Elements of visual communication in graphic design. Visual communications design

Have you ever looked at the sky and noticed an unusually shaped cloud that resembles an animal or a familiar object? Have you ever wondered why and how you make this association just by looking at a bunch of gas? It's all because of how your brain!

Your brain is always trying to make sense of the world by comparing previous experiences or visual patterns and connecting the dots. He has his own "weird" way of perceiving shapes and forms, grouping information, filling in gaps to paint the big picture.

Understanding how your brain works will help you become a wiser designer; master manipulator of visual communication. This can help you determine which visuals are most effective in a particular situation, so you can use them to influence perception, direct attention, and induce behavioral change. This is especially useful when it comes to goal-oriented, problem-solving, intuitive design; user interface design.

“Great designers understand the powerful role that psychology plays in visual perception. What happens when someone's eye looks at your design creations? How does their mind respond to the message your product conveys?
- Laura Boucher, Brand Content Strategist at Autodesk

It is already clear that the visual design and psychology are connected and can influence each other. Gestalt principles can help us understand and control these connections.

What is a gestalt?

Gestalt ("form" in German) is a group of visual perception principles developed by German psychologists in the 1920s. It is based on the theory that "an organized whole is experienced as more than the sum of its parts".

“The whole is not the same as the sum of the parts”
— Kurt Koffka

The principles of Gestalt psychology attempt to describe how people perceive visual elements when certain conditions are applied. They are based on four key ideas:

Revealing

People tend to identify elements first in a general form. Our brain recognizes a simple, well-defined object faster than a detailed one.

reification

Humans can recognize objects even if parts of them are missing. Our brain matches what we see with familiar patterns stored in our memory and fills in the gaps.

Multi-stability

People often interpret ambiguous objects in more than one way. Our brain will jump back and forth between alternatives, looking for certainty. As a result, one point of view will become dominant, while the other will become difficult to see.

permanence

Humans can recognize simple objects regardless of their rotation, scale, and offset. Our brain can perceive objects from different points of view, despite their different appearance.

Here are the Gestalt principles that may contain interesting information about modern interface design.

Proximity

Elements that are close together are perceived as more connected than those that are further apart. Thus, the various elements are considered mainly as a group and not as individual elements.

How to apply the principle of proximity to interface design?

We can use the principle of proximity in interface design to group similar information, organize content, and arrange structure. Its correct use will positive influence on visual communication and user experience.

As the principle states, elements that are related to each other should remain close to each other, while unrelated elements should remain separate. Space plays a vital role here as it creates contrast by directing users' eyes in the right direction. White space can enhance visual hierarchy and information flow, making layouts easier to read and view. This will help users reach their goals faster and dive deeper into the content.

We can apply the proximity principle almost everywhere from navigation, cards, galleries and banners to lists, body text and pagination.

General area

Similar to the principle of proximity, elements located in the same area are perceived as grouped.

How to apply the common area principle to interface design?

The common area principle is especially useful. It can help group information and organize content, but it can also provide content separation or act as a focal point. This improves hierarchy, scannability and helps in the promotion of information.

The principle of a common area can contain many different elements, grouping them into larger groups. We can achieve this using lines, colors, shapes and shadows. It can often be used to bring elements to the fore, indicating interaction or importance.

A good example of a common area would be an interface map template; a well-defined rectangular space with different blocks of information presented as a single entity. good examples also are banners and tables.

similarity

Elements that have similar visual characteristics are perceived as more connected than those that do not have similar characteristics.

How to apply the principle of similarity to interface design?

We tend to perceive elements that are similar to each other as grouped or as a pattern. We may also think that they serve the same purpose. Affinity can help us organize and classify objects within a group and associate them with a specific meaning or function.

There are various ways to make elements appear to be similar and therefore related. These include similarities in color, size, shape, texture, angle, and orientation; with some being more communicative than others (e.g. color > size > shape). When similarity arises, an object can be singled out by being different from the rest; this is called "Anomaly" and can be used to create contrast or visual weight. This can draw the user's attention to a particular piece of content (focus point), helping them find the right element.

We can use the principle of similarity in navigation, links, buttons, titles, calls to action, and more.

Completion of the image (closedness)

A group of elements is often perceived as one recognizable shape or figure. Completion of the image also occurs when the object is incomplete, or its parts are not closed.

How to apply the principle of closure to interface design?

As the principle of closure states, when presenting the right amount of information, our brain will draw conclusions, filling in the gaps and creating a single whole. In this way, we can reduce the number of elements needed to convey information, reduce complexity, and create more attractive designs. Closure can help us minimize visual noise and convey a message while reinforcing the concept in a fairly small space.

