ISC 100: Introduction to Strategic Visual Communication

Flashcards covering visual strategic communication concepts, creative thinking methods, elements of design, and the BP CRAP principles of design from ISC 100.

What are the four Ps of marketing, and which one is the primary focus of Integrated Strategic Communication (ISC)?

The four Ps are Product, Place, Price, and Promotion. ISC focuses primarily on Promotion.

How is visual strategic communication defined in the course notes?

Strategic communication that has a graphic component, such as an image, color, type, or pattern.

According to the notes, how does commercial art differ from fine art?

Commercial art is driven by research, is commercial, conclusive, meets clients' needs, and solves a problem. Fine art is driven by emotion, is personal, open to interpretation, expresses the artist's feelings, and brings attention to a problem.

How do the lecture notes define creativity?

Combining the old to create the new in a way no one else has.

Who devised the 30-second drawing exercise used to illustrate overcoming mental blocks?

Bob McKim.

What is the definition of a comfort zone according to the notes?

A behavioral space where your activities and behaviors fit a routine pattern that minimizes stress and risk, providing a state of mental security.

What principle is demonstrated by the Yerkes-Dodson Law regarding stress and performance?

Low stress yields no performance, high stress yields no performance, and optimal stress yields optimal (peak) performance.

Based on this diagram of optimal stress and performance, what are the three zones, and which one represents the 'sweet spot'?

The three zones from bottom to top are the comfort zone, the growth or courage zone, and the panic or terror zone. The growth or courage zone is the sweet spot.

What are the four specific benefits of operating in the 'sweet spot' (growth or courage zone)?

1. More productive; 2. Easier to deal with unexpected changes; 3. Easier to push future boundaries; 4. Easier to brainstorm and harness creativity.

According to the notes on fluency in creative thinking, how many ideas are typically needed to reach the most creative ones?

It takes $34$ ideas to reach the most creative ones, showing that quality comes from massive quantity (as exemplified by Thomas Edison's quotas).

Which historical inventor is cited in the notes as an example of making novel combinations by connecting disparate ideas?

Samuel Morse.

Why are boundaries considered necessary for creative work?

Boundaries help free up our ideas because too much freedom paralyzes; boundaries provide the structure necessary to create your best work.

In the visual communication language analogy, what roles do elements and principles play?

Visual communication is a language where elements are the 'words' and principles are the 'grammar rules.'

What are the six core Elements of Design listed in the notes?

Line, shape, pattern/texture, space, color, and text.

What visual feelings and energy levels do horizontal, vertical, and diagonal lines convey?

Horizontal lines are the most stable and restful; vertical lines are somewhat stable and imply strength; diagonal lines are the most dynamic, high-energy, and imply movement and action.

How do implied lines differ from psychic lines?

An implied line is an automatically connected series of unconnected points. A psychic line occurs when there is no actual line, but the placement of objects causes the viewer's eyes to look in a certain direction (such as pointing arrows).

What are the three main types of shapes categorized in the notes?

Geometric (simplest and most common, e.g., triangles, squares, circles), natural (representing living things in nature around us), and abstract (depictions of real things without being exact representations).

What is the difference between texture and pattern?

Texture is the tactile quality of a surface or the visual representation of such a surface. Pattern is a consistent repetition of a single visual unit or element within a given area.

What does the mnemonic 'BP CRAP' stand for regarding the Principles of Design?

Balance, Proportion, Contrast, Repetition, Alignment, and Proximity.

What is the core rule of the design principle of Proximity?

Group related items together so physical closeness implies a relationship; items in close proximity function as a single visual unit.

What is the recommended number of visual groups to aim for on a page when organizing proximity?

Aim for $3$ to $5$ groups on a page (which can be checked by squinting).

What defines the concept of 'The Grid' credited to Hopkins & Baumann?

'A place for everything & everything in its place.'

What three steps make up the Critique method (D.I.E. / O.I.E.)?

1. Description ('What is it?'); 2. Intent ('What is its purpose?'); 3. Evaluation ('Is it effective? How could it be improved?').

What role does Repetition serve in graphic design?

Purposefully reusing an element more than once to build consistency, establish identity, and serve as the visual glue that holds a design together.

Which artist/theorist is noted for the theory of structural compositional oppositions (polar contrasts)?

Johannes Itten (noted as Johannes Itter in the transcript).

What is the golden tip regarding contrast to avoid visual ineffectiveness?

'If everything has contrast, then nothing has contrast'—make things exactly the same or make them very different, and avoid subtle similarity.

In visual balance, how do formal balance and informal balance differ?

Formal balance is symmetrical, elegant, and sophisticated, but can be static or predictable. Informal balance is asymmetrical, casual, and energetic, using strategically placed counterbalance to maintain stability without mirror symmetry.

What are radial balance and crystallographic (mosaic) balance?

Radial balance is circular with a strong focus radiating from or toward the center (e.g., ripples from a rock in water). Mosaic (crystallographic) balance is balanced chaos with uniform visual weight all over.

What is the Golden Ratio and its connection to the Fibonacci series?

The Golden Ratio ($\phi$) is roughly $1 : 1.618$ (or about $3 : 5$, with $\phi \approx 1.6180339$). It relates directly to the Fibonacci series ($1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21$), where adding the previous two numbers yields the next.

Where is the optical center located in a layout relative to the geometric center?

Slightly above the geometric center, acting as the natural entry point for the human eye.

What is the Z-pattern in visual layout direction?

A directional flow that takes advantage of the natural reading pattern of Western audiences (left-to-right, top-to-bottom), guiding the eye through the composition.