Michael Roller

A Periodic Table of Form

Form, in the context of both the natural and man-made world has two jobs: to be the messenger of a certain experience; and to fulfill on that promise.

Over at Core77, Gray Holland has formalized surface language into a Periodic Table of Form. Using the CAD language around surface continuity, Gray compares and combines the positional, tangential, and curvature continuities into a variety of formal possiblities. When related to nature, he uncovers the “universal truths” of these forms:

1. Positional surfacing projects precision or danger.
2. Curvature surfacing suggests elegance or fluidity.
3. Tangential surfacing feels purposeful but only exists in the manmade world.

Using these three basic directions, one can start to create more sophisticated forms to communicate more sophisticated messages. Admittedly this part starts to get a bit overwhelming, but I’m excited about this for a two reasons. First, it outlines the need for using form strategically to communicate with users. Next, it proposes a way of talking about form that allows us to organize and direct our work. I prefer the higher level version of this conversation, but I also appreciate the rigorous testing and validation of this table’s structure.

Read the full article here. Download the Alchemy Labs’ Periodic Table of Form PDF from Core77.

Tags: strategic aesthetics

1 Comment to A Periodic Table of Form

1. [...] post continues my recent interest in how form communicates meaning. First, Gray Holland wrote about how surfaces can communicate meaning, now Joshua Maruska gets into the details of how [...]
The Devil is in the Details | Michael Roller on March 30th, 2009

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