We can use the principle of closure to create icons, where simplicity helps convey meaning quickly and clearly.

Symmetry

Symmetrical elements tend to be perceived as belonging to each other, regardless of their distance, giving us a sense of solidity and order.

How to apply the principle of symmetry in interface design?

Symmetrical elements are simple, harmonious and visually pleasing. Our eyes look for these attributes along with order and stability in order to make sense of the world. For this reason, symmetry is a useful tool for transferring information quickly and efficiently. Symmetry helps us focus on what matters.

Symmetrical compositions are satisfying, but they can also get a little boring and static. Visual symmetry tends to be more dynamic and interesting. Adding an asymmetrical element to a symmetrical design can help draw attention. For example, this can be used for calls to action. Symmetry along with healthy asymmetry is important in any design.

It's good to use symmetry for galleries, product displays, listings, navigation, banners, and any content-heavy page.

Continuity (Continued)

Elements located in a line or soft curve are perceived as more connected than randomly ordered or arranged in a hard line.

How to apply the continuity principle in interface design?

Elements following a continuous line are treated as grouped. The softer the line segments, the more we see them as a single shape; our mind prefers the path of least resistance.

Continuity helps us interpret direction and movement through a composition. This happens when aligning elements, and it can help our eyes move smoothly across the page, improving content legibility. The principle of continuity enhances the perception of grouped information, creates order and guides users through different content segments. A discontinuity can signal the end of a section by drawing attention to a new piece of content.

Andrey Baturin, July 27, 2017

Andrey Baturin

It is not the first time to say that the site should not wander around the vast expanses of the web because it simply is. It has its own tasks and goals, which communication with the user helps to achieve. Obviously, he cannot sit quietly in the kitchen with a cup of tea with his visitor. But he has his own ways of communication, which are no worse, and in some ways even better than conversation.

Today, visual communications are extremely advanced and designed to perform several tasks at once. In web design, they play an important role: thanks to their competent use, the user performs targeted actions, can navigate the site spaces well and interact with it.

Visual communication is a type of communication in which the transmission of information partially or entirely relies on vision.

Color

In many areas, color plays a big role. With regards to communication, the perception of colors is similar for all of us, and therefore they easily convey their message to huge audiences.

Red- emotionally, this color is perceived as important, confident and powerful. It grabs our attention more than other colors and, as a result, is used for warnings and important announcements. In website design, color can carry the following emotional messages: passion, energy, importance, strength, blood, etc. You need to use it wisely, otherwise there is a risk of scaring off the audience, which seeks to leave the “dangerous” zone full of aggressive tint as soon as possible.

Orange- a cheerful and cheerful neighbor of red color in the spectrum. Color is associated with energy, youth, movement and cheerfulness.

Yellow- cheerful, juicy and sunny color. Its use and meaning depend on the selected hue. So, for example, bright yellow carries positive energy, and its darker shades, such as gold, refer us to noble and wise antiquity.

Green- a transitional color from yellow to blue, from warm to cold, which combines the characteristics of both colors and is on the verge of relaxing and invigorating. The result is a balanced and stable color. Depending on the shade, it is used for various purposes: brighter colors symbolize freshness, environmental friendliness, and darker ones symbolize abundance and luxury.

Blue- cold color, the value of which also depends on the shade used. Lighter shades carry the meaning of security, openness and friendliness. This is especially noticeable in the world social networks, where every second developer chooses them. Darker tones evoke in us associations with reliability and inspire confidence, as a result, they are in great demand among corporate sites.

Violet- Historically, purple is associated with us as truly royal, with a hint of luxury. Again, to the difference in shades: if light ones, such as lilac, evoke feelings of romance and lightness, then dark shades are the epitome of rich chic.

Black- the strongest of the neutral colors, and is used on almost every site. Its meaning depends on the colors used with it in the palette. As a base color, it can be associated with evil and aggression, but for most sites, black is used to create a sense of sophistication. To achieve the effect of elegance, black is used together with white.

White- White color in Western culture is associated with kindness and innocence. Most often on websites, it is used as a background for minimalistic design. The abundance of white creates a feeling of lightness and purity.

Brown- natural color: it surrounds us in nature and is inseparable from it. Brown conveys warmth, integrity and honesty. Lighter shades are associated with comfort and coziness, while darker ones carry signs of conservatism and are more often considered masculine.

Pictograms

A pictogram is a sign denoting an object or phenomenon, using its most important recognizable characteristic features.

It is usually presented rather schematically. The image of a shopping cart in the corner of the online store page is an icon, a question mark next to the word “Help” is an icon, a gear for the settings menu is an icon. The site communicates with us using these icons, using the space of the page blocks in an ergonomic way. The principle of their work is based on the associations that images evoke in us: if lightning is drawn here, then there is electricity there, and electricity hurts, and you can die ... so I probably won’t get into this transformer box.

