Repetition and Interruption with Katy Oswald

“That which is static and repetitive is boring. That which is dynamic and random is confusing. In between lies art.” John A. Locke (1632-1704), English philosopher.

The action of repeating something over and over is called repetition. This is true for any item that needs to be remembered or needs to make an impact on someone. Our minds learn through the repetition of thoughts, ideas, and visual clues, which is what makes the technique of repetition a valuable learning and communication tool.

Repetition can be soothing and reassuring the eye makes sense of repetition.Visual harmony is the agreement or balance between design elements. Design elements can be photographs, illustrations, type, headlines, backgrounds and textures. So, if you repeat one of those elements there is immediately a sense of harmony. Two or more identical, or near identical elements are not only an expression of visual agreement, but the repetition also helps to catch and draw the eye into your design.

Berlin-based graphic designer Jan Koepper asks an interesting question to go along with his video installation called “Repetition,” which he calls “an investigation into the subconscious process of repetition.” “Do we act involuntarily in the routine of our daily lives or are we self-determined and able to create something new?”

Some people actively search for routine and repetition as a means to cope with stress or anxiety - which in turn providesthe stability to focus (and be creative). Why is instability and disruption so often cited as a means to creativity or innovation? Emphasis is also referred to as point of focus, or interruption. The artist or designer uses emphasis to call attention to something, or to vary the composition in order to hold the viewers interest by providing visual “surprises.” Interruption or emphasis marks the locations in a composition which most strongly draw the viewers attention. Usually there is a primary, or main, point of emphasis, with perhaps secondary emphases in other parts of the composition. The emphasis is usually an interruption in the fundamental pattern or movement of the viewers eye through the composition, or a break in the rhythm.

Two or more identical, or near identical elements are not only an expression of visual agreement, but the repetition also helps to catch and draw the eye into your design.

Rhythm depends largely upon the elements of pattern and movement to achieve its effects.

The parallels between rhythm in sound/ music are very exact to the idea of rhythm in a visual composition. The difference is that the timed “beat” is sensed by the eyes rather than the ears.

Visual rhythm can be created in a number of ways. Linear rhythm refers to the characteristic flow of the individual line. Accomplished artists have a recognizable manner of putting down the lines of their drawings that is a direct result of the characteristic gesture used to make those lines, which, if observed, can be seen to have a rhythm of its own. Linear rhythm is

not as dependent on pattern, but is more dependent on timed movement of the viewer’s eye.

Repetition involves the use of patterning to achieve timed movement and a visual “beat”.

This repetition may be a clear repetition of elements in a composition, or it may be a more subtle kind of repetition that can be observed in the underlying structure of the image.

Design elements such as using typography that is uniform in size, alignment, and weight rules of repetition. An easy way to create a family or series of designed objects with the same general look is to repeat some of the design elements among the different pieces. Repetition is the same as being consistent. When designing with type, you might consider repeating some aspect of the design throughout the project. By this, we mean that you can repeat anything that someone will recognize visually. (type style, rule, spatial relationship, etc.). Doing so will help to create consistency in your work. If you are creating a series of design pieces - a web site with various styles of pages, or a personal identity system -e.g. business card, stationary, envelope, using the principle of repetition will help to ensure a “family” look.

Repeating the bold type retains your eye on the card. This is a visual trick that designers sometimes use to when creating materials that they want you to look closely at. Ensure that you follow the consistent placement of pictures, choices of type, graphic elements, columns, page numbering, rules when designing. Emphasis can be achieved in a number of ways. Repetition creates emphasis by calling attention to the repeated element through sheer force of numbers. If a color is repeated across a map, the places where certain colors cluster will attract your attention. Visual harmony is the agreement or balance between design elements. So, if you repeat one of those elements there is immediately a sense of harmony.

We were sent around the uni to find patterns of repetition.

We were then sent to find patterns of repetitions using the medium of crayons and paper.

We then had to create repetition using a computer with the word London