette, is pre-visualized for different atmospheric conditions, planned illuminations, and viewing positions including ground and air.

1296 GLARE
Glare, is two directional words, a bright dazzling light comes to the eye and a fierce piercing look from the eye. In both the manners, it is a visual discomfort. In the first case pupils of eyes turn smaller, and for the second, perhaps, enlarged.
The human eye can function quite well over a wide range of luminous environments (within certain time frames or sections), but does not function well if extreme levels of brightness are present in the same field of view (within same time sections).
The glare arises due to the contrast between the aperture and the adjacent field, and can be eliminated by many different methods. The bright light coming from a window or door aperture is from direct solar radiation, due to highly reflective sky, surface or sources in the surroundings.
Glare due to natural light can last for few minutes to few hours, but glare due to road lights, illuminated sign boards and headlights of moving vehicles are best controlled at the face of the building. Shop fronts with glazing combined with dim-lit interiors, reflected the brightly lit objects of the surroundings.
Glares can be reduced by masking the opening or by increasing the interior brightness of the room. The glare can also be avoided, by placing the source of glaring illumination on the back or side faces.
Glare is etymologically linked to harih and hiranyam (Sanskrit), Persian daraniya, Avestan zaranya, Greek khlōros, =all meaning gold, golden, greenish or yellow colour.
Gleam is a small, steady pleasant light. A glimmer is a faint blinking light of twilight stars. Glisten, a softer, Glitter a harder-metallic shines, and Glister is just bearable light. Sparkle and Scintillate, represents bright to varying lights. Coruscate are rapid brilliant flashes, the aurora. Flicker is of varying strobing or pulsating light. Flash is a sudden burst of blinding light.

1337 CONTRAST -PHENOMENA OF PERCEPTION
Contrast occurs as inevitable phenomena of perception. It occurs within same class of perception and also across the perceptions. It is experienced as a happening for a single person, but where the perceptions can be qualitatively defined, and if that can be expressed or transmitted, than it becomes a matter of concurrence.
Contrast is contextual. Contrasts are happenings of scale (size comparisons), time (of eventualizing, order of occurrence, sequencing), distancing (between the object from the perceiver and between set of objects), persistence (of experience, traces of earlier events, trauma, remembrances) and tools (used for perception, magnification, diffusion, intensification).
Perceptions occur simultaneously (typically taste and smell) and are complicated by time-space incoherence. When, stimuli present without any rational, a ‘simultaneous contrast effect’ is an example of time-space incoherence. Very often coherence and incoherence, both are required to acuate the contrast phenomena of perception.
Contrast is intensively used to alter the quality of perception. Some effects are permanent and remain with us till some other contrasting phenomena presents itself. Contrasts dramatize the situation, and so are impressive and an effective manner of conveyance.
The contrast effect was theoretically recognized by 17th C philosopher John Locke. In the early 20th C Wilhelm Wundt identified contrast as a fundamental principle of perception.

1350 SILHOUETTE -minimalist presentation
A silhouette is a minimalist presentation of reality. It’s an outline, boundary, edge, contour, or the profile of a figure, object, built-form or scene. It is limited perception, so a momentary expression, unless recorded.
Silhouettes of the earlier era 18-19 th C, were monochrome captures (with dominance of black, against real white or nonexistent spatial background). It was a dark shape seen against a light surface.
There were TWO intents in capturing the silhouette. One, Silhouettes were side ‘portraits’ giving sufficient detail for recognition of the figure, and, Two, it omitted all the details that were difficult to capture and could reveal too many characteristics of the person, objects or scene. The phrase à la Silhouette came to mean ‘on the cheap’. Silhouettes were used for, Primitive cave art, early Egyptian art, Greek pottery and for Roman coinage. To day outlines are used for road signs and abstracted tabs or button signs to ride over the cultural and language barriers.
Silhouette presentations have two basic elements, the Figure and the Background. And both have seen changes in the past two centuries. The Figures use tonal variations to adjust the contrast with the background and some inclusion of details to form the tonal variates. The Backgrounds recognize the diffusion of the depth of objects, occurring in the backdrop. Architectural scenography distinguishes both the elements.

