This document discusses various cognitive and perceptual theories related to visual processing and interpretation. It explains that the brain actively constructs coherent images from partial visual stimuli, and that similarity and continuity principles help group objects together. Proximity and directionality also influence how the eye and brain perceive relationships between elements in a scene. The document then introduces semiotics and discusses how signs can be iconic, indexical, or symbolic depending on their relationship to what they represent. Cultural codes and individual experiences shape how viewers derive meaning from visual signs.

1. “It is the theory that decides what can be observed.”
Albert Einstein, 1879-1955 Physicist, Educator, Patent Clerk

2. Prepared by Danielle Oser, APR

5. Concerned with what the brain sees – visual cues

9. Too many images to process and remember
Cells note the stimulation and passes it on to your mind without
considering it

10.  Max Wertheimer
 German psychologist,
1910
 See the scene outside
although partially
blocked
 “Flipbook” effect
 Eye takes in all the visual
stimuli – brain arranges
the sensation into a
coherent image

14. Photomosaics by Robert Silvers

15. http://photomosaic.com/portfolio.html

16. Max Weterhimer

21. •
 Objects that look similar
will automatically be
grouped together by the
brain
 Dissimilarity creates
visual interest

22. Christoph Niemann

23.  Brain more closely
associates objects close
together than it does an
object that is farther
apart

24.  Brain seeks as much as
possible a smooth
continuation of a
perceived movement

25.  Also refers to objects that
are partially blocked by a
foreground object with a
viewer’s mind continuing
the line in order to
achieve a kind of graphic
closure

26.  Viewers mentally group
the arrows because they
all point in the same
direction
 Opposite directions
create tension because
the viewer will not see it
as part of the group

31. Create more noticeable print and screen media designs

32. • “The Whole is Different from the Sum of its Parts”
Insights can be learned when attention is turned to the entire image

33. Diane Arbus, 1971

34.  Julian Hochberg, 1970
 Emphasizes the viewers
eye movements in an
active state of perception

35.  Eyes are constantly in
motion when scanning
an image
 Viewers construct a
scene with short-lived
eye fixations that the
mind combines to a
whole

36. Help designers capture attention

37. Content Driven

38. A sign is something that stands for something else
The meaning behind any sign must be learned, understood

39.  397 CE
 First proposed the study
of signs
 First to write about the
link between symbolism
and nature

40.  Swiss linguist
 Helped establish the
symbolic interpretation
of signs

41.  American Philosopher
 Helps establish the field
of semiotics in the US
 Defines 3 types of signs
 Iconic
 Indexical
 Symbolic

42. Easiest to interpret
Closely resemble the thing that they represent

44.  What is the iconic sign
here?
 Iconic signs have the
strongest one-on-one
connection between the
image and what it
represents

46.  What is the indexical
sign here?
 Logical, common-sense
connection to the thing
or idea they represent
rather than a direct
resemblance to the
object
 Learn signs through
everyday experiences

47.  No logical or
representational
connection
 Must be taught
 Social, Cultural
considerations influence
symbolic signs

48. • Symbolic

49. • Symbolic

50. Symbols tied to religious faith often evoke the strongest
emotional response

51. Semiotics has evolved into a theory of perception that involves
the use of images in unexpected ways

56.  What is the symbolic
sign here?
 Hint (it’s not an image)

57. Example of cultural relativism
Historical reference

58. Columbus Discovering Land

59. Codes: An amalgamation of hundreds of ideas and/or elements
into one convenient concept

60.  A collection of signs that
cause the viewers to
make assumptions about
what is seen
 Note our family here

61.  Group of signs that cause
the viewer to make
mental comparisons

62.  Transfer of meaning
from one set of signs to
another
 Often sexual references
and “shock” ads
 Phallic symbols
associated with alcohol,
tobacco and lipstick

64.  Several signs that
combine to form a new
composite message
 Meaning must be
derived by the viewer

65.  Music often uses several
signs to create a new
complex message

66. Signs can enhance the visual experience, educate, entertain and
persuade a viewer

69.  Our link with all the
images we have ever seen
 Triggers memories that
change the image
meaning

70.  A person’s mental state is
projected onto an
inanimate object or
generalized statement
 Individuals reveal
personality traits by
deriving meaning from
oddly formed shapes

71. Seeing a face or other figure in an inanimate object

72.  Preconceived
expectations about how a
scene should appear
often leads to false or
missed visual
perceptions

73. • Expectation
Guido Daniele

75. Did you see it?

76.  We usually focus only on
significant details within
a scene

77.  Mind ignores visual
stimuli that are part of a
person’s everyday
activities
 One way to avoid
habituation is to actively
think about new images
when one sees them

78. Walker Evans
Series of images of common tools that demonstrated the
habituation aspect of the cognitive approach

79. Edward Weston

80.  A stimulus will be
noticed more if it has
meaning for an
individual
 “The more you know, the
more you see”

81.  Too many competing
formats create confusion,
distraction
 Also occurs when there
are too many outside
stimuli
 Music
 Advertising

82. Criticized for having too many visual displays on the screen at
one time

83.  Culture determines the
importance of the signs
that affect the people
who live with and among
us
 What you notice may be
a factor of race, age,
gender, weight, ethnicity

84.  We think with words
 Profoundly affect our
understanding and recall
of an image

85. We must look at the world closely to create designs that attract
attention and be mindful of the varied messages that come
from images