Canons of Page Construction

This mornings session was on grid systems/canons. Canons are systems, methods or approaches to a particular practice. They give method and order. However, they can encourage complacency. Canons are not simply grid systems but methods and systems that inform your process in design. 

Golden Ratio/De Divina Proportions: Harmonious Mathematical Proportions 

The golden ratio (symbol is the Greek letter "phi" shown at left) is a special number approximately equal to 1.618 It appears many times in geometry, art, architecture and other areas. (A+B):A=A:B.

The Golden Section of 100cm: 

100cm/1.618 = 61.80cm

100cm = 61.80 to 38.20

The ratio of 61.80cm to 38.20cm is 1:1.618

adding...

100cm x 1.618 = 161.80cm

the ratio of 100cm to 161.80 is 1:1.618

I started by drawing a 14cm line.  

14cm x 1.618= 22.65cm, I now have the width and length of my golden rectangle. 

Following these I continued dividing and getting perfect squares until I had a golden rectangle spiral. 

22.652/1.618=14cm

14/1.618=8.65cm

8.65/1.618=5.34cm

5.34cm/1.618=3.3cm

3.3cm/1.618=2cm

2cm/1.618=1.23

After we understood this we moved on to creating columns and rows that could relate to our website (above). 

Van de Graaf Canon

Van de Graaf was a 19th century scholar in book design. The geometrical solution of the construction of Van de Graaf's canon, which works for any page width:height ratio, enables the book designer to position the text body in a specific area of the page. Using the canon, the proportions are maintained while creating pleasing and functional margins of size 1/9 and 2/9 of the page size. The resulting inside margin is one-half of the outside margin, and of proportions 2:3:4:6 (inner:top:outer:bottom) when the page proportion is 2:3 (more generally 1:R:2:2R for page proportion 1:R. This method was discovered by Van de Graaf, and used by Tschichold and other contemporary designers; they speculate that it may be older. The page proportions vary, but most commonly used is the 2:3 proportion.

I used the proportions 14cm by 22.65cm. Below is an outcome that I could translate onto screen. 

Overall, I found this session interesting, as it really relates to my summer project and web brief on sacred geometry of the pyramids of Giza.