Map aesthetics color design

As an information carrier for describing and studying the human living environment, maps integrate science and art into one. With the extensive use of maps and the continuous improvement of people’s aesthetic ability in maps, map aesthetics has received more and more attention. Map color design, as an important part of map aesthetics, plays a role in beautifying maps and guiding readers to appreciate and study maps. Below, the author talks about the design of colors in the aesthetics of the map and gives some suggestions for reference.

First, the expression of map beauty

1. Appearance: The beauty of the map is an important condition for the visual environment. The appearance of the map is not essentially related to the contents of the map, but the map layout, such as the design of the border, the layout of the figure body, and the layout of the map, must be carefully considered when designing the map. The appearance of the map is also reflected in the size of the map, the style of the map, and so on.

2. Matrix beauty: The matrix of a map is the material used to draw a map on it. The choice of map matrix is ​​related to the use of the map and the technical conditions at that time. The matrix can influence the reader's emotions in the aesthetic activities of the map. For example, if the travel map can be printed on a large handkerchief, it can be used not only as a map but also as a handicraft.

3. Composition beauty: composition includes the balance of the map and the establishment of a center of interest. The balance of the map is a problem often emphasized in map design because it can make people feel happy and happy. Emphasizing that the center of interest should not only consider the level of hierarchy, but also emphasize the rationality of the composition and make a clear distinction between primary and secondary. If a map is unclear, it will make readers feel at a loss and be psychologically uneasy, which is not conducive to the efficient transfer of map information.

4. Symbolic beauty: The map symbol is a kind of special graphical symbol, which uses the form of convenient spatial positioning to represent the nature and relationship of various objects and phenomena. Map symbols are not only varied in variety and size, but also their size, shape, and direction have a direct influence on the beauty of the entire map. Therefore, the design of map symbols must take into account the theme and content of the map, and the reader's psychological and social environment and other factors.

5. Note: The beauty of the annotations on the map has a direct influence on the beauty of the map. The factors affecting the beauty of map annotation include font, color, size, interval, and position. There are many types of Chinese characters used on maps in China, such as Song-style, isochrons, imitation Song-style, Lishu, Weibei, and arts. Different fonts not only have different calligraphy methods, but also have different uses on different maps. After a long period of drawing and mapping practice, the annotation of the map has formed a number of conventional forms that require mapping workers to ponder and compare.

6. Color beauty: The colors on the map can increase the expressiveness of the map, the flexibility of the map design and the clarity of the map, and increase the beauty of the map. The colors of the natural world are splendid and colorful, but there are three common elements: hue, lightness, and purity. Therefore, the cartographer must have a certain amount of color knowledge, so that qualitative, quantitative use of color, and reasonable collocation, so that the map's color more coordinated.

Second, the color design in map design

1. Dotted color design

Because of its particularity on the map, the dotted symbol, if not emphasized, is easily dimmed by other symbols and does not reflect the purpose of drawing. Therefore, in general, the main part of the dot symbol is a color with a high purity and a color value of 100. Monochromatic color is represented by one color of C=100, M=100, Y=100 and K=100 respectively; mixed color is mixed using several monochromatic colors of C=100, M=100 and Y=100. . For example, red is a mixture of M=100 and Y=100; green is a mixture of C=100 and Y=100. Of course, you can also add a bit of black in the mixed color, but the black color value should not exceed 20, otherwise, the map will appear boring, thus weakening the beauty of the map. For some special dot symbols, colors can be used alone.

2. Linear symbol color design

Linear symbols play a skeleton role in the map. It is the main carrier of map information and should be highlighted as a key element in map design. Linear symbols are very narrow and slender, and they can only be highlighted by highlighting colors. Therefore, when designing a line symbol, the color of the line drawing should be a color with a high purity. The color value of C, M, Y, and K should be 100. That is, if the line type symbol is monochromatic, its color value should be 100; if the line type symbol is composed of monochromatic color, the color value of each monochromatic color should also be 100. For example, the river symbol is cyan (C=100), the railway is black (K=100), and the highway is red (M=100, Y=100).

