Linking Theory to Visual Communication

Abstract

Our lives are filled with visual information. Some visuals are obvious—such as a Calvin Klein magazine advertisement, where the visual dominates our senses. Other visuals are so common that we take them for granted—the octagonal shape and red background of a stop sign, for example, where the shape communicates importance and the red color communicates danger. Indeed, even printed text can be considered visual: we visually process the shapes of letters collectively to understand a textual message.