Hannah Doolin: Finding Gestalt

The Iron & Wine concert poster uses several gestalt principles, making it a very effective design. It first uses similarity by using white flowers and vines to contrast the brown leaves. Because the flowers and vines are white, we can more easily see the shape of the lion because the eyes, nose, and whiskers stand out from the rest of the image. Proximity is also utilized. Because the flowers and leaves are all close together, we look at them as a whole and are then able to see the shape of the lion come through (we see the image because of closure). Continuation is used where the brown vine reaches down towards the text and connects with the "&" symbol. This leads our eye directly to the band's name and concert location and the bottom of the poster. The image itself is attractive enough to grab the attention of someone walking by, and the design methods used in the poster cause the reader to fully examine the information provided.

The Spoon concert poster uses very similar principles to the Iron & Wine poster. We are able to see the house because of closure. The house is really made up of lines and shapes which do not touch, but since we recognize this familiar form, we know that it is in fact a house. The house is seen as one uniform image because of the proximity of the shapes that make it up.