Art and Design GCSE
Visual Hierarchy
What Visual Hierarchy means in Art and Design GCSE, as defined for AQA, Pearson Edexcel.
Definitions of Visual Hierarchy
Exam boards and our study guides word this term in slightly different ways. Learn the version your board uses.
The arrangement and presentation of elements in a way that implies importance, guiding the viewer's eye through the design in a deliberate order.
The arrangement or presentation of elements in a way that implies importance, guiding the viewer's eye through the design.
Topics that use Visual Hierarchy
- Graphic communication (AQA GCSE)
- Graphic Communication – Advertising (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
Related terms
- Typography
- Annotation
- Call to Action (CTA)
- Complementary Colours
- Negative Space
- Negative Space (White Space)
- Refinement
- Target Audience
Using Visual Hierarchy in the exam
Definition questions usually carry one or two marks, and examiners look for the precise wording. Write the definition from memory, check it against the version above, and then use the term in a longer answer on the same topic so it sticks.
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