What are the Gestalt principles?
The 1920s was a time of great scientific discovery for psychologists, philosophers, and scientists alike. German researchers Max Wertheimer (1889-1943), Kurt Koffka(1896-), and Wolfgang Kohler studied human perception to understand better how our mind makes sense of what seems like chaotic surroundings – an endeavor that has been ongoing ever since!
The human brain is wired to group objects and make sense of the world around them. This tendency, called ” Gestalt” principles by Wertheimer Kohler Koffka (1957), can be seen in how we recognize patterns without paying attention or even knowing why specific images stick with us–they do!
UI and UX designers have long been practitioners of the gestalt principles. The ideas behind these practices are constantly being studied, debated, and adopted by new generations to create innovative work across all fields.
Achieving balance in designs is essential for creating cohesive experiences that don’t lead you off track when navigating an app or website. For example, making sure your color schemes aren’t too bright/pastel, so they compete with one another but complement each other nicely, can help set expectations about what content might be coming up next.
Why designers should care about the Gestalt principles
UI design can be broken down into two categories: visual and user experience. The former deals with what you see, while the latter focuses on how a person interacts with your website or application mentally and through their behavior patterns in different environments (i.e., desktop vs. mobile).
Many people confuse these terms because they often overlap; however, one key difference between them will help quickly tell which type we’re talking about here. Visual Design refers specifically to anything related directly to visuals, such as color schemes etcetera whereas Usability.
- With the proper guidance, you can use these design elements to make your content stand out. For example, visual hierarchy is essential for ensuring that users are reading what’s on screen rather than getting lost in background shading or gradients – which might be too distracting!
- The power of design can be harnessed to influence our visual perception, which allows designers and marketers to not only direct attention but also get people to take action.
- The gestalt principles are a set of rules to follow when designing products. They rely heavily on how customers interact with your product and can lead you in the right direction if appropriately used, helping make beautiful designs that please people as well as intuitive ones!
The 7 Gestalt web design principles
Gestalt principle of proximity
This is due to proximity, or how we perceive relatedness. Proximity means objects that are close together appear more similar than those at varying distances from each other; for example, on Google News site below where the text “Headlines” stands out as being very much a part of this card’s content even though it doesn’t enclose everything inside its borders!
With Mook, a free Webflow template by Tim Noah of Designhill fame. Here he uses proximity and common regions to clarify that “Our work” is related in some way to the unit named “Strategy.” The same goes for the body copy below, which also includes an image next door – all three pieces form one piece together as if they were explicitly meant for each other!
Gestalt principle of closure
When we see a complex arrangement, our eyes search for that one recognizable pattern. We do this to make sense of the chaos around us and bring some form or organization into it via reification: simplifying what’s missing by filling-in pieces so you can understand more about an object from its outline instead of looking at intricate parts without any context whatsoever.
As you can see in this design for OneFund by Mike Erickson, aka Locomotive (not to mention the vast majority of minimal logo designs), we aren’t given all information needed from one image. Instead, we must extrapolate what’s missing using shadows. Otherwise, it would just be a few random blocks with no recognizable features!
Gestalt principle of similarity
When the yellow background appears on this web page icon, it makes a connection between two different posts. The fact that they both have an outlined star and share some other qualities, like having similar colors or shapes, can be seen through their differences, too, though- there’s no way you’d mistake these for being related unless something else drew your attention first!
Gestalt principle of continuity
This is because lines and curves help us understand relationships too. As you can see in the screenshot above, it’s evident that the dots on this rough ring are closely related to each other — at least more so than they would be if there were no continuity between them or their relationship with one another wasn’t clear from just looking at where these elements sit relative within this overall design space.”
The human brain is a complicated organ, but the good news is? You have control over how much information flows into your mind. By understanding visual perception principles and exploiting people’s natural tendencies when they visit websites, you can create an experience that feels seamless for both users AND designers alike!
Gestalt principles are a great way to elevate any design and help it feel more natural. They can be used in just about every type of situation, no matter how complicated or chaotic they might seem at first glance – even if you’re working with an interface with many different pieces trying their best not to get in each other’s way!
Ui UX design services
Our Ui UX design services help you improve your user’s experience and let them enjoy checking out your website or application. We help make your interfaces more user-friendly and efficient. UI/UX design services can also help you gather valuable feedback from customers to improve your product or service.
