Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
A handout could be given with all the countries listed. A paper handout is more helpful when you need to
compare lots of numbers.
What is space?
If you take an empty slide and put even a single word on it, you have created “space.”
Before you place anything on a slide, it is just a frame filled with possibilities. Once you
add an element, you activate the space. Space can help illuminate and guide a viewer
and achieve harmony. Or, space can be wasted, neglected, and treated like an
afterthought. Beginners focus only on the figures—positive elements such as text and
numbers, graphs, and labels—without realizing that the secret to a well-designed slide is
white space.
Many designers claim that their work actually consists of arranging the white space to
bring the positive elements alive in the clearest way possible. White spaces are
themselves shapes, like the silent spaces between notes that give jazz its rich form of
expression, for example. Without the silent “shapes” and patterns, music would be just
intolerable noise.
Without space, you're dead
The legendary graphic designer Paul Rand once said, “Without contrast you are dead.”
He's right. Contrast is indeed fundamental to good design, and without white space,
good contrast cannot be achieved. The leading cause of the lack of contrast is clutter.
Too many layers of visual complication make contrast weak, if it even exists. White
space allows for real differences to be created, emphasized, and noticed. Space allows
for elements—such as text, images, and lines—to breathe. Just like life itself, it is this
invisible breath that sustains and empowers. In this sense, then, we can say that without
space, you are (also) dead. Embrace empty space.
