Point / Line / Plane

Reading: Graphic Design: The New Basics

Point

A point can “penetrate like a bullet, pierce like a nail or pucker like a kiss”.

This reading talks of the point in all its many forms. I have listed every way in which they are mentioned, in a list form below. The point can create patterns, signify an ending within type and develop a design.

• Marks a position in space

• A pair of x, y coordinates

• A visible mark

• A dot

• A full stop

• A point can express its own identity

• A series of points form a line

• A mass of points make a texture, shape or plane

• Tiny points create shades of grey

• In typography, the point is a definitive end of the line

• The point is a sign of closure

• They can be used a visual element within photography

• Points can be destructive

Line

Alike, Point, the Line chapter allows the reader to understand many different forms and elements of a line as a design element. I have, again, listed every way in which they are mentioned in this reading.

• An infinite series of points

• A line has breadth but no depth

• A connection between two points

• A path of a moving point

• A positive mark or a negative gap

• An edge of an object

• Where two planes meet

• Lines exist in many weights

• Lines are drawn with a pen, pencil, brush, mouse or digital code

• They can be straight or curved, continuous or broken

• When a line reaches a certain thickness it becomes a plane

• Lines multiply to describe volumes, planes and textures

• A graph is a rising and falling line that describes change over time

• In typographic layouts, lines are implied as well as literally drawn

• Characters group into lines of text

• Columns are positioned in blocks that are flush left, flush right and justified

• Lines express order

• Lines turn and multiply to describe planes

• Lines describe structure and edges

• Lines express emotion

• Vector-based software uses a closed line to define a shape

• Lines can be used as a visual element in photography

Plane

A plane is defined in many ways, in accordance to design and visual element. Below is a list of ways planes are described within the reading.

• A flat surface extending in height and width

• The path of a moving line; it is a line with breadth

• A line closes to become a shape, a bounded plane

• A plane can be parallel to the picture surface, or can reduce the space

• Ceilings, walls, floors and windows are physical planes

• A plane can be solid or perforated, opaque or transparent, textured or smooth

• A field of text is a plane built from lines and points of type

• A typographic plane can be dense or open, hard or soft

• A plane letter can be described with lines or with fields of colour to describe spatial planes