Imagine visiting ancient caves like the ones at Ajanta & Ellora. What would happen if instead of all those exquisite carvings, you would have had to read long texts and ancient fonts? It would be cumbersome, right?! All the ancient temples, palaces, forts, buildings, and much other architecture. The way where the people lived back then and their technology is all known to us because of symbolism. They pictured their daily life tasks and inventions on walls, stones, pillars, etc. This is one of the ways we know the importance of our history and the way our ancestors lived. Other examples that depict the importance of symbolism can be found in our school textbooks. Can you even picture preaching toddlers without picture books?
Art and symbols work in areas where language will never be able to work. You visit a different state where you can’t speak the native language. But if you depict the exact symbols then the whole journey becomes smooth and easy. Graphic designing is the technology that allows communication or transport of messages via creative visuals and depictions. It is a heck of a lot of creative industry. Graphic designers work consistently to represent various things easily with creative pictures and symbols. So what is the importance of symbolism in the graphic design industry you ask? Well, allow me to throw shade on the same!
Importance of symbolism in daily life
Symbols are the soul of graphic designing. Without a proper symbol, it would be a complex process to describe or represent a particular thing. The reason why you need an appropriate symbol is that every symbol has a hidden meaning within it. Not every moon symbol will represent something related to the external universe. Sometimes, the moon can be used to symbolize the beauty of a person, while other times it can be used to signify the lonely state of a depressed person. Similarly, a heart isn’t always a recognition of love. A heart symbol can also signify a human organ and can be used in hospitals to generate banners and placards for tips to maintain a healthy heart. Stars are celestial bodies that everyone loves to adore.
They are positive and shining entities. So next time you hold a farewell party for your seniors you can surely get some invitations with stars on them. You see the whole mood of the situation changes with a symbol that suits the situation best. Plain and boring cards can be made into elegant and classic ones with the right choice of symbols. A graphic symbol of a skull or fire symbolizes danger. You can understand the importance of symbols by reminiscing the events from everyday life. If you are stuck in any dangerous or vulnerable situation the first thing that pops up in your mind is to look for safety measures. A first aid box is well known to everyone because of the red-colored plus symbol it has on it.
Importance of symbolism in brand promotions
The benefits of symbolism aren’t only restricted to daily life representations. They are needed on a much bigger scale by industrialists to promote their brands. Be it a small online business or a large-scale industry. Everyone has their company name and a logo for the same. This logo symbolizes their brand. Every brand is unique because of the symbols and logos they carry. Today, in a constantly ergonomic world, running a business is becoming difficult every day. Even the smallest business owners have to face competition when it comes to stuff like packaging and brand labels and themes of logos.
Gone are the days when people didn’t heed much attention to the packagings. Now, the cute and more unique is your packing the more likely it is that your stuff is gonna sell. Of course, the product quality matters equally. You can imagine the importance of brand logos when you start thinking of brands like Reebok, Adidas, Nike, and Puma. Every brand has a specific logo that allows them to stand apart from the crowd. Even the brand symbols symbolize some or the other meaning.
Creating a brand logo requires knowledge of symbolism and the importance of symbols. You can randomly create a symbol. There isn’t much big deal in it. But, creating a symbol that leaves the customers awestruck as to what the meaning of the symbol might be. This is quite appealing and intriguing in itself. This promotes curiosity in the customer’s mind and attracts them towards the brand.
Inspiration to create a symbol: Where do we get that?
Inspiration to create something useful or creative can come from almost anywhere. There isn’t a law or a jurisdiction that must be followed while generating a symbol. The vintage era is a lot of inspiration. The beauty of nature also largely has an influence. The kitchen & the shapes of geometry have also got a significant amount of influence on the symbols.
Conclusion
In the end, I would like to sum up the importance of symbolizing as an integral process that started from the dawn of human civilization and will last till doomsday. Symbolism, also an ancient thing as it was used by our ancestors. We still linked to histories from centuries ago only on the basis of carvings and symbols. In the modern era, symbols have gained importance in terms of safety, brand promotion, education, decoration, and many other areas.
However, we can’t ignore the fact that symbolism makes the understanding process a lot easier and faster. Similarly, sometimes the instructions on certain types of equipment like fire extinguishers may be printed in very small fonts. In cases of emergency, all you do just to follow the symbols printed on them. Clearly, this is the sole meaning of a graphic symbol. To translate the meaning of a particular thing or term via pictures and symbols. This makes it easier for everyone be it literate or illiterate to understand the basic things easily.
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