Visual Design Elements

Sensory Architecture: A Journey Through the Senses A client approached us with the vision of creating a wellness retreat that transcended the conventional. As with all our projects, we began with Land Studies, exploring its natural systems and understanding that the users were not the only guests but also the flora, fauna, and ecosystems of the place. This research led us to question: What if architecture did not only adapt to nature but co-created with it? More than a physical space, a wellness retreat is an experience. Designing in harmony with nature means creating a living, responsive architecture that interacts with its surroundings and strengthens the connection between people and the natural world. To achieve this, we studied light, sound, wind, vegetation, temperature, smells, and the metaphysical features of the site, asking key questions like: How can sensory experiences promote healing? Each site visit revealed new aspects, allowing us to map natural rhythms—light movement, wind patterns, biodiversity, influenced by the time of day and the season of the year. Studying the senses can seem overwhelming due to their subjective nature, so it was essential to understand how to measure and quantify the effects of these sensory elements on well-being. •⁠ ⁠Sight and Light: Light, essential for visual perception, influences emotions and biological rhythms. Orange light (582-620 nm) stimulates vitality, while blue light enhances concentration but can disrupt sleep. Based on these effects, one can design lighting strategies that respond to the physical and emotional needs of users at different times of the day. •⁠ ⁠Sound and Frequencies: Sound travels in waves and affects mood. Low frequencies induce relaxation, while high frequencies create alertness. Mapping natural sounds—wind, water, birds—allows us to define zones of tranquility and areas with greater sensory stimulation.  - Touch and Textures: Tactile perception involves pressure, temperature, and texture. Smooth wooden surfaces convey warmth, while rough stone evokes stability. By analyzing local materials, we design spaces that foster relaxation and a connection with nature through touch. •⁠ ⁠Smell: Smell is linked to the limbic system, influencing emotions and memories. We identified natural fragrances—like citrus & wood—to integrate them into architecture and enhance well-being. For example, we aim to design an experience where guests wake up to the invigorating scent of citrus, promoting energy and alertness, and wind down at night with the calming aroma of lavender, encouraging restful sleep. To bring this vision to life, we are working with experts from various disciplines, focusing on ecology, environmental conservation, neuroscience, and the use of local materials and construction techniques. Sensory architecture transforms design into a living organism that breathes, listens, and responds.

𝐘𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭. At first glance, this image seems to contain red. It doesn’t. Not a single red pixel exists. The image is composed entirely of blue, black, and white. So why do so many of us confidently perceive red? Because human vision isn’t a passive camera. It’s a prediction engine. Your visual system doesn’t process color in isolation. It continuously integrates 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐭, 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐱𝐭, 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐬. When certain luminance relationships and textures align, the brain infers the most likely explanation based on past exposure, then fills in the gaps automatically. This process is known as 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐱𝐭-𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. It’s efficient. It’s adaptive. And sometimes, it’s wrong. Neuroscientifically speaking, perception is less about what enters the eyes and more about what the brain expects to see. Sensory input is just one ingredient; interpretation does the heavy lifting. The takeaway goes beyond optical illusions. In work, leadership, and decision-making, we often believe we’re responding to “objective reality.” In truth, we’re responding to 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐬 shaped by assumptions, experience, and bias. What feels obvious isn’t always accurate. What feels real isn’t always present. Before reacting, deciding, or judging: pause and ask: Am I seeing what’s there …. or what my brain expects to see?

Designer Wraps, Consumer Traps. Ever found yourself drawn to a luxury brand, or catching yourself judging a product purely by its packaging? If so, Wheat is Wheat is Wheat by Peddy Mergui is likely to change how you see the shelf next time you shop. Packaging has an extraordinary ability to shape how we value things, often before we realise it's happening. Long before a label is read or a price is compared, a judgement has already formed, nudged into place by visual cues rather than rational thought. That's exactly what Mergui sets out to examine. The exhibition takes everyday staples and dresses them in the visual language of luxury. Flour appears wrapped like Prada, eggs are branded by Versace, baby formula wears Gucci. The contents stay the same, yet perception shifts instantly. The contrast is deliberate. Nothing about the product changes, but its perceived value does. The work lands because it exposes something the industry rarely says out loud. Perception is not an extra layer applied to a product. It's the engine behind the entire read. Design codes begin shaping meaning long before a word is read. Finish, typography, colour and balance all carry signals that guide interpretation. Matte surfaces suggest premium. Serif typography leans on heritage. Gold accents imply worth. Together they form a visual language that works faster than conscious thought. Behavioural science backs this. Research shows that colour, texture and typography influence how we judge quality, price and even taste. Metallic tones are linked with craftsmanship. Lighter palettes suggest purity. Balanced layouts signal trust. These stories form quickly, often without us noticing. Mergui amplifies that mechanism by making it impossible to ignore. His work visualises the halo effect, where a single strong cue shapes overall judgement. When flour carries a luxury logo, the prestige transfers automatically, driven by instinct rather than logic. That's where the tension sits. Packaging does far more than protect or inform. Identity, aspiration and belonging sit at the heart of its influence, using the same shortcuts luxury branding has perfected for decades. Everyday products become desirable not because they've changed, but because their wrapper has. Wheat is Wheat is Wheat holds up a mirror to that system. It shows how easily meaning outweighs material, and how narrow the line can be between persuasion and manipulation. Next time a beautifully designed pack catches your eye, it might be worth asking whether you are choosing the product, or the story wrapped around it. Wheat is still wheat. Design just knows how to dress it. 📷Peddy Mergui

