As modern humans, we spend our days surrounded by solid, imposing “stuff”. We live in big brick and wood houses, drive two-ton steel vehicles to work on concrete and asphalt freeways, and go work in big concrete and steel buildings.…
Several weeks ago MJ and I made the drive to Rhode Island for my niece’s high school graduation. We stayed an extra day so we could celebrate my mom’s birthday. Since everyone had to work during the daytime and we…
We often think of shapes as two-dimensional: squares, rectangles, circles, and triangles. This isn’t how we perceive them in the landscape, however. We see them in three dimensions, like cubes, spheres, and cones. Shape (or form) in the landscape can…
As a band geek , I’m going to work the music I love into any post I can. Anyhow, harmony is what happens when you combine all your architectural elements, furnishings, and design elements into a successful, pleasing whole. The…
Emphasis is all about focal points – a space or object important enough (visually speaking) that it captures your attention. A great view can be a focal point, as can the front door, a fireplace, a water feature, a specimen…
You’ve heard designers talk about “moving the eye through the space.” That’s what rhythm does. Human beings, by our very nature, look for patterns. Rhythm sets up those patterns, leading the eye to the next point, and the next, and…
I’ve been excited about writing this post. Balance is really important to design, yet it’s often misunderstood. The two main kinds of balance in design are symmetrical and asymmetrical balance. Symmetrical balance is easy. Take a picture and divide it…
Proportion and scale are two related design principles. Proportion refers to the size relationship that parts of the design have to each other and to the design as a whole. On a small scale, an example of proportion is the…
Scale, in the design sense, deals with two things: size (actual and relative) and visual weight. Scale is something I talk about a lot with my clients because it can have such a dramatic impact on how we enjoy the…
