OMG - doesn’t anybody understand what a grid is anymore?
I have a beef with young graphic designers. Why do they think they can create a multiple column grid for a design solution? Students in the last couple of classes I have taught, mistakenly answered this question with misinformation. Time to clear things up.
There are 3 types of possible grids - a one column, a two column and a three column option.
The one column grid is rarely used. An example is a wedding invitation or a page of a book. The space for where the contents are placed, are aligned from the left side all the way across to the right side.
The 2 column grid and 3 the column grid are the familiar. All other grids are multiples of the 2 or 3 column grid, it’s simply math. 6 column grids are really 2 or 3 column grids. 8 column grids are 2 column grids. 9 column grids are 3 column grids. All it follows.
On the other hand, 5 column grids are 2 column grids with a ‘broken grid element’ - the odd column.
What is most important for a young designer is to recognize this and work creativity within the obstacles of the grid by cleverly breaking it!
I recently was introduced to a new design layout book from HOAKI publishers entitled - New Page Design Layout and Editorial Design, from August 2022, it references global designers input on this matter. Although I feel that this is generally a good book, I do have a some different opinions.
In this book they speak about the different kinds of grids - the Manuscript Grid, the Column Grid, the Modular Grid, the Baseline Grid, the Hierarchical Grid, and the Combined Grid.
The Manuscript Grid they are referring to is basically the one column grid. All the rest are the 2 and 3 column grids I referred to above. It’s that simple.
If you think you can design by setting up any number of columns, modules, baselines you want, you are missing the purpose of - you as a designer. You must learn to recognize the capabilities of what a viewer can see and what they can not see. These are basics of design principles.
Design for the problem, not for yourself.
This image above of the page with a grid on it is purely a decorative way to break up the page.
I have been designing and teaching design for many years. During this time I recently came across a situation where I asked a couple of young designers to show me their grid on the project they were working on. They unfortunately did not look very confidently at me as thought they were being asked to provide some homework they did not complete. Their idea of what ‘the grid’ might possibly be was the default file margins offered as well as the text box edges.
Do not complicate the design, solve it with a clever design solution which means good hierarchy for the eye to follow, understand human optics, then, with a twist, design that clever ‘gotcha moment’, probably by breaking the grid.
Notice below how the grid is broken. Notice also the margins and gutters (design basics).
My second beef is that in my experience, young designers don’t even know what a grid is in the first place. Therefore they don’t understand the value of it nor the necessity of it’s use for good design. I had to take a deep breath.
The problem with this is that the grid does not only pertain to the printed page. Understanding of the grid and how to properly break it, occurs in all formats - web design, exhibit design, printed design, etc.
If you review the basics and follow them, the ability to be creative and how to break the grid, will follow.