A study of Projection Method Applied to Figure and Ground Illusion
Figure and Ground Illusion is an enthralling and recognisable skill widely used in graphic design. However, creating a Figure and Ground Illusion is commonly a difficult task, as it depends deeply on the designer’s experience and imagination. Past research indicated that Figure and Ground Illusion were relevant to silhouette and projection methods.
The following three were the purposes of this research:
(1) Examining the procedure of creating Figure and Ground Illusion and the relevance between projection methods by case studies; (2) Experimenting with the flow of creating Figure and Ground Illusion by various projection methods; (3) Verifying the procedure by applying SDGs theme and workshops.
This research proposed that observing an object’s outline and expanding or reducing the positive or negative space were the key steps to creating Figure and Ground Illusion. Experiments of various projection methods, including front projection, rear projection, and photogram, revealed that rear projection associated with a mind map instead of brainstorming was the most feasible method.
The research concluded with ten steps to create a Figure and Ground Illusion: set up a theme, break down the theme, cogitate, backtrack to the original objects, consider the metaphor of the objects, select the appropriate objects, presume the image, project, observe and post-process.
The study used 10 SDGs themes to create 15 posters and 11 posters from the workshop participants, proving the feasibility of using projection to create Figure and Ground Illusions. The post-workshop survey reflected those participants had a higher understanding and operation capability than before.
Moreover, participants were strongly motivated to use projection to create a Figure and Ground Illusion. The study provided a potentially new perspective for future studies by examining the features of the Figure and Ground Illusion and projection method and the feasibility of ambiguous images.
KEYWORDS: Figure and Ground, Projection method, Poster design
