There are certain criteria for judging the success of a sign, and conciseness and generalization are important points in these criteria. The purpose of simplification is to disseminate thematic information more accurately and quickly, so that people can understand what it represents in a very short time. At the same time, simplified signs have great advantages in the promotion of applications, which can reduce the chance of use errors.
Simplification is not simple and hollow, the form is concise and reflects the profound connotation is the key to the simplification of the logo. Expressing the richest possible connotation in the most concise form possible is bound to be personalized and simplified by the hand of the designer.
Of course, simplification does not mean only geometry. When designing a logo, the designer should repeatedly refine, remove all unnecessary components, save ink like gold, and strengthen the image. Strive to be concise in rich, simple in change, complex in simplicity, rich in conciseness. The following is a few ways to "simplify and refine".
In the history of logo design, the pursuit of simplicity has never been interrupted by the favor of geometric shapes. Geometric components are few and far between in nature, and indeed there is little chance of leaving an impression on the human mind. "Precisely because geometric shapes and regular forms are rare in nature, they form a clear contrast with the confluence of nature and make it easier to identify.
From the perspective of Gestalt psychology, simple, clear, standard-rule geometric shapes or shapes similar to them can make people feel happy in visual perception, and human visual perception itself has a tendency to simplify complex forms. Under the domination of this tendency, designers can use more regular geometric shapes to achieve the purpose of conciseness and generalization, and can also make the logo more relaxed and labor-saving, so that the information can be conveyed more quickly.
Today, while computer technology makes us impossible, the geometric approach to logo design is preserved to the greatest extent possible. On the one hand, because of the far-reaching influence of modernism, on the other hand, people have formed a conceptual understanding of the sign art itself, believing that the sign is a concise, orderly, easy to copy graphic symbol, and the recognition efficiency of geometric signs and the advantages of easy processing and production are indeed incomparable to other forms of signs.
The geometric signs will involve numerous geometric drawing principles, such as the golden section, increasing and decreasing, regular polygons, regular arcs (ellipses, etc.), spirals, rotating arcs, aliquots... Once again, in the geometric logo design we see the perfect combination of art and science. The cartographic method of geometric figures itself is the scientist's induction and extraction of our natural existence, which lurks in the rational understanding of human beauty, and it is this rational extraction from nature that makes the geometric signs deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.
In order for the viewer to effectively remember the sign information, the information content of the recognition content should first be reduced as much as possible.
Since the viewer generally has no motivation to actively remember the content of the sign, so the attention focus on the sign will not exceed 30 seconds, in such a short period of time, only the less material for the sign, the more simple the image, the higher the memory of the sign. Therefore, the use of a more concise, distinct, unified visual language can highlight the enterprise from many visual images, which is clear at a glance.
In order to achieve the effect of concise form and rich connotation, in the logo design, it is necessary to achieve simple elements and rich structure, and to simplify and unify a variety of elements. Unified processing requires designers to perform the same or similar treatment of the shape, position, size, texture, color, and expression technique of each element in the logo.
Because those similar elements are always easily associated with the viewer in vision, for example: constellations in the sky, because the brightness, shape, position and size of the stars are similar to each other, people gather them together to form a constellation. Simplicity processing can play a role in combination, unification and easy memory in logo design, which can effectively reduce the visual consumption of the viewer and make the visual language more fluent.
Ordering refers to the regular arrangement of the elements in the logo. Ordering can make otherwise disordered objects regular, unified, and centralized, making the viewer instinctively pay attention to this form and enhance memory. In addition, the form of uniformity and rules makes people feel more formal and reliable, such as uniformly dressed troops, unified tableware, etc. will produce a stronger sense of attraction and formality.
According to this principle, in a sign, if there must be many information at the same time, they should be sorted out and summarized according to certain rules, so that they form a complete system and reduce some visual sensitivities. In this way, the viewer can more effectively remember the large, complex visual image of the enterprise without creating a sense of confusion.
Ordering requires that the whole and the part or part of the sign produce a certain organic combination relationship with each other, emphasizing the diversity and unification of the chaotic form, organizing and classifying, so that it produces certain laws These laws are mainly reflected in the following forms of regular and rhythmic repetition of each element in the sign; each element is on a parallel, vertical or related line; and each element is proportionally gradual.
The simplification of the logo is sometimes also reflected in the treatment of blank space in the logo, that is, through the incomplete shape or blank technique, the subtractive treatment of the logo producing a minimalist effect, which is much like the Chinese painting art in which the painter often uses the "pen break the meaning of the connection" and "less than the reach" technique to achieve the effect of less than more. This is because the artist takes advantage of the ability of people in visual perception to consciously perfect images through memory and association.
The larger the blank area in the logo, the higher the requirements for the simplicity of the non-blank image. Otherwise, the logo may appear hollow. Therefore, in the process of "simplifying and refining" the logo design, it is necessary to refine repeatedly, and strive to achieve that the application of pen and ink and blank space is just right.