Pattypen

Pattypen is a term used to describe a set of predefined visual motifs or fills used to decorate shapes, surfaces, and data representations. The word combines elements from Dutch roots meaning pattern types and is often employed in Dutch-language design and data visualization contexts. In English documentation, pattypen may be translated as pattern types and used to categorize recurring visual motifs.

The concept encompasses both simple and complex motifs. Basic pattypen include solid fills, stripes, dots, and crosshatching, while more elaborate patterns might feature grids, chevrons, or floral repeats. In data visualization, pattypen serve to distinguish categories or series when color alone is insufficient or impractical, acting as hatch or fill patterns that preserve legibility in black-and-white prints or grayscale displays. In textiles and graphic design, pattypen guide the replication of repeating motifs across fabrics, wallpapers, and digital textures.

Historically, pattypen emerged as a practical classification in design manuals and printmaking workshops, evolving with digital rendering tools that standardize fills. Today, software libraries store pattypen as vector patterns or bitmap assets, with parameters for scale, orientation, density, and color interaction. The approach supports both artistic experimentation and functional clarity, making pattern types a common feature across disciplines.

Classification generally begins with a basic taxonomy—solid, hollow, hatched, dotted—and expands to contextual families such as geometric, organic, and abstract patterns. Accessibility considerations, including contrast and monotonicity, influence pattern selection in inclusive design workflows.

See also: pattern, hatch pattern, tiling, motif, texture, data visualization, GIS hatch patterns.