Introduction to Decorative Brick Patterns

Introduction to Decorative Brick Patterns

Geometric Grids Made Easy

Simple Brick Patterns for Creatives

One of the easiest methods for distributing a pattern over a surface is the brick pattern. This is essentially a design that is drawn within a rectangle and repeated horizontally to form a row. Each row is then repeated vertically and is offset horizontally to create the brick pattern.
  • Master terms like 'brick', 'diaper', and 'half-drop'.
  • Create beautiful brick patterns with stunning simplicity.
  • Get clear on your pattern's 'unit of design' and 'unit of repetition'.
  • Enrich your patterns with decorative detail, even if you don't know where to start.
  • Guide the size and location of design elements using a simple grid.
  • Explore different offsets for your brick patterns.
  • Discover how to combine geometry with natural forms in the same design.

Download the grid from inside this course and follow along using pencil and paper. With the downloadable grid, you can easily find that subtle balance between the size of the elements you will be drawing and the space around them. After drawing, we will scan our drawings into the computer where we will vectorise the design. If you are confident in wielding the vector-based pen and node tools in Illustrator or Affinity Designer, you will get the most out of this class. If these tools are new to you, this course will help you on your way to mastering them. We will be using both the pen and node tools to draw and refine the curvature of all our lines.

What's in this Course?

Using a simple grid made up of nested squares and circles, learn how to design graphics the can be repeated to form a brick pattern. We will:
  • establish the pattern's unit of design
  • set the pattern's unit of repeat, and
  • explore how to distribute the 'unit of design' over a surface.
  • Approximately 40 minutes of video demonstrations for you to watch and copy.
  • PDF grids for printing and importing into Illustrator.
  • Bonus Affinity Designer file - grids that you can use straight away.
  • PDF pigeon file for opening in Illustrator.
  • Bonus Affinity Designer file - Pigeon.
  • Free-to-use photos of birds for your patterns.

Course Curriculum

Chris Heath

Chris is a writer and designer with a serious interest in geometry and design. In the 1990's Chris completed his Masters Thesis on 'The Geometric Laws and Principles in Ornament'. Chris lives in the sunny Art Deco city of Napier, New Zealand.

Course Pricing

  • One time Purchase
  • $42 USD

    Purchase Once and Return for Years to Come

    Buy Now
  • Access to All Videos
  • PDF Grid
  • Affinity Designer Grid
  • Pigeon Pattern - PDF and Affinity Designer
  • Bird Photos
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