We tend to rely on LRV to guide colour decisions. But it doesn’t tell the whole story. In a lot of projects, once reflectance targets are met, colour is often considered “resolved”. But in practice, spaces don’t always behave as expected. Two schemes can meet the same LRV guidance and still feel completely different to be in — one easy to read and settle into, the other harder to navigate or more visually demanding over time. What often sits underneath that difference is chroma. It’s something we talk about less, but it plays a big role in how colour is actually perceived — particularly in shared environments where people experience space differently. In the latest edition of The Colour Code, I’ve broken this down using a simple way of thinking about colour as three dials: • hue • LRV • chroma …and how small shifts between them can change how a space performs once it’s in use. I’ve also included a few visual examples showing how the same hue and LRV can behave very differently depending on chroma. You can read the full article below. ❓How are you approaching colour balance in your projects — particularly where guidance and real-world use don’t quite align?

Designers’ View vs Users’ View! You put a baby on the bed. Above the baby, you hang some toys From your side (designer’s view), it looks beautiful. All toys are visible, colors are bright, arrangement is perfect. But… From the baby’s side (user’s view), The scene is totally different. The baby only sees the bottom side of the toys. Maybe it looks confusing, boring, or even a little scary. The baby is the real user. And the real user experience is very different from what the designer imagined. The Lesson: Just because we (designers) find something attractive does not mean users will also like it. Users see things from their own perspective, environment, and needs. If we ignore the user’s view, our design may look perfect to us but fail in real life. Why understanding the user’s view is important? 1. Design is not for us, it’s for users. What looks nice to us might be confusing to them. 2. User’s perspective is always different. They focus on completing their task, not on admiring visuals. 3. Testing reveals reality. Only when we test our product with real users, we realize: ⤷ Which parts are helpful? ⤷ Which parts are confusing? ⤷ What should be improved? 4. Better experience = Better product. When we design for users’ comfort, the product becomes easy, useful, and successful. Final Thought: As designers, we must step down from our own “beautiful view” and look from the user’s side. Because finally, the product is not for us, It’s for the user. #UXDesign #UserExperience #UIDesign #DesignThinking #UserTesting

"As an Interior Designer, the First Thing I Notice When I Walk Into a Room" • The immediate feeling of the space Calm, heavy, open, cluttered — a room communicates this instantly. • How the layout flows Where the eye moves first, how easily you can walk through, and whether anything feels blocked. • Natural light behavior How light enters, spreads, and interacts with walls, floors, and furniture. • Scale and proportion Whether furniture fits the room or overwhelms it. • Spacing between elements Breathing space matters more than adding pieces. • Visual balance Are elements working together or competing for attention? • Only then, the details Colours, textures, materials, and décor. • The quiet test If the space feels comfortable without explanation, the design is working.

A café once discovered that a coffee table was quietly influencing revenue. For years they used square tables. They looked efficient and practical. But there was a pattern they couldn’t ignore. Solo customers rarely stayed long. Coffee finished. Bill paid. Seat empty again. Then someone noticed something interesting. When you sit alone at a square table, the empty chair across from you subtly reminds you that the table was designed for two. The experience feels temporary. When the café began introducing round tables, behaviour changed. Customers lingered longer. Groups conversed more easily. Solo visitors felt comfortable staying. Nothing about the coffee changed. Just the shape of the table. Great brands understand this. They don’t just analyse marketing. They study human behaviour inside the experience. Because sometimes the smallest design decisions quietly change the way people feel. And when feelings change, behaviour follows.

Contrast isn’t just about visual appeal, it is also about functionality, accessibility, and impact. Not everyone sees color the same way. Contrast tests helps ensure your design is usable for people with color blindness, aging vision, etc. It is a simple step with a big impact. I like to test for contrast in: ❇️ Temperature (cold vs. warm) ❇️ Value (light vs. dark) ❇️ Complements (Hues) ❇️ Visual weight (extension or colour dominance) ❇️ Purity (vivid colors vs. muted tones) ❇️ Association (how some colours change depending on the colours around them) Beyond functionality, contrast also sets the tone and mood of a design. Testing allows you to make deliberate, informed decisions about what to emphasise and what to downplay.

