The Significance of

Above Photo: Color Wheel, by Jane Jones, allows for easy identification of complementary colors (located opposite each other) and analogous colors (located next to each other).

If you, the designer, want to use color in your work but are unsure of which color(s) to use, simply start in your own backyard. By using colors found in nature, especially those on the lighter side such as blues, yellows, and grays found in skies and shadows, you will add a familiar and coherent quality to your work that is naturally harmonious to the human eye. Here are some things to keep in mind:

Gray is regarded as the prettiest, most important, and most versatile of all colors. Use it as a background or tone down a more vibrant color by mixing it in.

Yellow is the only color that satisfies a joint requirement of “light in value” and “intense and saturated.” Use it to highlight key elements or liven up your work.

col·or (noun)

1: a phenomenon of light (as red, brown, pink, or gray) or visual perception that enables one to differentiate otherwise identical objects

2: the aspect of the appearance of objects and light sources that may be described in terms of hue, lightness, and saturation for objects and hue, brightness, and saturation for light sources

According to Edward R. Tufte, an American professor emeritus and designer, color can be the key element for successful and aesthetically harmonious information design. The following is a non-inclusive list of ways that color can contribute to information design:

• to label (using color as a noun) to measure (using a value scale) • to imitate reality (using color as representation) • to enliven or decorate (using color as beauty)

Color has a unique quality in that it is multidimensional; its uses and qualities are flexible and numerous. It is most often used by graphic designers to differentiate the visual field. It can be measured by its hue, saturation, tone, value, etc. Gradating color is a natural quantifier and excellent at showing progression, using tonal values from light to dark, or recession, using tonal values from dark to light. Its best attribute is its ability to label or group items, especially on maps and other complex or layered visuals. Color can also help to improve the information resolution on a computer screen by softening the bright-white background and calming what is known as video glare. Tufte explains in his book “Envisioning Information” that the designer must always have a reason for his/her choice to use color. Color should never be used haphazardly because it is easy to overuse it, and just as easy to overlook its abitility to greatly improve our work.

Color Theory

Why is Color Important in Design?

A guide for successful implementation of color into information design visuals.

This Information Design Index Card, number 06 created by Chinue Fields, is part of a set of 24 cards created by the students of DAI 523, Information Design 1 during the Fall semester of 2009. This set, conceived by Instructor Pino Trogu, covers a range of Information Design topic areas, chosen and researched by each student. DAI 523 is a fourth-year design course within the Design and Industry Department at San Francisco State University. DAI 523 provides students with an introduction to the field of information design, covering stand-alone and system applications across print, interac-tive (digital), and environmental mediums.

DAI 523Information Design 1Design and Industry DepartmentSan Francisco State University1600 Holloway Ave, California 94132, USAInformation Design Index Card No. 06 – October 2009Printed by _____________

STUDENTPICTUREHERE

06INFORMATION DESIGN INDEX CARDS

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Incorrect Color Usage

t Colors that are found in nature work very well to harmonize the overall image and put the eyes of the viewer at ease.

Pure, bright, or strong colors uhave unbearable effects when used over large areas or placed next to each other.

t If two colors are used to cover large areas, unity can be maintained when one of the colors is repeatedly intermingled in the other.

When a picture is composed of utwo or more large areas of enclosed color, it falls apart and little or no emphasis can be given to any one particular area of the image.

Correct Color Usage

References

Dictionary and Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster Online. Merriam-Webster. Web. 20 Sept. 2009. http://www.merriam-webster.com/.Tufte, Edward R. Envisioning information. Cheshire, Conn: Graphics, 2001. Print.“Workshops by Jane Jones” Web. 29 Sept. 2009. http://www.janejonesartist.com/Workshops.htm.

Gretchen Garner, A Grove of Birches, photograph 5 of 9, 1988

Edward Imhof, Cartographic Relief Presentation, 1982

My own illustration inspired by Josef Albers, “Vibrating Boundaries” from The Interaction of Color, 1963

Primary Home Heating Fuel, by Counties of the United States: 1950, 1960, 1970,” Bureau of the Census, 1970

Daniel H. Burnham, “Plan for a Summer Capital of the Philippine Islands, at Baguio, 1909

James D. Foley, “The Human Factors of Computer Graphics Interaction Techniques” from Computer Graphics and Applications, ‘84

t Large area background or base colors should do their work most quietly, allowing smaller brighter areas to stand out most vividly.

Light or bright colors mixed with u white or next to each other look unpleasant, especially if used over large areas.

Information Design Index Cards is a set of cards designed and produced by the students of DAI 523, Information Design 1, a fourth-year course in the Design and Industry Department, San Francisco State University, Fall 2009. The set, by no means complete, is composed of 1+22 cards on Information Design topics. Coordinated by instructor Pino Trogu, each topic was chosen and researched by the students. DAI 523 provides students with an introduction to the field of information design, covering a variety of applications across print, screen and environmental media. This is card number 06 and it was designed byChinue Fields.

DAI 523Information Design IDesign and Industry DepartmentCollege of Creative ArtsSan Francisco State UniversityCalifornia, USA – October 2009Information Design Index Card No.06Printed by JASK Digital Printing

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