Gestalt theory involves how the human brain organizing thoughts and processes to solve problems. As humans, we are naturally inclined look for ways to organize visual elements into groups, finding connections between objects or shapes. We perceive their entirety before we see the individual objects. This leads to us forming new shapes that are a sum of individual parts. Gestalt actually means “unified whole.”
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SIMPLICITY - People will perceive and interpret ambiguous or complex images as the simplest form(s) possible. Also known as the Law of Prägnanz
SIMILARITY - Objects with shared visual characteristics are automatically taken to be related. The more alike they appear, the more likely they are to be construed as belonging to a group. Similarity is not derived from what an object is, but what it looks like.
PROXIMITY - Objects that are closer together are perceived as having a stronger relationship than objects that are further apart.
CLOSURE - The ability of the brain to complete a shape or object, even when it is not contained or closed fully. The secret to achieving a perfect closure is to provide sufficient information, so the eye can fill in the rest. If too much information is given, the need for closure is subdued, while if too much is missing, the eye perceives elements as separate parts instead of a whole.
CONTINUITY - Elements arranged on a line or curve are perceived as more related than elements not on the line or curve. We tend to perceive these objects on a curve as a united smooth path rather than see the complexities in it.
SYMMETRY - We will tend to perceive symmetrical objects that form around their center as figures on a background. We tend to close these forms to make a single object.
In the FIGURE-GROUND effect, the brain tries to separate the perceived world into two categories: a figure, which is the object of focus, and a ground, which is the periphery, or background.
- STABLE - We perceive the figure and ground in one way. This means it’s clear what’s figure and what’s ground. This can be helpful in design because figure elements receive better attention and are more remembered than ground elements. Stable figure-ground usually implies a unified design.
- REVERSIBLE - Both figure and ground attract the viewer’s attention equally. This creates tension, whereby either can overtake the other, leading to a dynamic design. Reversible figure-ground usually implies tension -- which is which?
- AMBIGUOUS - Elements can appear to be both figure and ground simultaneously. They form equally interesting shapes, and the viewer is left to find their own entry point into the composition. Ambiguous figure-ground usually implies action, as all space is active.
