Surveying Visual Literacy Guidelines for Information Design Application
Randy Howe
Fitchburg State University, USA
Abstract. Visual literacy literature is full of guidelines established by various means — from personal taste to established traditions, perception studies, zeitgeist, and big data observations. This chapter explains how fifty guidelines and rules were taken from the literature and classified as a starting point for the creation of a more comprehensive and informed list. Guidelines and rules were randomly selected in this initial effort from some of the fields’ most respected theorists and practitioners among other sources. They were assembled to assist undergraduate students enrolled in a course titled Information Design to think critically about the design decisions made by professional information designers. This chapter further explains the methodology that went into the list’s creation, as well as specifics as to how it was applied in a classroom setting as an instructional aide, with additional reflection for possible enhancement.
Keywords: Design rules and guidelines, information design, instructional method, visual literacy instruction, visual literacy luminaries