Dondis discusses many fascinating visual communication techniques in chapter 6, but the four techniques that resonate with me the most were balance, juxtaposition, activeness, accent.

Balance - I’m glad Dondis pointed out how balance doesn’t mean axial symmetry or static-ness and how balance can be achieved both with symmetry and asymmetry. I think balance really appeals to my own human desire of wanting things to be stable and this idea that each action should have a reaction as a counterpart. I think when there is a center of suspension between two weights in an image, it brings me a sense of centering and peace, or at least when there is not this center, it can feel upsetting.

Juxtaposition - Similarly to balance, juxtaposition really resonates with me because it emphasizes this idea of “having a counterpart”. I find that I’m drawn in as a viewer when I find two or more stimuli interacting with one another or slightly different in some way which causes me to naturally compare the components. I feel that humans are relational beings, and so the technique of juxtaposition really emphasizes this idea of relationships between visual cues—that they aren’t just individual and random but that they are part of a bigger whole/relationship with other cues.

Activeness - I think activeness appeals to me because it generates a sense of movement and dynamics which really catches my eye. To me, the motion that this technique represents helps to communicate even more to me than what is directly on the image because there is this sense of what happens before and after, which is really interesting to figure out and imagine.

Accent - This technique appeals to me because as Dondis says “little of the atmosphere of neutrality is disturbed by the technique of accent”. I like how accent creates the ability to add or highlight something without disturbing the overall atmosphere of the image. Additionally, similarly to activeness, I think accent creates a sense of dynamics/motion and while my eyes are looking at the image, it gives my eyes a path to focus on or direction to move in.