Applied Art, Graphic Design and New Media
This domain tests visual communication: whether you can organise type and image for a purpose, choose correct digital settings, and explain design decisions. It covers posters, logos, layout, typography and new media.
Rules and concepts
Establish hierarchy first: what is seen first, second and third. Use a grid to align margins, columns and baselines. Limit type families and use size, weight and spacing for contrast. A logo should work in one colour and at small size. Raster images are pixel-based and lose quality when enlarged; vector graphics scale cleanly. Print uses CMYK and high resolution, commonly 300 ppi at final size; screen uses RGB and lower resolution. New media adds interactivity, motion and responsive layout.
Worked example
An exhibition poster has a title, date, venue and image. The title is largest and placed on the optical centre; the date is second in scale; the venue sits at the foot on the grid. The image occupies the upper two-thirds, and text sits in a calm area. Reasoning: hierarchy follows information priority, the grid creates order, and contrast separates title from image. If the background is busy, a solid text panel restores legibility.
Traps
Do not set body text in RGB for offset print or supply a 72 ppi image for a large poster. Do not stretch a raster logo. Do not use five typefaces. Avoid centred text blocks that destroy alignment. Check contrast and spelling; a clever concept with unreadable type loses marks.