How Symbols Play A Part In Graphic Design
February 28, 2013
•IADT General, IADT Orlando
• 0 Comments
Have you been pondering how symbols work within graphic design? Wondering if they’ve become outdated? Sure, cavemen first used them to tell stories pictorially, but the digital world continues to engage symbols in effective ways. In fact, graphic designers can achieve ultimate design effectiveness through the symbols they create.
Efficiency
To put it simply, symbols are efficient. Designers use unpretentious images to represent an idea, company, or person. Rather than explaining the entity in a complex mission statement or story, one small image does the job. The image becomes associated with the entity, allowing for efficient marketing. Every time a person sees the image, they associate it with their experience with the business or person it represents.
Branding
Out of efficiency comes branding. Businesses build their reputations by using the automatic associations symbols evoke. By using certain colors and shapes, symbols can convey a purposeful and meaningful idea about the thing it represents. Businesses then become branded by that idea.
Cultural Identity
As people associate symbols with their experiences, the symbols become ingrained in their lives. A popular symbol can quickly become part of someone’s culture. This is the ultimate goal of graphic design: to create an image that not only reflects an idea but creates culture.