Journal #4: Pattern & Harmony/Unity

In a design, a pattern is a more or less identically repeated texture. Using a pattern can sometimes make a design difficult to look at it (depending on the colors used; for example, a very saturated blue and a very saturated red aren't great together), but patterns can also ensure the design flows well together; so nothing looks out of place. In the example below, the repeated wave texture (source) is nearly an identical pattern.

Harmony/Unity is how well things mesh together. A few examples are complimentary colors, using monochromatic colors, or the repetition of the same shape throughout a design. You don't have to have harmony/unity in a design to make it clean cut, but if your goal is to have a neat design with a clear theme, harmony/unity is a very useful principle. In the example below (source link was broken), the use of a monochromatic color scheme, and the theme of squiggles draws the design together; everything looks like it is related in some way.