Explosion

This design incorporates at least 2 design elements: Unity, and Continuation.

When you first see these floating objects, the first thing that comes to mind is: Sphere.

This is not a sphere, it is merely a group of rounded puzzle-like pieces formed together in the shape of a sphere but because of unity, our minds fill in the gaps and to create a higher meaning of a sphere.

Here we see the pieces begin to break apart.

As the pieces begin to separate further, you can clearly see that there is nothing holding them together.

This final picture shows the pieces even further apart, and even though the individual pieces have not changed, their position conveys less meaning. This image is a lot more chaotic than the first.

If click on the first image and quickly scroll through the rest using the picture viewer, the design element of continuation almost forces your brain to simulate some sort of explosion. In reality, they are just 3 separate images of the exact same shapes in different positions, but when viewed sequentially, motion, and greater meaning is perceived.

Continuation can also be seen in this photo, as our eyes naturally start from the left and move right toward the action, rather then from the right and then head left:

Craig Bishop

Done in Cinema 4D

Oh, and this is an example of continuation that we see often in graphic novels: