Good design can sometimes seem magical, as if the designer stumbled onto the perfect combination of elements that engage and enlighten the viewer. In reality, these creations are built using a set of tools known as the elements of design.
The elements of design help every piece of work communicate a message — whether it’s showing which emails are unread, guiding a sock purchase or warning about falling rocks. These tools bring clarity to ideas and ensure that your designs are as powerful as they can be.
So, what are the elements of design? Here’s an overview of the six basic elements you need to know to master brand storytelling through design.
Key takeaways:
- The elements of design are the fundamental tools designers use to create visually engaging work that communicates messages clearly and effectively.
- The six key elements of design are line, color, shape, texture, framing and type.
- Lines create structure, movement, and emphasis, guiding the viewer’s eye across a composition.
- Color evokes emotions, sets the mood and ensures balance through careful use of hue, saturation and brightness.
- Shapes organize visual elements, define space, and bring order to a composition.
- Texture adds depth and a tactile quality, creating realism or evoking specific emotions.
- Framing structures information, defines boundaries and emphasizes important details.
- Typography not only communicates text but also acts as a visual element to enhance design impact.
The elements of design
Line
Lines enclose and contain the parts of a design by creating outlines. They can be smooth, rough, continuous, broken, thick or thin.
Lines also send subliminal messages. A diagonal line, for example, has kinetic energy and movement, while a straight line is more ordered and clean.
Lines can be used to emphasize, setting particular information off in a busy composition and drawing the eye to a particular area. They can be formed into shapes or frames (more on both of those a bit further down). The eye will also see lines in other places — think buildings, branches of a tree, a horizon or a set of train tracks — that offer a natural edge or borders.
Color
Via netralica and chocoboracer via 99designs by Vista.
Often designs are undone by sloppy, careless or inappropriate color choices. Color is incredibly important and should never be an afterthought. Even a design set entirely in grayscale needs to be balanced and contrasted appropriately.
In addition to hue (red versus blue), consider the saturation and brightness (or “value”) of each color. Learn the basics of color theory to be sure a composition has the right mood, temperature and tone. Finally, consider what color space (CMYK or RGB) is best for the printer or screen where the design will be seen.
Learn more about the connotations of different colors in our guide to color psychology.
Shape
Via arosto via 99designs by Vista.
While our kindergarten teachers all hope we know what a shape is, for our purposes, a shape is any enclosed space defined by lines or in contrast to its surroundings. They can be geometric (squares, ellipses, triangles, etc) or organic (a speech bubble, a blob, those little spiky things that pop on the screen when Batman punches someone).
Other components of a composition, like blocks of text, are also shapes. A designer progresses by leaps and bounds once she sees everything in her design as shapes that need to be ordered and sized based on an invisible grid.
Texture
This design by bomba really pops off the page because of the excellent vintage textures that make it seem chromed and shiny via 99designs by Vista.
Texture is everywhere as we navigate the world around us by both sight and touch. While we can’t feel them on websites and printed pages, textures from the outside world can be brought into a composition to give it life.
Want to imply softness, comfort and coziness? There’s no quicker way than a cotton textile background. On the other hand, if you’re selling building supplies, you’d probably lean toward cement, stone and brick, with grittier textured text.
More than with any other element, textures serve as a nod to our natural environment.
Framing
This design uses two contrasting frames (a circle and horizontal lines) to create a strong logo design that maintains it structure when used in a composition. Via Project 4 via 99designs by Vista.
This super whimsical design by Cross the Line extends the frame beyond the text and incorporates it into a dog leash
Frames can be subtle but once you train your eyes to look for them, they’ll start showing up everywhere.
Frames organize information and create hierarchy for the eye and highlight the most important information for the viewer. They can be pretty and decorative or basic and utilitarian. Frames also help define shapes in the blank white space of a page.
Type
Via -G- via 99designs by Vista.
Typography is an important element of design because it literally conveys the message you want to communicate. But type can also be more than words: if used in an intentional way, type can also be a striking visual element or a shape, as well as provide structure between the content and the visuals.
Find the most impactful, fashion-forward fonts in our guide to the latest font trends.
Conclusion: Time to experiment!
Graphic designers use most or all of these elements of design while being guided by a set of principles, known as the principles of design. If the principles of design are the instructions, the elements are the tools.
The best way to master these elements is to experiment. Once you see that something as simple as making a slight adjustment to the color scheme or adding a shape can be the a-ha! moment that elevates your design, you’ll be on your way to crafting more meaningful and effective compositions.
FAQ about the elements of design
What are the elements of design, and why are they important?
The elements of design are the foundational tools — such as line, color, shape, texture, framing and type — that help designers create clear, engaging, and effective visual compositions.
How many elements of design are there?
There are six core design elements, but different design disciplines or perspectives may include additional elements like space, form and value. The exact number and categorization can vary depending on the context and purpose of the design.
What is the difference between the elements of design and the principles of design?
The elements of design are the fundamental tools (like line, color and texture) that form the building blocks of any composition, while the principles of design guide how those elements are arranged to create balance, contrast and harmony.
Do I need to know the elements of design?
Absolutely! Knowing the elements of design is super helpful, whether you’re the one creating the designs or hiring someone to do it for you. If you’re designing, it gives you a clear idea of what tools you can use and how to make your ideas come to life. And if you’re outsourcing to professional designers, it helps you understand what to look for and how to give feedback so the final result matches your vision.