Banners

Banners - a graphic image of an advertising nature.

Can be both a static picture and sticky interactive element. Banners usually contain a link to the website of the advertised product.

There are several types of banners:

Static images- the usual, well-known and gradually disappearing banner-picture.

Animated Images- banners that can sparkle and shimmer, tell whole stories and generally be quite sticky. Due to the animation, they attract more attention than the previous view, and as a result, they are more effective. But the main thing is not to overdo it, otherwise the abundance of animation will bring users to epilepsy, and there will be no one to perform targeted actions :(

richtext- Literally “rich in text” banners are text blocks. They are the most nondescript of all types, but you should not remove them from the arsenal. There are cases where colorful advertising is simply inappropriate.

Interactive- the block most beloved by users, in which there is an opportunity to have some fun by feeding, for example, the cat on the Whiskas advertising banner, or play a real mini-game as part of an advertising campaign. Such banners rarely go unnoticed.

Banners have several tasks:

The task of selling goods is to attract, interest and push a potential client to a target action (going to a website, ordering a product or service, etc.).

Branding task or image task is to increase brand awareness and the formation of emotional associations.

We live in a visual-communicative, competitive world, the main value of which is information. Now not only manufacturing firms and those that provide services compete with each other - their information and image resource is fighting for spheres of influence on a potential consumer. It should be noted that social problems (information about them) also exist in the competition for the attention of society to themselves.

Visual communications- communication (transmission of information) through visual language (images, signs, images, typography, infographics) on the one hand and visual perception (organs of vision, psychology of perception) on the other.

"Visual communications", "communicative design" are quite new concepts in design. Signs of visual communication are created in accordance with the characteristics of the subject-spatial environment for which they are intended. Signs form an integral system with common semantic and graphic characteristics, which creates the need to introduce restrictions on the type of space.

In an everyday, vulgar sense, visual communication can be defined as what I see. However, today visual communication is extremely developed and complicated both at the level of language and at the level of perception due to the active development of visual art and electronic and digital technologies.

Visual communications in modern society are increasingly moving away from the role of a passive intermediary, "accumulating" codes and (especially in advertising) are acquiring a pronounced manipulative character.

Visual communications carried out a powerful expansion into all spheres of culture and fixed in the operational field such concepts as visual text, visual language, visual culture. Visual communications are one of the basic components of modern mass media that create a visual interface for the transmission and consumption of information, as well as transforming and translating, in turn, any information into a visual language (images and press portraits, photos from the scene and a television picture in real time mode).

In visual communications, the results of the processes will be:

Sculpture, Design, Architecture (visual-object procedural type);

Graphics, Painting, Photography (visual-graphic procedural type);

Mechanics, Optics, Electronics (Visual-dynamic procedural type).

It should also be noted that such means of visual communications as theater, cinema, the Internet combine the properties of verbal and visual communications, so they can be attributed to the procedural-dynamic type of communications.

Based on the foregoing, the General system of visual communication can be described in the following scheme: Subject (Author) - Type of communication (Idea) - Type of communication (Process) - Result of communication (Object).

The communicative view of the visual-graphic system is built in the following chain: Author (Graphic designer) - Communicative view (Visual) - Process type (Visual-graphic) - Objective result (Graphics). It is also not difficult to build other visual communication systems.

However, it is necessary to define what visual communication is. Visual communication is a system of composite elements united by communication links. From this definition it follows that the process of designing visual communications consists of two main parts that make up the essence of design.

Rice. 1.1. General scheme of communication

Today, much attention is paid to the design of the environment space. One of the actual elements of space structuring is information carriers, signs of visual communication, representing various data to a person. Visual information systems cover a wide range of problems: they contribute to orientation, assessment of the aesthetic and emotional features of the surrounding space. Most of the studies of visual communications are devoted to the urban environment, but the problem of creating information blocks in the tourist environment, where it is also necessary, is not fully disclosed, it is required to identify the features of the introduction of information signs into the natural environment.

Photography, cinematography, television, print design, computer networks and their software- this is just an incomplete list of forms of social activity that generate what is currently commonly called a) "visuality", the spectacle of any object of reality, b) "visualization of information", or the creation of an analogue of something or someone in visual visual form, c) "visual culture", examples of human ability to image and visual message, etc. In this series there is a place for the term "visual communication", which can be defined as the transfer / reception of any knowledge and information in the direct display mode or transformation into a visual image.

