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A Designers Guide to Symmetry

by | Dec 3, 2012 | Articles, Design | 0 comments

Introduction to Symmetry

Finding the proper balance in your designs is an essential part of building quality visual communication. When your design is out of balance, your message gets lost in the confusion. Key elements such as proportion and hierarchy suffer, causing the design to lose its impact. Symmetry is a key factor to having proper balance in your designs. We’ll take a look at symmetry: when, where and why you should use it, and when to abandon it altogether.

Symmetry

Let’s start with the obvious. Symmetry in design refers to the arrangement of the elements on a page that are equal to each other on both sides. Think of a butterfly, a circle, a square, a triangle, or a rectangle. If you fold any of those forms down the center, each side would be equal in size and shape to its opposite side. This is referred to as bilateral symmetry. Shapes like the ones below can all be divided in half symmetrically on their vertical axis.

Symmetry in objects

Symmetry can refer to a lone element, or multiple elements, depending on the situation. If you have multiple elements on a page and they are spread all over the place in no real order, then you won’t have a symmetrical design. In the example below, the entire page as one entity is symmetrical. When you refer to the arrangement of elements on the page, their arrangement is symmetrical.

The face, as well as the rest of the human body is (usually) symmetrical as well. If you draw a line down the middle of a typical human face, you will find that if you were able to fold that image, the eyes would line up as well as the ears, both halves of the nose, and the mouth. The entire body is symmetrical in its design. We have two arms, two legs and a central torso.

facial symmetry

 

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