Designing with Composition in Mind
Design composition and layout of space are the building blocks for the rest of a design. It makes sense that it’s the place to start with Universal Design.
One simple way to make your work easier for everyone to use is to keep it simple. Simple, open layouts also often positively impact design quality. Take the examples below.
Here’s an example of a busy website, captured by the Wayback Machine.
With so much clutter, it’s hard to tell what to pay attention to. Compare it with this simple, clean site.
Because there’s less clutter, it’s clear what the hierarchy of information is. The simplicity also makes the use of negative space more effective.
The examples I've used so far have all been web pages, but these concepts apply to printed materials, such as posters and brochures, as well.
With a busy page, it could easily overwhelm a person, but it also makes navigating with screen readers or a keyboard difficult. You can test these by navigating the webpage using Tab and Shift+Tab and utilizing screen-reading softwares, some of which are already available on your computer.
Published 2018
Content written by EmilyG Design