The fact that visual communication today is becoming a powerful mental resource for social change is eloquently evidenced by many phenomena of Russian reality. So, over the past twenty years, our country has turned from the most reading in the world into a "society of TV viewers." Television has become the main channel of information for the majority of our citizens. At the same time, it functions as a system of commercial enterprises, the purpose of which is high profitability. To this end, not only the material and technical base of television broadcasting is being transformed and improved, but also the composition, structure and content of information resources. However, many Russians today use not only a TV, but also other screen devices: a personal computer, video equipment, a home theater, a portable player, a mobile phone - technical devices that turn visual communication into a purely individualized way to meet social needs.

Public means of communication, multimedia technologies for creating visual images and images, being visually recognizable fragments of reality, real or fictional, activate, first of all, various aspects of people's emotional experience, contribute to the development of stereotypes of identification with a particular social group. The perception and cognition of such information sometimes does without reduction to primary linguistic signs, verbal "equipment of the mind", which contributes to the formation of a person's ideas about the world around him and the forms of realization of his social activity.

The visual-spectacular information and communication content of the modern social space is a weighty reason for formulating the problem of visual communication as one of the specific resources of social identification.

To be perceived and competitive, information is presented in the form of emotional visual messages, which, in turn, form a visual text. Visual messages (texts), the carriers of which are: sign, poster, advertising card, label, packaging, video, visual presentation, etc. - "entwined" with a network of ideas, ideas, associations accumulated throughout the history of human existence. A significant place begins to be occupied by concepts and ideas that are not based on realistic, logical calculations-settings. Normativity, logocentrism, characteristic of the perception of a classical work, are not suitable for understanding a modern visual product, which, as a rule, has a multidimensional content and an orientation towards multilayered perception.

So, to the extent that the product of graphic design is a sign or sign system, and the quality of the message primarily depends on the quality of the sign, its creation/perception requires knowledge of the language and a sense of context. So, the visual language of graphic design as a sign system that provides the process of communication needs to be comprehended at the present stage of development.

Analysis of recent research and results. In the 1960s, one of the most popular socio-philosophical doctrines in the West was the communication explosion theory of the Canadian professor M. Mayupoen. In the history of the development of society, he identifies two major communication revolutions, the first of which began with Gutenberg's printing; the second marked by "electronic and electrical media" XX century. The reality or environment behind the terminology of M. Mayupoen is not what it is, but how young it is designed and represented to a person by means of communication. In the 1990s, P. Rodkin, relying on M. Mayupoen, projects his own theory, considering graphic design as the basis for a new communicative revolution.

Already in the 1970s, O. Chernevich emphasized that the communicative function comes to the fore in graphics that serve pedagogy (optimal visualization of educational material), science (visual languages ​​of mathematics, physics, logic), transport, etc.. The researcher predicts that with the development of science and technology, in connection with the information crisis and a number of other factors modern world, life in the future industrial society will be impossible without optimal information visualization.

In his monograph "The Language of Graphic Design", analyzing Western concepts, in particular, L. Leizegant, who defines graphic design as "a strategy for visualizing abstract information", O. Chernevich draws attention to what L. Leizegant understands graphic design as " optimal strategy processing information, which is itself neutral, in the direction of its specific interpretation", and "the task of the designer becomes the transformation of information into visual signals that are interpreted unambiguously" . It is L. Leizegant who introduces and explains the definition of graphic design as a “functional” or “analytical communication strategy”.

Focusing on the problem of visualization in graphic design, O. Chernevich emphasizes the need for the existence of a "visual setting", the meaning of which lies in the fact that "it makes the object of the installation - the visual country of the world - important, significant, the one that makes sense." "The visual setting gives the world to a person in the form of a text - this is its significance".

O. Chernevich considers the text as a semiotic concept: any object that is perceived and understood as a system of signs, explaining that “the material substance of an object-sign can be very different, and as a text in semiotics, written and oral language, sequence graphic or sculptural images, architectural complexes, musical phrases, household items, gestures, etc.” .

According to O. Chernevich, "a visual text, in fact, is any object that is perceived visibly and as a sign system." In her opinion, "both a match label, and a corporate identity, and a television screensaver, and a train schedule - all these are visual texts of varying complexity that carry a certain message and are guided by its visible perception" .

The design of the subject environment as a visual text contributed to the deepening of the value attitude towards it. She points out that “since design allows you to change the visual accounting of the world, the designer must be able to distinguish between visually significant and non-significant forms, and for this it is necessary to have, in addition to a visual setting, visual values. .

O. Chernevich notes that it is in this sense that design is usually understood as visualization, i.e. as a process of visual ordering of the world and combating visual chaos [ibid.]. “The entire objective world must have visual value!” - this is the slogan of professional design, declares O. Chernevich [ibid]. Per O. Chernevich, "a conscious attitude to design a text-message, system and environment as a visual text is a visual design" .

