glossary of Terms

These are the terms covered in this topic in alphabetical order.

You can find more information and examples on the corresponding
Milanote boards. Use the Lesson Title column to find the relevant
video lessons and boards.

Term Definition Lesson Title

Anomaly An element or detail breaking similarity in a design. Similarity

Asymmetry Asymmetry can create tension but also balance in a more Symmetry
organic way than symmetry.

Bilateral/Reflectional Achieves balance through repetition, reflection of elements. Symmetry

symmetry

Closure When you see an image that has missing parts, your brain Closure
will fill in the blanks and make a complete image so you can
still recognize the pattern.

Common fate / Synchrony Objects are perceived to be part of a group when placed on Common Fate
the same trajectory.

Common regions Elements are perceived as part of a group if they are located Common Regions
within the same closed region.

Continuity Elements that are arranged on a line or curve are perceived Continuity
to be more related than elements not on the line or curve.
It’s instinct to follow a river, a path or a fence line.

Emergence Human eye sees objects in their entirety before perceiving Gestalt Principles
their individual parts.

Figure/Ground People instinctively perceive objects as either being in the Figure-Ground

foreground or the background.

Gestalt principles Describe how viewers group different objects and elements Gestalt Principles
together into a single, coherent whole if disparate elements
are arranged in a particular way.

Glide reflectional symmetry Is a play on reflectional symmetry, but it involves a shift in Symmetry
the position of each mirror image.

Hick’s law The more options available to a person, the longer it will take Simplicity
them to come to a decision.

Invariance People recognize similar forms in spite of variations such as Similarity

color, scale, rotation, or weight.

KISS Keep It Simple Stupid or Keep It Short & Simple. Simplicity

 glossary of Terms

These are the terms covered in this topic in alphabetical order.

You can find more information and examples on the corresponding
Milanote boards. Use the Lesson Title column to find the relevant
video lessons and boards.

Term Definition Lesson Title

Law of Prägnanz When you’re presented with a set of ambiguous or complex Simplicity
objects, your brain will make them appear as simple as
possible

Lower region The lower of two regions separated by a horizontal border is Figure-Ground
more likely than the upper region to be seen as the figure.

Multistability Multistability (or multistable perception) is the tendency of Figure-Ground

ambiguous perceptual experiences to pop back and forth
unstably between two or more alternative interpretations.

Nekker cube An optical illusion that consists of a two dimensional Figure-Ground

representation of a three dimensional wire frame cube.

Past experience / Isomorphism Highly subjective based upon an individual. It is perceived Past Experience
that elements that are shared within our past are known as
being related.

Radial symmetry Design elements emitting from a single focal point. Symmetry

Reification The eye has a tendency to fill in gaps and create forms even Closure
without explicit details.

Rotational symmetry Or radial symmetry is when an object is rotated in a certain Symmetry

direction around a point.

Rubin vase Depicts the silhouette of a vase in black and the profiles of Figure-Ground
two inward-looking faces in white.

Similarity Objects with similar qualities (color, texture and shape, etc.) Similarity
are understood to belong to the same group.

Simplicity We prefer things that are simple, clear and ordered. Simplicity
Instinctively these things feel safer.

Translational symmetry When visual elements repeat across a location in space. This Symmetry
repetition can happen for any length or in any direction.

Uniform connectedness Elements that are visually connected are perceived as more Uniform Connectedness
related than elements with no connection.