Line

What is a line? How do people work with line in art, design, and writing? Review related research and scholarship.

pic of scientist working with nanotechnology

What is a Line?

Line, from the perspective of Design, is a continuous mark on a page. A line may be curved, straight, vertical, horizontal. Really, lines can go any which way. Even zig zag.

The line is a foundational element of design: the human eye, seeking patterns in a sensorium flow of imagery, locks on to lines. As humans, we trace the lines and we think in patterns.

Artists, Designers, Writers . . . use lines symbolically. People interpret lines just as they interpret alphabetical letters. Thus, lines are semiotic: they are way of communicating something to readers, listeners, users

This depiction of the Brussels Metro #5 Subway Line illustrates the semiotic nature of lines:

a pic of the brussels Metro #5

Related Concepts: Clarity, Simplicity; Space; Contrast

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