Visual emphasis helps readers understand legal texts
The exhibition The Importance of Visualisation Methods and Information Presentation in the Reception of a Legal Document presents research findings on the impact of basic visual techniques.
The team from the Communication Design Center at SWPS University analyzed commonly used typographic tools—such as bold, underlining, and italics—to assess how they affect readers’ understanding of information in legal documents. The study provides empirical validation of Richard E. Mayer’s signaling principles (2005), which state that highlighting key elements of a text supports better understanding and recall.
Legal design as a field of research helps us better understand how conventional visual aids, including typographic elements, influence the perception and comprehension of legal content. In the exhibition, we confront design intuitions with tangible examples that show how visual elements affect the function of a document.
Mateusz Antczak
Communication Design Center | Department of Graphic Design
The exhibition encourages visitors to reflect on traditional rules for typographic highlighting, using a legal document as a case study. It not only presents scientific evidence, but also explains the research methodology and details the development of study materials, providing insight into the research process.
The exhibition was developed as part of a research grant funded by the SWPS University Research Development Fund.
Mateusz Antczak and Tomasz Bierkowski | Photo: Courtesy of the authors
Exhibition details
Curator: Anna Biedermann, Ph.D.
Research team: Mariusz Wszołek, Ph.D. / Associate Professor; Professor Tomasz Bierkowski; Dorota Płuchowska,Ph.D. / Assistant Professor; Mateusz Antczak; Paulina Woźniak-Dębińska; Marcelina Banach-Wilczyńska
Venue: Ágora exhibition space, Betancourt Building, Río Ebro Campus, University of Zaragoza, Spain
Dates: January 12–31, 2026
Funding: Research grant No. 89/2024/FRBN/G “The Importance of Visualization Methods and Information Presentation in the Reception of a Legal Document”
Project leader: dr hab. Mariusz Wszołek, prof. USWPS
Meet the creators of the exhibition
Professor
Tomasz Bierkowski
Tomasz Bierkowski is a designer, researcher, trainer, and design critic. He specializes in the graphic design of academic and popular science publications. Read the full bio
Ph.D. / Associate Professor
Mariusz Wszołek
Mariusz Wszołek is a communication design researcher, and design theoretician. He is the Vice-Director of the Institute of Design and Head of the Department of Graphic Design at SWPS University. His research interests focus on the theory and practice of communication design, with particular attention to inclusive, participatory, and sustainable approaches to design. Read the full bio
Mateusz Antczak
Mateusz Antczak is a designer.He is the creator of the SWPS University visual identity system. He works on commercial and social projects at the intersection of design theory and practice, with a particular focus on logo design and visual identity systems.