The above is the basic color method of line symbols. For contour maps and other special cases, special methods of using color can be used. 1 contour color. The maps of flowing landforms, mountainous landforms, and extremely mountainous landforms show relatively high carrying capacity of the contour lines; while in the plains and hilly areas, the carrying capacity of contour lines is relatively small. Since the contours are always at the second level in the map, the color can be faded. Usually, the color is expressed in three colors: M=40, Y=70, and K=30. 2 special cases with color. For a map with a large load, hierarchical elements can be represented by the same color impairment method. For example, the main railway is black (K=100) and the secondary railway is gray (K=60).

3. Surface area color design

The large area of ​​the area symbol can quickly capture the reader's vision, affecting the reader's aesthetic taste. The successful use of color in the area is to convey relatively rich geographic information in fewer map languages, so that the purpose of the map and the design intent can be expressed clearly, completely, and accurately. To do this, the area should use color to distinguish levels and use different color values.

(1) Select the color value according to the nature

In the map, there are not only water areas and neighborhood symbols, but also surface area symbols such as vacant land and vegetation. The properties they express in the picture are different. The color value of the area symbol should be selected according to its nature, different from other symbols. Under normal circumstances, the waters are colored in cyan (C=20) and vegetation in green (C=40, Y=60). Different colors can be selected based on the maps. For example, the color of the block in the topographic map is gray (K=20); the blocks in the administrative district may use different colors and color values ​​according to their attributes, with light pink (M=25), light yellow (Y=30), and shallow. Orange (M=15, Y=30), light purple (C=22, M=28), or light-green (C=15, Y=20), etc. indicate that they belong to different administrative districts, and they are effective.

(2) The same kind of elements should be selected in the same color system

The elements of the same subcategory have the same color system as much as possible, so that the nature of the symbol can be made clearer, and the drawing can be more concise and more aesthetically pleasing. For example, C=18, Y=25, C=7, and Y=10 indicate that the blocks and vacant land in the same administrative district are effective. In addition, layered coloring of the sea is a good example.

(3) Coordinated color selection between surface symbols

Although the color values ​​of various areas are different, the colors used in a map or even in a batch of maps should be coordinated. For example, layered colors indicate landforms, the oceans use cyan, the plains are green, the hills are yellow, the mountains are brown, and the mountains are light purple. The use of color coordination requires designers to look for the feelings from good works (atlases or maps), and also to look for the feelings from nature and compare the two feelings in order to design a natural, coordinated color. Used for homework.

(4) Surface area symbols should use soft color values

In addition to the symbols that are to be particularly emphasized, the surface area symbols should generally be soft, cool, elegant and elegant, and not too strong. The color values ​​of C, M, Y, and K are generally not to exceed 30, preferably 10 to 20, and individual colors may be reduced to 5.

(5) The surface area in the dot and line symbol should be selected from the perspective of decorative beauty

Only by selecting from the perspective of decoration and setting can the main symbols be highlighted to make them more clear and distinct. The area of ​​the dot symbol and the line symbol can be dark or light, and the color value can be high or low. The only purpose is to highlight the main body of the symbol and make the symbol harmonious and perfect.

Third, color design should focus on innovation

Innovation is based on inheritance and development. Only if there is sufficient research, exploration, and inheritance of tradition can we create ideas for innovation and development before we can innovate. The map development history reflects the continuous development of the map from art to science. The early maps are like landscape paintings, and the colors of art are more intense. Through the continuous efforts of cartographers of all ages, map cartography theory has been continuously expanded, and maps have achieved a continuous leap from art to science. For how to reflect innovative ideas in color design, the author thinks:

1. Setting up a Map View of Artistic Beauty

The map is not only a technological product but also an art work created by human wisdom. With the application of high technology in various fields, the beauty of science and technology on maps has become increasingly attractive. The map's graphics, text, and numbers as well as their colors express the beauty of the map. At the same time, its complexity and simplicity, clarity and ambiguity, simplicity and lengthiness, vividness and boringness, harmony and diversity all play a vital role in the artisticity of the map. effect.

2. Establishing color is the design idea of ​​maps

Map elements are divided into natural elements and social and humanistic elements. The latter can better reflect the "intrinsic scale" and laws of artistic beauty. Map designers should put social and cultural elements on the first level to express them. The design of graphics, text, and numbers is important, but color design is the most effective method.