“The selection of visual text as an independent design object is primarily associated with applied graphics and graphic design,” the researcher makes a remark, “where a clear targeting of information is necessary condition normal operation".

She also draws attention to the fact that visual text can be not only an inscription, symbol, image, etc., but also a car, interior, street, if they are clearly oriented towards the consumer's visual installation. Pointing out that in relation to a set of individual texts, language is their system (code, invariant), the researcher distinguishes two categories of practical design: designing visual communications and designing a visual language as such, emphasizing a wide and tactful command of visual language, as far as a designer adheres to and develops the rules of linguistic behavior.

It is clear that the visual language of graphic design has its own structure, formed by a diverse, endless configuration of expressive language units. Although in the plastic arts it is quite difficult to single out the minimum discrete units, on the basis of which it would be possible to build an appropriate sign system. In the pictorial order, there are no clearly defined units that could be brought together once and for all in a specific catalog. For example, in graphic design (the latter is in the vicinity of image creation and design), a dot can mean both itself and many other things. Its meaning each time depends on the specific formulation of the problem, it is always contextual.

The fundamental difference between the visual language of graphic design and the language as such is the fatigue that graphic design does not have its own alphabet (a finite number of phoneme letters), as well as a finite number of words endowed with generally accepted meanings. their absence makes it much more difficult to comprehend his visual language as a system, a system of codes, where point, line, spot, texture, color in endless configurations form plastic messages. Regardless of the complexity of the invention of such a system, artists and philosophers (V. Kandinsky, L. Prieto, B. Kokula, K. Peyrut, etc.) tried to develop a plastic language with which one could “read” works of art.

Therefore, considering the visual language of graphic design as a communication system, let's turn to the key concepts: communication, communication, language, sign, message, text, in order to find out their specific characteristics in the context of graphic design tasks.

So, communication is one of the types of general directed communication. It is carried out with the help of signals, signs directed from one object to another, and finds its expression in communicative acts of a natural and social nature. Diverse in form, communication is basically the same - the essence of communication is the transmission of a message, while information does not own this immediacy. The communicative process can be either narrowly directed, when the information is intended for single information receivers, or broadly directed, when the transmission of a message is intended for many systems at the same time. A subset of receiving systems is involved in the process.

It should be emphasized that it is the multidirectional process of transmitting messages that is inherent in graphic design.

However, information exchange becomes possible only under conditions of significant non-identity of the information potentials of different systems. Moreover, such a difference should exceed the resistance of the information channel. The higher the advantage, the more intense the information flow. That is why graphic design is forced to constantly develop new visual stereotypes. Because, outdated, biased stereotype becomes the reason for the suspension of the information flow.

Communication is a tool of social management. This tool turns out to be universal and, manifesting itself in different ways, is an integral social formation, a universal mechanism of social interaction.

Thus, the visual language of graphic design is a tool of social management, and the better it is built, the higher the degree of usefulness.

Social communication is sometimes identified with the concept of communication. In the article “Art in the system of social communication”, V. Mitina, referring to M. Kagan, emphasizes that communication is a one-way connection, and communication is an intersubjective relationship, i.e. such activity of the subject, which is addressed to another subject, and not to the object. According to M. Kagan, the attitude towards another subject is made up of equal practices as material, practical communication of people in their common labor activity, and at the informational level - as spiritual communication. So, in the process of communication, what takes place is not the transfer to another of what you yourself know, but the general production of general ideas, ideals, views, etc., i.e. achievement by common efforts of a spiritual community.

The system of communication links not only covers personal channels of interaction between people, but also includes the continuity and transfer of values ​​from one generation to another. According to O. Kazinov, "without an ordered, formalized and therefore limited discipline of communication, there is no possible community of people as participants in a real historical process."

Language is a tool and a universal means of communication. It is she who allows you to save and transfer the accumulated experience from one generation to another. Language is a means of storing and transmitting information, one of the ways to control human behavior. Accordingly, a visual language is such a language system that uses visual messages to transmit and store information, which are composed of specific discrete units (signs) combined into peculiar structures that have specific formal characteristics. The visual language of graphic design is a means of presenting information, where the quality of information is determined by a sign / system of signs.

A sign is a unit of a language system, an elementary component that preserves the features of the language system as a whole. According to the generally accepted understanding, a sign is a unity, a stable connection of a certain linguistic content and linguistic expressiveness, with the help of which the content can be expressed and retained in a sign. However, according to the thought of O. Chernevich, according to the fundamental unity of content and expressiveness plans in graphic design, any definition of a sign using these categories is tautological and carries nothing but a statement about the existence, differences and connections of these plans.

