Hierarchy

A visual hierarchy is an arrangement of elements in a graduated series, from the most prominent to the least prominent, in an area of typographic space. When establishing a visual hierarchy, a designer carefully considers the relative importance of each element in the message, the nature of the reader, the environment where the communication will be read, and the need to create a cohesive arrangement of forms within the typographic space.

The study of visual hierarchy is the study of the relationships of each part to the other parts and the whole. When elements have similar characteristics, they have equality in the visual hierarchy, but when they have contrasting characteristics, their differences enable them to take dominant and subordinate positions in the composition.