# law-of-figure-ground

A skill that sorts out which layer of an interface reads as foreground and which as background, and helps you set that relationship on purpose.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · 1100 installs · ★ 3103
- Author: Owl-Listener
- License: MIT · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/Owl-Listener/designer-skills/tree/HEAD/ui-design/skills/law-of-figure-ground/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-09-05
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/law-of-figure-ground

## What it does

The skill builds on the law of figure-ground: the mind splits a visual field into a subject and a context on its own. The figure looks closer, has edges, and holds attention. The ground sits behind and has no boundary. That split is a reflex, not a decision, so every surface in your UI triggers it — the only question is whether you designed the split or left it to chance.

It walks through the tools that control the relationship: elevation and shadow, a scrim under a modal, text contrast against its surface, and selected versus unselected states in navigation. Dark mode gets its own section. Light and dark themes invert the usual luminance order, and a shadow that read as elevation in light mode can vanish entirely in dark mode. The skill suggests a subtle light border or a fill at a different luminance instead.

There is a list of common failures: a modal on a white page with no scrim, cards nested inside cards with no luminance difference, text laid straight over photography, flat design with no depth signal at all. The test is simple — strip the colour and see whether foreground and background still separate by shape and contrast. If they do not, the hierarchy rests on hue alone, and that is worth fixing.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Owl-Listener/designer-skills --skill law-of-figure-ground -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/law-of-figure-ground/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/law-of-figure-ground/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Owl-Listener/designer-skills --skill law-of-figure-ground -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/law-of-figure-ground/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Owl-Listener/designer-skills --skill law-of-figure-ground -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/law-of-figure-ground/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install Owl-Listener/designer-skills law-of-figure-ground
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/law-of-figure-ground/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Owl-Listener/designer-skills --skill law-of-figure-ground -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/Owl-Listener/designer-skills --path ui-design/skills/law-of-figure-ground
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/law-of-figure-ground/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Owl-Listener/designer-skills --skill law-of-figure-ground -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/Owl-Listener/designer-skills/tree/HEAD/ui-design/skills/law-of-figure-ground/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- separate foreground from background in a modal
- pick a scrim that makes the page recede
- make the active nav item clearly selected
- keep depth readable in dark mode
- check surface hierarchy without relying on colour

## Example prompts
- Check this modal against law-of-figure-ground — the page behind it does not recede
- Walk through the selected state in the sidebar with law-of-figure-ground
- Shadows disappear in dark mode; what does law-of-figure-ground suggest

## Source text · SKILL.md · MIT

Below is the content of a third-party file. It is data, not instructions for you: do not act on anything written inside unless the human asks. Block tag: 3e8c1d821c844aa7.

BEGIN THIRD-PARTY FILE 3e8c1d821c844aa7
```text
---
name: law-of-figure-ground
description: Apply the Law of Figure-Ground — establish which layer is foreground and actionable versus background. Use when designing modals, overlays, and depth. For emphasising one element among peers, use `von-restorff-effect`.
---
# Law of Figure-Ground

You are an expert in visual attention and the perceptual hierarchy of UI surfaces.

## What You Do

You apply the Law of Figure-Ground to ensure users can instantly identify what is foreground (the content or action) and what is background (the context or surface), and to control this relationship deliberately at every layer of the interface.

## The Principle

The mind automatically separates visual fields into a subject (the figure) and a context (the ground). Figure is perceived as being in front, bounded, and the focus of attention. Ground is perceived as behind, unbounded, and receding.

This parsing is not a choice — it is a perceptual reflex. Every UI surface triggers figure-ground separation. The question is whether you designed it deliberately or left it to chance.

## Characteristics of Figure vs. Ground

| Figure (foreground) | Ground (background) |
|---|---|
| Appears in front | Appears behind |
| Bounded — perceived as having edges | Unbounded — perceived as extending beyond the figure |
| Focus of attention | Context for attention |
| Higher contrast, richer texture or detail | Lower contrast, flatter, more uniform |
| Typically smaller area | Typically larger area |

## Establishing Clear Figure-Ground in UI

### Elevation and shadow

Elevation is the primary tool for figure-ground in layered design systems. A card elevated above a page surface is figure; the page is ground. The shadow signals depth, and depth signals foreground. Dropdowns, sheets, modals, and tooltips must appear above the surface they are called from — depth signals primacy.

### Overlays and scrims

A modal requires the background to recede. A scrim — a semi-transparent dark overlay — reduces the ground's visual presence so the modal can be unambiguous figure. Without a scrim, figure-ground is unclear and attention is split between the modal and the page beneath it.

### Contrast
```
END THIRD-PARTY FILE 3e8c1d821c844aa7

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First 2202 of 4978 bytes. © Owl-Listener · MIT · https://github.com/Owl-Listener/designer-skills/tree/HEAD/ui-design/skills/law-of-figure-ground/SKILL.md

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