The visual message, to some extent, acts as the primary form of visual language. In graphic design, it is also a sign that has an unconditional primacy over meaning, and becomes separated from the real communication process and independent of its participants (the one who transmits and the one who receives). Thanks to the message, what is said becomes independent both of the author and the recipient, and of what is being said. Embodied in texts, messages create an open context, a boundless textual field, where each text is included in a kind of “mirror game”, referring to other texts, without the ability to understand which of them is primary.

For example, a poster is a classic visual message of graphic design, and an environmental poster exhibition is a visual text from this issue. The totality of exhibition events on environmental topics, their reflection in the press, television, and the Internet constitute a visual hypertext.

Today, the text is the entire socio-cultural reality, the text of symbols, signs, artifacts, where the leading place is occupied by texts built on visual media embodied in printing, multimedia products, on the screen. If a verbal description is characterized by the duration of perception, then in visual texts the content is close to the surface, it is visible, visualized. If in the 20th century the content of a sign in graphic design is almost unambiguous, and text is understood as an ordinary verbal text, then in the 21st century visuality is replacing the textual written cultural code.

Now we should consider the stages of the communication process and pay attention to their specific features in graphic design.

First stage: formulation of the information concept. In graphic design, it starts from setting a task and creating a concept, i.e.: what exactly and what information needs to be conveyed. At the same time, the designer must clearly understand the purpose of the message and its motivation, namely: why is it carried out and what should be achieved; understand the context (be aware of the relevance of the concept to a particular situation).

Second step: coding. He begins the process of sketching, which can be called the primary process of encoding information. As a result, the concept of communication is transformed into a visual message, where the visual message becomes the product of the information encoding process. The effectiveness of coding depends on the ability (talent) of the designer to turn information that is intended to be disseminated into expressive visual signs. Here, in addition to the talent of the designer, the degree of his awareness of information and the socio-cultural environment (context) is important. At this stage, the optimal channel for transmitting the message is best established. A communication channel is a means by which information is transmitted. The choice of a communication channel is influenced by such factors: the nature of the message that is being transmitted; the type of characters that are used to encode information; the weight and attractiveness of the channel for the addressee; specific advantages or disadvantages of one or another type of channel. To improve the effectiveness of communication, it is recommended to use two or more channels to transmit the same message. For example: printed advertising products and a set of banners on the site.

It should be pointed out that in graphic design, a visual message is a design object and a communication channel: logo, poster, label, packaging, etc.

Third stage: message transmission. It will be transmitted over the channel and represents the delivery of the message from the sender to the addressee. At this stage, the influence of obstacles is significant. Obstacles are anything that distorts the essence or content of a message. Noise almost always accompanies communications.

Noises in graphic design require separate consideration, however, it should be pointed out that this is, first of all, the context in which the message is perceived.

Fourth stage: decoding. Means shifting the received message into a form understandable for the recipient. When the characters chosen by the sender have the same meaning for the recipient of the message, when he understands what the sender meant. Sometimes the addressee interprets the essence and content of the message differently than the sender understood it.

In graphic design, this is a correct, undistorted perception of the information concept, which in practice is expressed in the choice of attractive packaging by the addressee, the reaction to an environmental poster, the desire to attend this or that other concert, to purchase a magazine; this is a planned reaction to an advertising poster, poster, motivation for buying, services, etc.

The final stage of communication: feedback. A process in which the sender and receiver switch roles. In the process feedback the recipient tells the sender how he understood the content of the message. Of course, the presence of feedback increases the duration of communication, complicates the process, but increases its efficiency, provides confidence in the correct interpretation of the concept of communication.

Regarding graphic design, advertising agencies and marketers analyze the effectiveness of the message. They keep statistics on which channel works best, compare the information product with the original information concept, and determine the degree of mutual understanding. In general, the success of the message lies in the effectiveness of the information concept, a clear definition of the language strategy and context, and the successful choice of the transmission channel.

"Multimedia, - Russian scientists M. Lukina and I. Fomichova believe, - is the ability to transmit messages in different sign systems - verbal, graphic, sound, photo, video, animation." Those. information acquires new forms of display, storage, it is transformed into different digital formats. "The basis of modern multimedia systems is computer technology for combining informational text data, sound signals and images in digital formats, which helps to reproduce them in display, print or other display, storage, copying and transmission without loss of quality through various channels and networks of information high-speed communications" .

After analyzing all these definitions, we can come to the conclusion that a multimedia unit as such does not exist. Multimedia is an association, a combination of information units, which are visual, auditory and audiovisual content.

Visual content is formed by filling with visual content, this is the production and consumption of information in a visual form; the process of exchange, communication, communication between the addressee, channel and recipient at the level of visual receptors.