1432 SIMULTANEOUS COLOUR CONTRAST and VAN GOGH
French chemist Michel Eugène Chevreul recognized the simultaneous colour contrast, in a book ‘The Principle of Harmony and Contrast of Colours’, published in 1839. The book discusses how two different colours ‘affect each other’, when placed adjacent to each other.
The Simultaneous contrast is more apparent when two complementary or contrasting (bright-dark) colours are juxtaposed. Many artists, since then have experimented with the simultaneous contrast effects, such through Pointillism, 40 versions of a single scene, Waterloo bridge over the Thames river by Monet, Impressionism, Fauvism, etc.
Vincent van Gogh‘s, the Café Terrace (Café, le soir or Night Café in Arles) is most remarkable work to expound the colour. Van Gogh (in a letter to his brother) says ‘blood red and dull yellow with a green billiard table in the center, and four lemon yellow lamps with an orange and green glow. Everywhere there is a clash and contrast of the most disparate reds and greens.’
Van Gogh uses a simultaneous contrast of complementary colours to convey strong emotions and a feeling of uncomfortable intensity. ‘I believe that an abundance of gaslight, which, after all, is yellow and orange, intensifies blue.’
Van Gogh says (in a letter to his sister) ‘now there’s a painting of night without the black’. ‘It often seems to me that the night is even more richly coloured than the day, coloured in the most intense violets, blues and greens.’. ‘A mere candle by itself gives us the richest yellows and oranges’.
Van Gogh painted it after studying the night sky and his nightly surroundings, like the café at the Place du Forum. The café is now called ‘Café Van Gogh’.

1441 CONTRASTS
A contrast is an experience emerging from a position with something (and, not necessarily contradictory or against). Contrast needs to be contradictory, (Latin =contrāstāre, or Italian contrastare =to resist, to withstand, both the terms, relate to stare, a predominantly visual phenomenon).
A contrast effect is largely a perceptual phenomenon that works on successive (immediately previous) or immediate basis. Contrast effects occur as juxtaposition, with simultaneity and separation of the time and space factors. ‘The contrast is for enhancement or de-emphasis, relative to normal(?) or of the immediate past events, whose persistence still exists.’ Contrast is a reference that is related to the situation and occasion.
Contrast as the perceptual manifestation is strongly affected by the locations of nodes of perception (typically sound-vision, smell-taste, and tactile feel like pressure, temperature, texture, etc.). The cognitive processes are governed by duration, immediacy, need, intensity, multiplicity of events in the past.
Contrast is often referred to as the background-foreground effect, which are believed to exist due to immediacy, density, diversity and novelty. Horror Vacui and Amor Vacui, are two contrasting terms, for time and space, respectively, relating to fear of emptiness or white, and love for fulfillness or density.
Contrasts in built-forms appear in comparable or related things like, the forms, whole, parts, components, systems and the linkages. But some contrasts are so subtle or formless, as these occur through the narrative, purpose or meaning, enshrined in the entity.

COMPOSITION -Issues of Design 43

Post 771 -by Gautam Shah

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Compositions are conscious arrangements of the same or different elements. Compositions are also realizations that some order exists, but difficult to explain or recreate. A composition is a recognition of geometry or structure and sensorial experiences, both offering a distinctive identity.

Compositional arrangements occur as spatial occupation and also as a happening sequenced in time. The arrangements have elements linked by their nearness, nothingness, masking, other interventions. The compositions have edges where the spread stops. The spread defines the totality of a composition. For the composed entity, to be a manageable arrangement or perceptible recognition is considered finite things. The finality comes through the formal edges, virtual extent and the sensorial limits. Finalities of the bounds help find the inclusive-elements, which also determines what is not part of a composition.

The elements in composition, with some form of similarity, create a pattern. A pattern is a formation of elements, with size variations, mass distribution, implied connection by nearness, tacit directionality and shifting in space or time and most importantly the relationship with the edges or frame.

Spatial compositions have strong reference of real edges, frame, surrounds or physical bounds. Time dominated compositions, like performances, exploit the chronological delivery, rhythm and persistence through traces or remembrances.

Compositions are meant to convey something. The expression may be for a set of audiences, which may be spread across time and space. The expressions have feed-forward or feed-back. The first one, trigger a desired action, and the later one, opens scope for improvisation. Compositions that allow evaluation and correction remain green. Static art-installations are experimental, though unpredictable, but Dynamic art-installations thrive on public interactions.

Arrangements in nature recognized, both as a composition and configuration, as one may not be aware of the evolutionary process, which came the first, the elements or the bounding? Such arrangements are exploited through the Biomimetics, as they offer a ‘model’ of structure, growth pattern and operational systems. These are superficially imitated, by separation of such aspects. The compositional values, however, need to be scaled for real application.

Creative expressions, like painting, sculpture, dance, drama, music, literature, films are designed for certain effects, within a time slot, continuity of events, conjoined random frames. These are fairly comprehensive due to the efficient arrangement of all elements and elimination of the frivolous elements.

