“DesignWrite” was created by Thomas Anstadt to explore design and business-related topics.

Designing With Meaning

Graphic design is not only about aesthetics but it is also about meaning. As a graphic designer, grasping how your visual choices communicate messages to your audience and how they influence their perception and response is vital for successful design outcomes.

When it comes to graphic design, the study of semiotics can impact the effectiveness of design. Understanding semiotics is crucial for communicating a message clearly and effectively through visuals and type. Designers can create a stronger connection between the design and the audience by utilizing the right visuals; icons, indices and symbols that lead to increased engagement and a more successful outcome for the user.

Semiotics: The Beginning

The workings of language and signs are fascinating. Ferdinand de Saussure, a Swiss linguist, views language as a system of signs. In his lectures on general linguistics, Saussure emphasizes that a sign consists of a signifier (an object) and a signified (meaning). This idea aligns with the semiotic theories of Charles S. Pierce, which delve into how we use language and signs to make sense of our worldly surroundings.

(L) Ferdinand de Saussure and (R) Charles S. Pierce

Saussure was ultimately concerned with the structure (langue) rather than the use of language (parole). This analytical thinking about the connection between language and meaning became known as structuralism. The basic unit of this structure, the sign, only has meaning because of its difference from others in the same system—the langue.

For example, the word bicycle functions in the English language to create the concept or signified as a mode of transportation—a bicycle is a machine with two wheels powered by its rider and used for traveling from A to B. The relationship between the signifier and the signified is arbitrary. There is no logical or natural connection between the spoken or graphic representation and the concept of a bicycle (known as a duality). The link is established solely in its use by English speakers in the same way that different sounding words describe the same object in a variety of languages, for instance; bicyclette (French) and bicicletta (Italian).

Understanding semiotics is essential to comprehending how signs function, how they construct significance, and how they impact viewers. By delving into the world of semiotics, designers can gain valuable insights into how symbols and representations shape our understanding of the world around us. Whether creating advertising campaigns or crafting a work of art, understanding the principles of semiotics can help designers communicate a message more powerfully and effectively.

Semiotics and Creating Successful Outcomes

Semiotics, also known as the study of signs, was coined by Pierce, an American philosopher, lexicographer, and polymath. This field delves into how we use language and semiotics to comprehend our world. He identified three principal types of semiotic signs: iconic, indexical, and symbolic.

Iconic signs: convey the idea of an object they represent by imitating them, such as a photo or drawing of a tree.

Icons are powerful visual representations of objects, from photos to paintings. A photograph of someone could be labeled an iconic sign because it physically resembles the object it represents. It is also possible to have iconic words, where sound resembles the object it represents. Onomatopoeic words like bang or woof can identify as iconic language.

Indexical signs: express information by indicating their physical connection with the object they represent, such as smoke to fire.

Indices have a direct link between the sign and the object. In this category: smoke is the index of fire, and a tail is the index of a dog. Traffic signs in the street are index signs. Indices link to the physical reality of where they live, such as at a junction or the top of a hill.

While symbols cannot be signs without an interpreter, indices cannot be signs without their objects (interpreter or reader is not necessary). For instance, is a stop sign with a bullet hole in it as a sign of a gunshot; without the gunshot, there would have been no bullet hole, but there is a hole there, whether anybody has the sense to connect it to a gunshot or not.

Symbolic signs: became associated with their meanings by conventional usages, such as the green, yellow and red colors used in traffic lights.

Symbols have no logical connection between the sign and its implied meaning. They rely exclusively on the reader understanding the link between it and the meaning. The Red Cross is a symbol that we have learned to recognize as aid. Flags are symbols that represent territories and organizations. The letters of the alphabet are symbolic signs whose meanings we learned.

Note: Designers often use semiotics to create concepts with different levels of realism, abstraction, and association.

Semiotic Connotations and Denotations

Icons can have both a literal and subjective meaning, making it crucial to understand the rules and codes of visual language. In contemporary design, imagery and words with double meanings are often used to create visual concepts, so mastering these rules is essential for creating messages.

Connotation and denotation are two terms that describe the different layers of meaning that signs can have.

Denotation: the literal or objective meaning of a sign, such as the definition of a word or the factual description of an image.

Connotation: a subjective or cultural meaning of a sign, such as the emotions, values, or associations that a sign brings forth.

For instance, depending on the context and the audience, a photograph of a woman holding a straw broom could be interpreted as a mere picture of a woman or a witch.

Designers can evaluate the connotations and denotations of their signs by asking themselves:

What do they imply, suggest or evoke?
How do they relate to the message and audience?

Understanding the difference between the two layers of meaning is crucial when interpreting a communication, whether it be visual, written or spoken. By considering both denotation and connotation, designers will clearly understand the messages they are creating.

The Design Principles of Semiotic Analysis

Semiotic analysis is a method of interpreting and evaluating signs and their meanings. It involves these four steps:

Description: describes the signifier and the signified of each sign in the design, such as; their color, shape, texture, size, position, and text.
Identification: labels the sign type, connotation, denotation, design genre, style, and tone.
Interpretation: explains how the signs interact and create meaning, such as contrast, harmony, balance, hierarchy, and emphasis of the design.
Evaluation: assesses the sign effectiveness, appropriateness, and persuasiveness based on goals, audience, and context.

Sample of a Semiotic Analysis board. (sciencedirect.com)

Semiotic feedback is the information from testing and evaluating a design with its audience and stakeholders. It can help designers identify strengths and weaknesses and how to improve the design based on semiotic criteria.

Some examples of semiotic feedback are:

Communication: how well does the design concept communicate the message?

Clarity: how clear and consistent are the signs in the proposed design concept?

Relevance: how relevant, familiar, and appealing are the signs to the audience?

Originality: how original and distinctive is the proposed design concept?

Trust: how credible and trustworthy is the proposed design concept?

Note: Designers can use semiotic feedback to refine their concept signifiers, signifieds, connotations, denotations, and interactions.

Semiotics as a Creative Tool

Semiotics is not only a tool for design evaluation but also creation. Designers can use semiotics to generate ideas, explore possibilities, and experiment with signs in their design process through the following techniques:

Brainstorm with words, typefaces, images, icons, indices, and symbols.
Use metaphors, analogies, and associations to create new meanings and connections.
Play with ambiguity, irony, paradox, and humor to challenge expectations and provoke reactions.
Mix and match signs from different genres, styles, and cultures to create contrast and diversity.

Designers can add depth and significance to their work by incorporating semiotics into their design process. Semiotics allows for the creation of meaning through symbols, signs, and icons. Semiotics helps communicate complex ideas, emotions and adds a touch of creativity into the design outcome. Whether designers are creating logos, websites, or a piece of artwork, semiotics can be a valuable tool to help them create something truly unique and meaningful. valuable tool to help them create something truly unique and meaningful.

In Conclusion

Semiotic theories continue to expand as researchers constantly review, extend, and refine them to increase their precision and the value of the insights they provide when applied to communication. The discovery process is critical to understanding the power and complexity of language and signs, as discussed by Saussure and Pierce, in the design profession.

As we have seen, semiotics can play a significant role in the design process because it allows designers to discover how signs and language create specific messages. By contextually analyzing possible words, images, colors, and shapes, designers can create powerful and dynamic compositions that communicate a desired message to a specific audience. –end