If we build a complete definition, then it will look like this: "Visual content is the information content of a mass communication medium (in our case, this is a web resource) expressed using a visual language: an image, signs, infographics, video, etc." . This content forms a new communication channel, which in the 20th century was called "visual communications". We should not forget about visual perception, which will play an outstanding role in this process.

Classification of visual content. There are many classifications of different types of information, however, two remain relevant for the definition of the concept of "visual content":

1. Behind the way of perception by a person. Depending on the way information is received, five types of information are distinguished: visual (or visual), auditory (or auditory), olfactory, gustatory, tactile.

2. According to the processing methods, information is divided into numerical, textual, graphic and sound.

Behind the nature of information, visual oblique can be commercial (banners, animations), entertaining (photography, illustration, and informational and infographics, video report) content, expressed in different formats at the same time. An example is the information and analytical portal ua.korrespondent.net. On the main page in the center - a logo with the site menu: on the right side - an advertising banner: a little lower - a multimedia section, placed in a separate display; on the left side - a photo of an important event of the day, etc.. This is a typical lowland of content, characteristic of the day of all information portals.

In the context of multimedia types in Internet journalism, researcher V. Ryabichev developed the following classification: Audio (WAV, MP3. RAM): Video (MPEG. AVI. MOV): Graphics: animation (GIF), image (JPEG). Flash presentations (a complex object developed in 1986 by FutureWave using vector graphics).

As you can see, the developer in his classification proceeded from the multimedia content format. Nevertheless, there is no mention of the text as part of multimedia, which B. Potyatishik calls it in his multimedia hierarchy of formats, it has such text (supplemented with graphics and photos), video, audio. The scientist considers graphics and photos to be an addition to the text part, and not independent components of the media. From this it means that the visual content in its interpretation is the text that complements the illustration.

Let's give our classification of visual content formats: visual: text, infographics, photo, animation; audio: audio: audiovisual: video, animation, which is classified as both visual and audiovisual because it is sometimes accompanied by sound. Animation is created in GIF format. "GIF. - the idea of ​​V. Ryabichev and E. Karanov. - is one of the many digital image formats, which has a small size, high image clarity, nevertheless operates with a limited number of colors, namely: 256.

Thanks to animation effects, GIF fell into the category of the most popular graphic formats. The principle of creating these effects is based on the use of several static images-frames in turn. For each frame, the time of its illumination on the screen is indicated. Frame sequence can be looped. We often see this technology among advertising messages on the web.

"Computer animation, - I. Mashchenko notes, revealing the essence of this method of displaying information, is a way to create animated (drawn) film and video files using computers. Using software, as well as data banks (archives, pictorial information) and drawings made by on an electronic tablet, you can get on the display screen landscapes, scenes in which you can constantly make changes (relative to the image scale, angle, perspective, lighting, etc.) ".

Conclusions. In most cases, people now perceive information visually. This is due to the natural structure of their body, as well as the development of technological means focused on visual images. Logotype, clip scanning of the environment is inherent in our contemporary due to the global spread of visual images created by entrepreneurial structures, the main motive of which is the promotion of a product or service, making a profit. The Internet is saturated with banners, the streets with big boards, radio and television with audiovisual clips. In addition, with the help of modern technical aids, visual products can be created and replicated.

Visual content is a composite multimedia that, together with textual content, is part of the overall content of the web space. This computer technology for displaying information defines the peculiarity of Internet media. A huge array of text, combined with its interactivity and efficiency, pushes this means of communication to the forefront.

In the global network, it is the content that represents the main percentage of information that is displayed in different formats (video, image, photo, animation, etc.). They provide the media with new opportunities and advantages to convey messages to the target audience.

If we talk about practical application, then visual content is widely used in Internet communication. Practice is ahead of theoretical developments. There are a number of problems with the terminological basis of this computer-based method of displaying information. which is negatively indicated in the process of its study in higher educational institutions, in the preparation of the scientific literature necessary for this. Today, only a dozen professional publications can be named, in which the terminological base of this area is being developed. Domestic science needs national terminology, because this is a sign of the formation of the information society in Russia.

Thus, graphic design is a functional, analytical system for visualizing information. Its tasks are to transform information into visual signs, which should be interpreted as expressively as possible. Accordingly, the visual language of graphic design is a means of presenting information. The sign / system of signs determines the quality of information, the better the sign, the higher the degree of usefulness. The visual language of graphic design is a sign system: it uses visual messages, which are signs, to convey information. In turn, the messages form a visual text, which, together with many other texts, constitutes the visual hypertext of the information environment.

