Divine Proportion
May 29th, 2008I’m a big advocate of using divine proportions and the rule of thirds in any type of design work. I think any well constructed grid system should start from one of these proportions. They make a design more balanced, structured, compelling and far more communicative.
Here’s a great article on Smashing Magazine on both subjects.
Chris Rusak
Hey, great reference material. Thanks for putting it out there for everyone to brush up on.
Jonathan Haggard
The Golden Ratio and Fibonacci Sequence are essential to any designer or artist. Since artist attempt to duplicate nature the most inherent idea they can have in mind is a ratio that exists in so many natual beings and components.
Also if you haven’t already, watch Pi.
semioticmonkey
It was about time!
It seem to me, old web guy, the new ‘web designers’ generation lacks the minimum required of the design area of the prepositional phrase, being concentrated on the ‘web’ part of it (ahem. maybe following the stupid idea that ‘design’ is messing around with graphics).
More and more i’m pleased to see these concepts makes their way in the web field.
ps. i’m not sure ‘art’ is a attempt to duplicate nature. It is a ‘romantic’ (as in ‘romanticism’) idea and back then someone was already hungry about this mantra (read the third Kantian Kritik to the Art dedicated, as an example).
In the XX° century is sure not true. I mean, read (and see) Russian Constructivism, Francis Bacon, Bauhaus, Giger etc.
Well, in all honesty, the same concept of Nature is almost vague. The QED vision of photons or the Relativity? Or, again, the last TOE (Strings Theory)?
If we are not sure about what is nature how can we attempt to duplicate it?
Jonathan Haggard
Nice and informative post, but duplicating nature wasn’t founded by the Romantics; Ancient Romans and Egyptians attemted to duplicate and idealise nature in their sculptures (and to a crude degree their paintings).
Very interesting point about new foundings in the world around us, challenging our perceptions of nature and the idea that what was once predictable is now completely out of our grasps. Science: It’s works, bitches.
semioticmonkey
I disagree, Jonathan.
Give Leroi-Gourhan a read.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Leroi-Gourhan
His masterpiece, ‘Le geste et la parole’, shows how Ancients started from abstract and not by imitating nature.
I said ‘romanticism’ cause in the western culture was, historically and — more important — semantically, the strong and more pervasive weltbild which informed so many aspect of our contemporary way of thinking. Think about Behetoveen and his musical vision of ‘expression’.
About the science, a great poet (Fernando Pessoa) said
‘The Newton’s binomial is beautiful as Venere of Milo. Only the few notice it.’
Anyway, i must say i like very much your work in the DA Gallery. Compliments!
Jonathan Haggard
Thanks for checking out my deviantart account! I tried to read your site, but I don’t understand (what appears to be) French.
You seem really knowledgable in this field, and this discussion has be really fun! Hope to see you around this site more.
l. r. w.
Does anyone know of life forms that do not fit into the divine proportion? I am writing a short story and need an alien life form that is the antitheses of divine proportion.