# Artwork and layout: words and images work together

Canonical Spreads procedure · 14 October 2026

This is the single authoritative procedure for composing copy and imagery in a Spreads adaptation, teaching example or proposal repair. Agent instructions, authoring guides and review entry points link here; update this procedure rather than maintaining parallel versions. Apply the destination project's brand, approved content and requested format. This method selects no provider, model or house aesthetic.

## Principle

**WORDS AND IMAGES SHOULD COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER.**

An image is part of the argument. Generating artwork is not simply filling an empty space. Before choosing an existing asset or generating a new one, establish what the copy already communicates, what remains unsaid that the image could reveal, and what the audience should understand from their combination:

> Copy says X. Image adds Y. Together they communicate Z.

Choose the strongest contribution appropriate to the slide:

| Contribution | What the image adds |
|---|---|
| Reveal | Context, emotion, consequences, relationships, scale or human experience that the words leave out |
| Demonstrate | A mechanism, contrast, spatial relationship, sequence or magnitude that words cannot explain efficiently |
| Identify | A useful visual reference for something named, so the audience can recognise or understand it |
| Give room | Deliberate rhythm, breathing room or relief from dense text when that is the actual design need |

Some overlap can anchor understanding, especially in a reference image. The image must still earn its space. Avoid merely paraphrasing the headline or adding generic decoration. Do not invent facts, product capabilities, numerical scale or outcomes for drama. Label conceptual illustrations appropriately; they are not documentary proof.

Typography, a diagram, a data-backed chart, an existing cleared asset or intentional whitespace may communicate more effectively than generated art. Breathing room does not automatically require an image. There is no image-per-slide quota.

## Production workflow

Apply the framing and combined-output review to the chosen medium. Run the generation step only when new generated artwork is appropriate; use the approved existing asset, native diagram/chart, typography or whitespace directly otherwise.

### 1. Define the slide's purpose

Identify what the audience should understand, feel or decide, what they already know, and what this moment prepares next. Separate an intended audience response from a measured result. Identify the copy's contribution and complete the X/Y/Z brief before selecting an image.

Select the exact Spreads composition/state for the relationship being communicated: scale, contrast, sequence, cause and effect, reveal, plan or another explicit relationship. Read its contract and actual markup. Choose the medium that best serves that relationship; a generated scene cannot replace missing evidence or accurate chart geometry.

### 2. Design the frame before generating

Plan the headline, key figure if relevant, artwork, supporting copy and sources together. Mark the canvas and image-slot aspect ratios, subject position and scale, camera angle or diagram viewpoint, gaze/movement direction, safe crop boundaries and quiet areas for text. Specify contrast and background detail behind overlays; a nominally empty area can still be too busy or too close in value to the type.

Distinguish a full-bleed scene, a bounded image and a transparent cut-out. Establish placement of folios, logos and sources rather than leaving them to a default footer. For related slots, plan consistent framing, scale, perspective, lighting and style. A deliberate contrast may differ, but unrelated camera/scale changes must not create a misleading comparison. Preserve supplied brand constraints and approved artwork.

### 3. Generate artwork for that composition

Use the brief below, including the complementary storytelling purpose and the planned text space. Include approved visual references when useful and authorised for the chosen tool. Provider/model choice is separate from this method; follow the available tool's documented capabilities.

Keep narrative copy out of generated pixels. Headlines, campaign lines, key figures, labels, supporting copy and sources remain editable in the native composition. Do not rely on the image model to produce exact logos, diagrams, measurements or product details; use verified assets or native construction when accuracy matters. Record whether imagery is documentary, illustrative, conceptual or reconstructed.

For Spreads documentation and public teaching examples, use generic fictional scenarios and cleared assets. Client imagery, private references, identifying prompt details and source correspondence stay outside the reusable documentation and public bundle; apply [reuse-policy.md](reuse-policy.md). A confidential asset being locally available is not authority to upload it to a generation service.

### 4. Inspect the result and redesign around it

Generation is an intermediate step. View the actual image, not only its prompt or thumbnail. Assess what it now contributes, its focal points, implied relationships, background detail and whether the intended quiet area really supports text. Compare the actual X/Y/Z to the intended brief.

Adjust layout, hierarchy, crop and copy placement around the useful image while preserving the intended meaning and approved wording. Regenerate or choose another medium if it cannot support the story; do not force it into an unsuitable placeholder. Avoid making a missing factual detail look plausible through retouching or invention.

In a project adaptation, recompose deliberately and record meaningful departures from the selected state. In library maintenance, preserve the reviewed source/reference state and use the existing option/duplicate contract for a changed arrangement; do not silently overwrite it. Source-fidelity checks and adaptation reviews answer different questions.

### 5. Build in the requested native format

Preserve image proportions and editable text. Crop intentionally rather than stretching. Artwork described as full bleed reaches the canvas edges without unintended gutters. Add sources, logos and folios as deliberate parts of the hierarchy; avoid arbitrary bars or boxes that interrupt the composition. Prefer planned quiet space and contrast, adjusting the frame or asset when necessary.

Check related image slots as a set for coherent framing, subject scale and style. Keep required attribution visible and associated with the correct content. Preserve approved assets, campaign lines, intentional blanks and scope. An editable PowerPoint needs separately editable text and relevant native elements; an HTML screenshot is not an editable slide. For web output, specify responsive crops/reading order and useful alternative text where needed. Disclose medium-specific limits.

