Lesson+One+-+CARP

This is our first **design** lesson for the class. You will learn a lot more about CARP and other design principles during ET604. We start with CARP. CARP stands for Contrast, Alignment, Repetition and Proximity. These are four design **actions** that you employ when you create instructional visuals. Here is a quick tutorial on the power of CARP design principles. As we move through the semester, you will learn the tools that help you contrast, align, repeat and move things close together or far apart.



You will learn that CARP can also be referred to as CRAP. I try to be polite by switching the letters around. You will, however, find more information on CRAP when you do a web search than you would find for CARP. Here's information I found by typing "CRAP Design Principles" into my Google search field: []

Go ahead and add your own CARP information to this ET504 Wiki. Do any of the following:
 * Add a picture of something that does a good job with CARP.
 * Link to a web page that you think is especially good at showing CARP or explaining CARP.
 * Show us a picture of something that does a bad job with CARP.

Laura Farr- website with good carp: [|Good CARP]

a picture with good carp:

a picture with bad carp:

​ Tasha Tolbert: A website with good CARP [|www.dangergraphics.com] Another picture with good carp:

From Carin: An interesting [|blog entry] on these principles using mostly movie posters, which I thougt was neat, and A nice [|mind map] of what the four principles are, some words to describe them in action, and why they are useful, and An [|example website] I personally visit and I think does a really good job (thier main graphic changes with every new release - I wish you could see some of the old ones!), And, lastly, a "modified reality" picture of carp that I found that uses the CARP principles of repitition, proximity, and contrast (and sort of alignment) - heeheehee! Artist: Ashanti LeShelle

From Wendy:

Good CARP



By Fraz Marc

Bad CARP

The Growing Birthday Cake By Wendy Eades

A website that follows good CARP is []

Apple’s website shows that they practice the design principals covered in the CARP design theory. The black and white color schemes show dramatic contrast between the products and the white background. They align the product shots with the square elements in the website to draw the eye from left to right then up and down. They repeat these square elements through out the page varying only in size to create a sense of balance and unity.