The language of graphic design is a tool of social control. It ensures the continuity and transmission of values ​​from one generation to another. Without an ordered, formalized, and therefore limited discipline of communication, there is no possible community of people as participants in the historical process. Language is a tool and a universal means of communication. The effectiveness of communication lies in the coherence at all its stages: the creation of an information concept according to the context, the definition of a language strategy, the choice and creation of a transmission channel that ensures the effective perception of information, and analytics.

Further scientific research is carried out in the direction of studying the visual language of graphic design from the standpoint of plastic syntax.

Visual communications

In effective advertising, the transmission of ideas and feelings is carried out with the help of not only words, but also visual images. These images are usually used in conjunction with words to represent a creative concept. How would you showcase the small size of things like a computer chip or a new miniature hard drive? IBM solves this problem with the help of a visual analogy: the new drive is no larger than egg Or a newly hatched chick.

Words and images provide different message effects. For example, visual images in advertising Thomasville generate associations. They connect the image of Hemingway and his favorite exotic places with the style of the furniture. Even radio can evoke mental images with its specific language and sound effects. Designers focus on six key reasons for using visuals in advertising:

1. To attract attention. Usually visual images attract and hold attention better than words.

2. Fixation in memory. Visual images are fixed in the mind because people usually remember messages as visual fragments, as key images that are easily accumulated in memory.

3. Strengthening the belief. Seeing is believing, as advertising demonstrates IBM, therefore, visual images enhance the credibility of the advertising message.

4. Telling interesting stories. Stories told through visuals capture and hold viewers' interest.

5. Fast communication. Pictures tell a story faster than words, ads show Handgun Control. A picture provides instant communication, while a verbal/written message must be deciphered by consumers word by word, sentence by sentence, line by line.

6. Fixing associations. To emphasize the difference between non-differentiated products that are not inherently capable of arousing strong consumer interest, advertisers often try to associate such products with visual images that represent lifestyles and types of users, as shown in an advertising campaign. Thomasville Furniture.

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Definition 1

Visual communications are a type of interaction in which the transfer of information is carried out using sign systems, images, infographics, and images.

The main difference of this type of communicative interaction is the fact that communication is wholly or partially relies on vision.

In modern society, visual communications are at the stage of their intensive development, realizing several urgent tasks. The over-intensification of the pace of development of this type of interaction is due to the active introduction of modern information and communication technologies into social reality, which facilitate the processes of transmitting visual images. Visual communication today is an integral part of the activities of the media, social media, etc.

Approaches to understanding the essence of the definition of visual communications in the framework of social psychology

Visual communications are one of the fundamental categories of social psychology. Within the framework of the indicated direction of scientific knowledge, this type of interaction is an interpersonal communication based on visual, optical interaction. The instruments of non-verbal communication are movement signals - gestures, facial expressions, postures, eye contact, gait, as well as physiognomy - the structure of the body, the structure of the face, skull. These means of interaction organically complement verbal signals, help to clarify and correct the meaning of what was said.

Functions of visual communications

Visual communication tools successfully implement a number of relevant functions, including the following:

• informational - the function of transmitting information messages;
• expressive - the ability not only to convey the meaning, but also the subjective evaluation of the meaning of the message;
• pragmatic - the ability to broadcast communicative attitudes that have a certain impact on the recipient.

Optical-Kinetic Visual Communications Subsystem

The implementation of visual communicative interaction largely depends on the appearance of the interlocutor, his facial expressions, facial expressions, gestures, postures, body movements, etc., which form the optical-kinetic subsystem of communication.

Definition 2

In modern scientific literature, kinetic gestures are understood as a set of movements of the hands, head, and other parts of the body that accompany the speech of a person, emphasizing the meaning of what was said.

More than a million bodily signals are distinguished, signs that can be used by a person in the process of interaction. Gestures can emphasize the meaning of what was said, enhance the expressiveness of the informational message. At the same time, inappropriate use of gesticulation can give out confusion, uncertainty of the communicant, possible lies contained in the words. Indirect evidence that a person is telling a lie is such gestures as licking the lips, rubbing the eyelids, avoiding a direct look, protecting the mouth with a hand, an expressionless voice, etc.

There are a number of gestures that testify to the openness or closeness of a person for communication. Open, open palms are evidence that a person is set up for frank, sincere communication. On the contrary, clasped fingers, as a rule, act as a negative signal that betrays disappointment, the desire to suppress emotions. Grasping the wrist with a hand can act as a signal of nervousness, insecurity of a person. Crossed arms give out a negative or defensive position of one of the actors of the interaction. Intertwined fingers can signal disappointment, hostility, nervous tension.

Thus, visual communications in social psychology are an integral component of interpersonal communication, organically complementing, clarifying the meaning of a verbal message, and in some cases completely refuting it.