Composition is nearly synonymous with the Configuration. A Configuration comes into being after the definition of form or shape, whereas, the composition can emerge irrespective of the form or shape. In other words, a configuration depends on the figuration or the edges. Configuration derives from Latin configurare =to fashion after a pattern, (1550s, from Late Latin configurationem or the nominative form configuratio).

Compositions have few identifiable elements, lines (linearity, angulation, direction, movement, junctions), planes (extent, inclination, surfaces, edges) and solids (forms, shapes, shadows, relevance of views). Traditionally compositions have been, symmetrical, conveying a sense of stability, and, also asymmetrical reflecting a sense of imbalance, movement or dynamism. Linear elements are diversified or consistent, have a start, end and junctions. The linear element go to the edge of the frame or beyond.

Compositions also have vertical, horizontal, inclined and curved entities. Vertical reflects an escape, a horizontal is binding, an inclination represents a direction and a curvature imbalance the composition. Horizontal and Vertical elements, nominally reach the sides, divide the space, yet, connect the variability of the sides. These acknowledge the real or abstract presence of the frame.

The use of non formal entities like, inclined or curvatures forms, movements, crescendo-diminuendo, fading-highlighting, etc., allow one to ignore the presence of physical frame or temporal limit in composition. These are often concealed or occur as a surprise to accentuate their effects. Inclined and curved motifs or their placement in non linear manner, negate the presence of a frame. Abstract presence of frames is also related to the orientation. Orientation is gravity, righteousness, start (or end), base of the crescendo or acceleration, fundamental reference or opportunity and origination of the transposition. All art-works like sculpture, architecture, and performances like drama, dance, yoga, exercises, singing, elocution, etc. are ‘oriented compositions’. Oriented compositions are confirmative, but limitative. Oriented compositions represent our worldly encounters, one of which is the sense of Depth. Depth is experienced by diminution of sensorial perceptions, but same can be caused by perspective, scaling, contrast, directional texture, shadows, etc. Time related performances exploit repetition, blanks, sequencing and juxtaposition to form the depth.

Realistic scenes have Horizon and Skyline. Both relate to position of the eye-level. These horizontal lines, remain parallel to the gravity, and so obvious, restful, stable and serene. Gravity in a composition is confirmed by placing, heavier mass like, terrain, dense occupation, textured or patterned floors, darkness, shadows, pleated (fall) gowns, robes, etc. in the lower section of the composition.

In recent years, Expressions have grown beyond the frame limitations, media fidelity, spatial relevance and static involvement or time-arrange. These have become entities with un-defined or presumed specifics, like visual, literary or performance-based arts. In terms of scale and spread, it has become a participatory installation. The theme or concepts are not affected or owed by the placement, orientation or manner of expression. The manners of expressions have turned to be not just visual realizations, but multi sensorial affectations. The artist’s identity is dissolved, except through the branding by apparent similarities in multiple efforts. Styling is abhorred. Many ‘non-formal means’ are used to cause a mix of subjective or objective experiences. The realizations began with the Brut or outside art, often authored by non-artists, tribal or children (with some deficiencies) and later machine (computer) authored images.

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EDGES -Issues of Design 40

Post -764 by Gautam Shah

An edge is the extreme position one can take, after that there is some opportunity to recede, or tumble down a presumptuous precipice. Dictionaries define the edge, as the outside limit of an object, area or surface. The edge is a real, but could be notional, hypothetical or mythical distinction. The edge is where some change is perceived, and so deviation is experienced. The edge is sharp or blurred, by the degree of contrast across the sides.

Edges relate to sensory perception, which occur due to the limited range of our sensory capacities, which cause aberrations. The distortions in perceiving the edges are primarily the product of distance, which affect the scale and spread (space) and persistence (time). The distortions in perceiving the edges are secondarily, due to the experiences. The edges are sensorial aberrations, but one can use tools to enhance the perception, like spectacles, telescopes, microscopes, hearing aids, amplifiers, etc.

The edge in the sea is a horizon, which, in spite of the ‘closing in of the distance’, seems non-changing. It is the meeting edge of the earth and the sky, a reliable line for determining the latitude and longitude. A horizon is fairly diffused in twilight (dawn and dusk time).

There great many natural elements that are experienced as ‘distant edges’, which on close encounters are lost. Such change-lines include contours in terrains, visual variations of illumination, colour or texture.