Color plays a major role in that decision before users even read a word. In UX/UI design, color isn’t just visual =>𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 It guides attention, builds trust, and shapes how users feel about a product. Why does color matter this much? Because users don’t think first—they perceive first. 👉 Visuals are processed 60,000x faster than text 👉 Color improves recognition and usability when used consistently Here are key factors that influence how users experience color: 🎨 TONE & SATURATION ⇢ Bright colors = energy, attention ⇢ Muted tones = calm, approachable ⇢ Dark shades = depth, authority 🌍 CONTEXT & CULTURE ⇢ Colors don’t mean the same everywhere ⇢ Red can signal urgency—or celebration ⇢ White can mean simplicity—or emptiness 🧠 USER EXPERIENCE ⇢ High contrast improves readability ⇢ Consistent colors improve navigation ⇢ Clear color hierarchy reduces confusion HOW COLORS FUNCTION IN UX/UI: 🔴 Red: Attention, urgency, action ↳ Use for alerts, errors, critical CTAs 🟢 Green: Balance, growth, reassurance ↳ Ideal for success states, confirmations 🔵 Blue: Trust, stability, clarity ↳ Common in dashboards, finance, tech 🟡 Yellow: Positivity, highlight, alertness ↳ Best for drawing attention to key elements 🟣 Purple: Creativity, depth, differentiation ↳ Works well for unique or premium experiences 🟠 Orange: Energy, engagement, visibility ↳ Strong for CTAs and interactive elements 🟤 Brown: Warmth, grounding, authenticity ↳ Suitable for natural or earthy brands 🩷 Pink: Friendliness, care, approachability ↳ Often used in lifestyle and community-focused apps ⚫ Black: Contrast, authority, emphasis ↳ Useful for hierarchy and premium feel ⚪ Gray: Balance, neutrality, support ↳ Essential for backgrounds and secondary elements Don’t choose colors because they look good. Choose them based on how users think and behave. Ask yourself: ✓ What action should the user take here? ✓ What emotion should this screen create? ✓ Does my color system guide or confuse? ✓ Is my hierarchy clear at a glance? Good design isn’t decoration. It’s decision-making made easier. What’s one color you rely on most in your UI designs? #ColorPsychology #UXDesign #UIDesign #UXUI #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #imenmlika

My design passed accessibility checks with 7:1 contrast, while a user measured 3.37:1 on Linkedin. Both of us were right at the end, do you know how? I recently had a very interesting discussion under one of my posts and it turned into a great reminder of how complex accessibility can be in the real world. For the post, I created a graphic and checked that the color contrast of every text element is safely above the 4.5:1 minimum recommended by WCAG. Then a follower commented that some of the text was hard to read on the phone and he shared a screenshot from a contrast checker showing 3.37:1 for one of the colors. That raised an interesting question: how can a design that passes accessibility checks suddenly fail a user? There are several things happening between the moment we design something and the moment someone sees it: 1️⃣ Platform compression When we upload images to social platforms, they are usually compressed automatically to reduce file size. Compression can slightly change colors and blur the edges between text and background. If the contrast was already close to the limit, this can lower the effective contrast. 2️⃣ Image resizing The graphic I designed was quite large, but platforms often resize images for different screens, especially on mobile. When the image becomes smaller: • text strokes become thinner • edges get softened by scaling • readability decreases 3️⃣ Thin fonts + antialiasing Even with sufficient contrast ratios, thin fonts can reduce perceived contrast. When text is scaled or compressed, the browser blends text pixels with the background (antialiasing). That means the visible color becomes a mixture of text and background. Contrast tools inside design software measure pure colors, while the final rendered image contains blended pixels. 4️⃣ Screens and real-world conditions People view content on: • phones in bright daylight • different screen technologies • different brightness levels • sometimes without glasses All of this affects how readable something feels. 5️⃣ Measuring the uploaded image Another important detail: the contrast was checked on a screenshot of the uploaded image, not on the original design. That means the tool measured pixels that were already affected by: • compression • scaling • antialiasing So the measured 3.37:1 might actually be correct for the rendered version of the image. Accessibility does not only happen during design, it also depends on how the design is exported, processed by platforms, and displayed on real devices. That’s why it's helpful to: ✔ aim for contrast higher than the minimum ✔ avoid very thin fonts in images ✔ check the exported file, not only the design tool ✔ test how it looks after uploading to the platform Have you ever experienced something similar where a design technically passed accessibility checks but still caused issues for users? #WebAccessibility #Accessibility #InclusiveDesign #UXDesign #UXAccessibility #WCAG #DesignForAll