critique-visual-hierarchy
Critique a rendered screen's hierarchy — entry point, eye flow, weight distribution, and emphasis. Use when attention lands in the wrong place. For establishing hierarchy in new work, use visual-hierarchy (ui-design).
- Installs
- 2.1K
- Last 24h
- +27
- Trending rank
- #4735
- Security
- Not audited
Install
Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.
npx skills add https://github.com/owl-listener/designer-skills --skill critique-visual-hierarchy- 01
Install
Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.
- 02
Describe the task
Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads critique-visual-hierarchy automatically when relevant.
- 03
Review the result
The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.
SKILL.md
The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.
Critique Visual Hierarchy
You are an expert in visual hierarchy and screen-level design critique.
What You Do
You analyse a screen to identify whether hierarchy is clear, intentional, and aligned with user goals. You flag problems and suggest targeted fixes.
Critique Dimensions
Entry Point
The first element that captures the eye. Evaluate whether it is the most important thing on screen.
- Is there a single dominant element, or does attention scatter?
- Does size, contrast, or position establish the entry point clearly?
- Does the entry point match the primary user goal for this screen?
Eye Flow
The path a user's eye travels after landing. Evaluate whether the path is deliberate and efficient.
- Does the layout follow an F-pattern, Z-pattern, or intentional reading order?
- Are there dead ends, loops, or confusing jumps?
- Does flow lead naturally to the primary call-to-action?
Weight
The relative visual importance of each element. Evaluate whether weight is distributed purposefully.
- Are size differentials at least 1.5× between hierarchy levels?
- Is bold/heavy type used sparingly so it retains signal value?
- Do background fill, stroke weight, and iconography add or fight the hierarchy?
Emphasis
Specific elements that demand extra attention. Evaluate whether emphasis is earned and singular.
- Is there exactly one primary emphasis zone per view?
- Are colour, contrast, or motion used to emphasise — or overused so they cancel out?
- Does the highest-emphasis element match stakeholder and user priority?
Output Format
For each dimension — Entry Point, Eye Flow, Weight, Emphasis — provide:
- Observation — what you see (neutral, factual)
- Problem — what is broken and why it matters
- Fix — a specific, actionable change
Rate each dimension:
pass/minor issue/major issue.
Common Failure Patterns
- Multiple competing primaries — nothing reads as most important
- Hierarchy flattening — too similar in size, weight, or colour across levels
- False emphasis — decorative elements outweigh functional ones
- Buried CTA — the action is visually quieter than surrounding content
FAQ
What does the critique-visual-hierarchy skill do?
Critique a rendered screen's hierarchy — entry point, eye flow, weight distribution, and emphasis. Use when attention lands in the wrong place. For establishing hierarchy in new work, use visual-hierarchy (ui-design).
How do I install critique-visual-hierarchy?
Run npx skills add https://github.com/owl-listener/designer-skills --skill critique-visual-hierarchy in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/critique-visual-hierarchy/ (personal) or .claude/skills/critique-visual-hierarchy/ (project).
Which AI agents can use critique-visual-hierarchy?
Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.
Is critique-visual-hierarchy safe to install?
No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.
Who maintains critique-visual-hierarchy?
It is published by owl-listener in owl-listener/designer-skills. It has 2,052 recorded installs.
More from owl-listener/designer-skills
presentation-deck
owl-listener/designer-skills
Structure a design presentation for a specific audience and decision. Use when presenting internally. For a portfolio narrative use case-study; for the written argument use design-rationale.
typography-scale
owl-listener/designer-skills
Create a modular type scale with size, weight, and line-height relationships. Use when establishing typographic structure. For line length only use readable-measure; for judging type on an existing screen use critique-typography (visual-critique).
illustration-style
owl-listener/designer-skills
Define an illustration style guide — visual language, colour usage, and application rules. Use when commissioning or standardising illustration. For icons, use icon-system (design-systems).
visual-hierarchy
owl-listener/designer-skills
Establish hierarchy through size, weight, colour, spacing, and position so the eye lands in the intended order. Use when composing new work. For judging an existing screen, use critique-visual-hierarchy (visual-critique).
color-system
owl-listener/designer-skills
Build a product colour system — tonal scales, semantic roles, and contrast compliance. Use when defining or rebuilding colour from scratch. For dark-mode adaptation use dark-mode-design; for chart palettes use data-visualization; for multi-brand token architecture use theming-system (design-systems).
dark-mode-design
owl-listener/designer-skills
Adapt an existing palette to dark mode — surface elevation, contrast rebalancing, and desaturation rules. Use when you already have a light palette to translate. For building the base palette first, use color-system.
Popular frontend & design skills
setup-matt-pocock-skills
mattpocock/skills
Configure this repo for the engineering skills: set up its issue tracker, triage label vocabulary, and domain doc layout. Run once before first use of the other engineering skills.
frontend-design
anthropics/skills
Guidance for distinctive, intentional visual design when building new UI or reshaping an existing one. Helps with aesthetic direction, typography, and making choices that don't read as templated defaults.
hyperframes-animation
heygen-com/hyperframes
All animation knowledge for HyperFrames — atomic motion rules, multi-phase scene blueprints, scene transitions, broader motion-design techniques, AND the seven runtime adapters (GSAP default, plus Lottie, Three.js, Anime.js, CSS keyframes, Web Animations API, TypeGPU). Use for any motion or animation task: pick 2-4 rules and compose, or load a blueprint, or look up runtime-specific API (e.g. GSAP eases / Lottie player / Three.js mixer). Also covers auditing an existing composition's choreography (animation map) and 24 named text-animation effects. HyperFrames-native: single paused timeline, seek-safe, deterministic.
prototype
mattpocock/skills
Build a throwaway prototype to answer a design question. Use when the user wants to sanity-check whether a state model or logic feels right, or explore what a UI should look like.
hyperframes-core
heygen-com/hyperframes
The HyperFrames composition contract — build one renderable project. Use for composition structure, the data- timing attributes, class="clip", tracks, sub-compositions, variables, framework-owned media playback, deterministic-render rules, and validation. Read before writing composition HTML.
vercel-react-best-practices
vercel-labs/agent-skills
React and Next.js performance optimization guidelines from Vercel Engineering. This skill should be used when writing, reviewing, or refactoring React/Next.js code to ensure optimal performance patterns. Triggers on tasks involving React components, Next.js pages, data fetching, bundle optimization, or performance improvements.