An edge is also a temporal actuality, as a presumption of a period and to some extent a range of acceleration-deceleration. The edge in time occurs as targets and limits. These are like hunger, tiredness, work and reach capacities, physical survival, change in postures, and also in the form of remarkable events like death, birth, marriage, rewards, etc. The performance crafts are expressions bound by time, which may be for the content, impact and remembrance. The timed edges are actuated by the multi-sensorial effects, transition or negotiating period between the changes and considerations for bounce-back or mirroring. Edges in time are used for intensifying as much as diffusing the scale.

The spatial as well as temporal boundaries in performing arts have been consistently transgressed. Many means are employed to surmount the time boundaries, such as some motifs, are directional, patterns are progressive or regressive, scenes or compositions are sequential and exposures are conditional. Edges in performing arts relate to the climax of sensorial perception at which diminuendo is realized. In this sense, the edge is a personal experience and not a universal definition.
Spaces have diffused edges, also due to limits of sensorial capacities and ambiguities of perception. Edges are affected due to convergence of several environmental domains. The ‘diffused edges’ conceal variations like depth, surface orientation, materials and variations in illumination.

Edges, of physical nature, however small, offer, either, a rebound or transmission through. The reactions from the edges, like an echo, reverberation or absorption, are rarely exploited except in re-recording and editing. Dialogue delivery, singing, some dance steps and in real entities like night clubs, children play parks, or virtual environments like video games and digital presentations include some rebound or reflection effects, through lingering traces of the original.

In Graphics, the edges are recognized, where brightness (so the colour spectrum) changes, sharply or definitively. CAD and such other graphics’ tools fail to recognize the ‘open-ended fields’. Graphical edges need to close a boundary which forms a field and a define a surface. A similar problem of ‘a discontinuous edge’ in one-dimensional signals (break in time), is known as step or change detection. Edge detection is a basic requirement, for image manipulation, intelligent perception and feature detection-extraction.

‘The edges extracted from a two-dimensional image of a three-dimensional scene can be classified as either viewpoint dependent or viewpoint independent. A viewpoint independent edge typically reflects inherent properties of the three-dimensional objects, such as surface markings and surface shape. A viewpoint dependent edge may change as the viewpoint changes, and typically reflect the geometry of the scene, such as objects occluding one-another’.

Edges and Corners are synonymous, because corners have edges. Cornering someone is equal to pushing someone from the edge into ignominy. Edges, if nearby can be sharp or, are blurred. The edges on Cucoloris (masks on stage or film lights) are made rugged for soft illumination and smooth for harsh lighting.

Edges can be diffused by blurring the boundaries, reducing the contrast between the foreground and background, by including objects of sharper edge definitions, ‘de-flattening’ the overall tonality, masking or camouflage with other objects or effects. Edges can be accentuated by using marking or highlighters at the edges, colour or textural contrast, reducing the depth differences between objects in the scene, and by addition of familiar objects or narratives with clearer details.

An edge is nominally a spatial phenomenon, definitive like a territory or ambiguous like an environment. Photographers and graphic designers frame a scene, which is defining an edge. The frame could be a physical outline or just white space providing additional spread.

Artworks are bound by the edges of the media. These are usually finite edges, but in large natural scapes these could be infinite in extent. Physical media, restrict the work, but pose challenges to overcome. Artworks like sculptures or crafts-wares are completely free of edging confines. Though, for such entities, whatever is to be represented, is intrinsically well managed in terms of scaling or proportioning. Sculptures (free-standing, not designed to be attached to any entity), if created from a pre-existing single material object, do have restricted size, compared with the assembled objects, like the architecture.

Accommodating an art expression within the confines of media, has been a challenge of managing what and how, the spatial content (even if, abstract) is accommodated. The artwork contents are likely to include, directional indicators, like eyesight, arrows, sequenced patterns, the source of illumination, air flow, vanishing perspectives or moving objects, all these need fore-space before the edge. It requires great talent to transgress the edge, if not physically at least deceptively. Edges are dissolved by means like symbols, metaphors, indicators (directions, rhythm, sequencing), etc. Scaling is a comparative statement, and requires distancing for its conduction. Perspective helped inclusion of set of things into the extent of the media. Capriccio art, based on mathematical perspective taught the content management in art, and creation of pseudo architecture of visual effects.

Architecture is essentially a set of edges or bounding elements, which distinguish it, from the vast exterior world. But architecture, cannot survive as a cocoon. It needs to break in-out of the containment with not just entry-exit nodes, but variety of means for environmental exchanges. Architectural entities, in spite of all the broken or compromised edges, reflect, composite totality, if not singular monumentality.