### 6. Render and review the combined slide

Render the actual populated artifact in the requested output format and inspect the complete slide at realistic presentation size. Use the checklist below. Review the image with the copy, not as a standalone picture; inspect related slides together when consistency or a reveal depends on them.

Repair concrete defects, render again and verify the changed result. Record the file/version, renderer, inspected size/states, fixes and remaining limits. An image-generation success or a clean structural check alone does not establish a successful slide. Prefer non-disruptive rendering; any unverified native-app differences remain explicit.

## Reusable composition and image-generation brief

Keep the completed brief with the destination project's storyboard or authoring records, outside public library files when it contains private information. Omit fields that do not apply; do not manufacture a number, source or image merely to fill the form.

```text
Slide / passage and version:
Audience, starting understanding and desired understanding / feeling / decision:
Point / approved copy and factual status:
Previous setup → this moment → next takeaway / action / question:

Copy says X:
Image adds Y:
Together they communicate Z:
Primary visual contribution: reveal / demonstrate / identify / give room
Best medium and why: type / diagram / chart / existing asset / generated art / whitespace
Evidence, qualifications and details that must not be invented:
Protected wording, assets, scope and intentional blanks:

Spreads code + exact option/state and actual file:
Target native format, canvas size and aspect ratio:
Reading order and focal hierarchy:
Headline / key figure / supporting copy / source / logo / folio positions:
Artwork region: ratio, bounds; full bleed / bounded / cut-out:
Subject, position, scale, camera angle / viewpoint:
Gaze / movement / visual direction:
Quiet areas for editable text; contrast and background-detail requirements:
Safe crop boundaries; essential details; responsive / alternate-format crops:
Related image slots: shared framing, scale, perspective and style:
Approved references, permitted use, visual treatment and provenance status:

Generation brief, if generation is the right medium:
  Create [subject / scene / relationship] to add [Y] to copy that says [X],
  so the combined composition communicates [Z]. Show [supported visual details].
  Compose for [ratio and frame]; put [subject] at [position and scale],
  viewed from [angle], with [direction]. Reserve [area] with [quiet detail
  and contrast] for text added separately. Protect [details] inside [safe crop].
  Use [approved treatment / reference] and match [related-slot requirements].
  Do not render narrative text, numeric claims, labels, logos, sources or folios.
  Do not imply [unsupported claims or misleading relationships].
  Background: [opaque scene / transparent cut-out, as required].
Tool / model, output settings and approved reference inputs (record separately):

Post-generation observation: actual contribution, focal points, usable text space:
Layout / crop / placement changes, or reason to regenerate / change medium:
Native artifact and render version / size / inspected states:
Review: checked / needs attention / not applicable, with evidence and limits:
```

The generation portion supplies purpose and composition; the full authoring brief remains the authority for final copy, facts and layout. Do not send confidential context or references to a tool merely because they appear in a local brief.

## Compact combined-slide review

Mark each relevant item **checked / needs attention / not applicable**, with a brief observation. Repair and re-render failed items before describing the result as ready.

- **Contribution:** the rendered copy and image deliver X/Y/Z; any overlap anchors understanding rather than merely restating the headline. Whitespace or another medium was considered.
- **Truth:** visual details, comparison scale and implied mechanisms match the available evidence; illustrative material is not presented as proof. Approved content and intentional blanks survive.
- **Hierarchy:** the intended first, second and supporting focal points are clear; the image supports rather than competes with the point.
- **Legibility:** editable text reads at presentation size; actual background detail, contrast and text space work after insertion.
- **Geometry:** proportions, scale, crop, full bleed and overlaps are intentional; essential details, faces and labels are not accidentally clipped or covered.
- **Consistency:** related slots/slides use coherent framing and style, with meaningful contrasts distinguished from accidental mismatches.
- **Sources and identity:** credits, sources, folios and logos are legible and deliberately placed; public examples contain no confidential assets or identifying details.
- **Format:** the promised native output is inspected; text remains editable where promised. Relevant responsive, motion/static and accessibility states work; unsupported features are disclosed.
- **Verification:** defects were repaired and the final combined render rechecked; record the actual version, review evidence and outstanding limits.

## Generic examples: redundant versus complementary

These are fictional teaching scenarios, not client cases or evidence for a real proposal. Their mechanisms and implications must be supported before use in a factual deck.

| Copy | Weak or redundant treatment | Complementary treatment and combined meaning |
|---|---|---|
| “One small delay can block the whole line.” | A generic clock beside the headline | A native process diagram shows several work streams waiting at one shared approval step. Copy says a delay matters; image adds the dependency and affected work; together they explain how a local bottleneck spreads. Use the actual process, not invented connections |
| “Make room for a pause.” | A decorative calm landscape unrelated to the setting | A conceptual scene places a small quiet seating area beside a busy pedestrian route. Copy invites a pause; image adds where that relief fits into daily life; together they make the intended experience tangible without claiming a real installation exists |
| “The locking collar holds the joint.” | A generic safety shield or a second rendering of the word “secure” | A cleared image of the actual component, with an editable callout locating the collar at the joint. Copy explains its role; image adds recognition and spatial location; together they explain which part to identify. An invented product rendering cannot establish the real mechanism |
| “Now choose.” after a dense comparison | Generic fireworks added to fill the remaining space | A spare typographic frame with the actual choices and generous whitespace. Copy signals the decision; space adds a change of pace and focus; together they provide a deliberate landing. No generated artwork is needed |

The best answer may be a reference image, a diagram, an expressive scene or no image. Judge the combined communication job rather than photographic realism, model novelty or decorative polish.