Notebook

Notebook, 1993-

RELATIONSHIPS - Gradation

Compositions with
Gradation








Gradation refers to the systematic alteration of the shape, size, position, direction, or proportion of a form. The forms produced by these changes are then arranged in sequence, with smooth transitions between forms.

Using forms in gradation can be positioned according to a regular repetition structure with gradual variations. Unit forms can also be positioned with increasing or decreasing density.

[It is a much stricter kind of discipline than similarity within a design . . . . ] It demands not just gradual change, but gradual change in an orderly way. It generates optical illusion and creates a sense of progression, which normally leads to a climax or series of climaxes.

Gradation is a daily visual experience. Things that are close to us appear large and those that are far from us appear small. If we look at a tall building with a facade of regular window patterns from a very low angle, the change in size of the windows suggests a law of gradation.

[Wong, Wucius. Principals of Two-Dimensional Design. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, 1972.]




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