Architectural edges are of many classes. Namely these are, the barriers that form the built space, ingressed or transgressed boundaries, extents forming a participatory arena and sensorially perceived fields. Edges also occur as domain markers, such as cultural, political, reach of means of transportation, supplies, disposal, etc. Architectural edges are some form of containment, so finite. The formatted space controls, obligation, compulsion, awe, physical enforcement, a field of action, reach, a range of sanctimony and use of physical energy. Within such containment few elements have mutual relationships or dependence, which, cannot be dissolved or ignored. So edges or containment arouses a desire to surmount it.

Spaces are perceived, in two manners, the Bounding elements and Positions of objects. Tall edges, proportionately reduce the distance aspect of the space. In cities tall buildings, reduce the perceptive size of the spaces.

BRONZE and BRASS

Post 758 -by Gautam Shah

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Bronze and Brass are often visually very difficult to distinguish. Early metal workers considered both the metals, of the same family. They did not bother to differentiate the metals. They were somewhat aware of the ingredients that caused the qualitative difference, as much as their expertise for the tools and techniques required to work with them.

Brass is an alloy of copper with zinc, whereas Bronze is and alloy of copper with tin. The Zinc and Tin, the distinguishing alloyants were in the form of some co-occurring materials or ores.

The colour shades of these alloys are very similar and range from gold to reddish tinge, and yellowish, depending on the proportion of basic alloying constituents. More over, the colours of patina (occurring on ageing-weathering) range from blackish, dark brown to a dark greenish shades. Brass is however, lighter in colour, whereas, Bronze has warmer, reddish hues.

From a very early date bronze was chiefly used for casting. It was a brittle and rarely hammered or chased. Instead brass or copper, which were malleable, allowed hammering and chasing. Bronze and Brass were cast by the cire perdue, or lost-wax, method. This method of casting are expensive and time consuming, but produced fine edges for shapes) Later, wood dummies or dies were used to create a castable hollow in the sands. Melted bronze on cooling solidifies and expands slightly, filling up the entire mass of the mould.

Brass was preferred for its work-ability. It was treated with material removal processes, like chasing and engraving and shaped by die forging, beating and embossing.

Copper was the first metal used by man during the Neolithic Period, or New Stone Age, since 8000 BC. Copper was followed by bronze and than iron. Iron was widely available and was harder than copper or brass.

There are few alloys that have remained consistently relevant.

Gun metal (G metal) is a bronze, formerly used for ordnance. It is now used for gears and bearings that are to be subjected to heavy loads and low speeds. It withstands atmospheric, steam, and seawater corrosion and is suitable for valves, pump parts, and steam fittings.

Dutch metal is a brass that has colour tone like the gold. The percentage of copper ranges from 85 to 88, rest being zinc. As the zinc content is increased the colour becomes paler. It is very ductile and malleable, Dutch metal is used for preparation of imitation gold leaf for gilding. The surface however tarnishes unless coated with lacquer.

Brass is used for applications where low friction is required such as locks, gears, bearings, plumbing and electrical applications, doorknobs, ammunition, and valves. Bronze is used for springs, bearings, bushings, etc. Bronze exhibits low metal-to-metal friction and so used for spark-erosion.

Brass and Bronze, both have good vibration transmission properties. Bronze is used for striking instruments like bells, cymbals, and plucking strings for guitar and piano. Many musical instruments’ body are made of brass such as the trombone, tuba, trumpet, cornet, euphonium, horn, etc.

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LINKS to Revered FORMS used in Architecture

Post 755 -by Gautam Shah

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575 MORPHED HUMAN and ANIMAL FORMS in ARCHITECTURE https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2019/10/09/575-morphed-human-and-animal-forms-in-architecture/

658 HUMAN and ANIMAL FORMS in DESIGN https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2020/01/16/658-human-and-animal-forms-in-design/

670 ANIMALISTIC or HUMANOID FORMS in DESIGN https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2020/01/30/670-animalistic-or-humanoid-forms-in-design/

703 GROTESQUE or EPIMORPHIC FORMS https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2020/03/17/703-grotesque-or-epimorphic-forms/

738 WORSHIPPING the NATURAL FORMS https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2020/04/28/738-worshipping-the-natural-forms/
771 GARGOYLES GROTESQUE FORMS https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2020/06/06/771-gargoyles-grotesque-forms/
793 FORMS of REVERING https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2020/07/06/793-forms-of-revering/
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1026 ANIMISM https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2021/09/14/1026-animism/
1236 ARABESQUE, MORESQUE and GROTESQUE https://designsynopsis.wordpress.com/2022/02/15/1236-arabesque-moresque-and-grotesque/

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REVERING THE NATURE – GREEN MAN https://interiordesignassist.wordpress.com/2020/10/02/revering-the-nature-green-man/
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