ELEMENTS OF
DESIGN
•LINE
•VALUE
•SHAPE •COLOR
•FORM •TEXTURE
•SPACE
The elements defined
My web page
1st 6wks/ 8/27
LINE
The path of a point moving
through space. IT MAY BE 2
OR 3 DIMENSIONAL.
.
Interpretation of lines
Curved lines indicate movement.
Diagonal Lines
Diagonal Lines create a sense of
Tension.
Horizontal Lines
Communicate calm, peace, a sense of rest.
Curved lines express activity because they change direction, the type and
direction of the curve controls how active they are. The more stretched out
the curve the more relaxed the feeling. Spirals are hypnotic and draw the
eye in to the center.
Curved lines are used in decorative
arts to suggest a feeling of luxury.
Art Nuveau
Style/1895-1905
Albert Raymond Paley.
Portal Gate. 1974.
Forged steel, brass,
copper, and bronze, 90
1/4, x 72 , 4”. Renwick
Gallery, National
Museum of American
Art, Smithsonian
Insitution, Washington,
D.C.
Vertical Lines
Communicate stability, a solidness.
Diagonal lines express instability,
tension, activity, and excitement.
• Because they can
be perceived to be
rising or falling
they can cause the
viewer to feel
uneasy.
Zig Zag Lines Create Confusion
• Are extremely
active and evoke
feelings of
excitement.
Implied Line
• A series of points
that the viewer’s
eyes automatically
connect.
Ex. A series of dots or dashes, a
line of machine stiches, a trail of
wet footprints can create a implied
line. A group of shapes arranged in
a row can also create an implied
line.
Abrasha, Hanukkah Menorah. 1995.
Fabricated stainless steel, silver, and gold.
6 7/8 x 17 ¼ x 2 7/8.Renwick gallery,
National Museum of American Art,
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
SHAPE
A 2-DIMENSIONAL AREA
DEFINED IN SOME WAY.
IT CAN BE GEOMETRIC
OR FREEFORM.
GEOMETRIC SHAPES
FREEFORM SHAPES
Natural Shapes/
Organic Shapes
FORM
A 3-DIMENSIONAL AREA
THAT ENCLOSES
VOLUME.
S
P
H
E
R
E
CYLINDER
C
U
B
E
C
O
N
E
SPACE
THE EMPTINESS OR AREA
BETWEEN, AROUND,
ABOVE, BELOW, OR
WITHIN AN OBJECT OR
OBJECTS.
POSITIVE SPACE
NEGATIVE SPACE
NEGATIVE SPACE
VALUE
THE LIGHTNESS OR
DARKNESS OF AN
OBJECT.
m
m
m
m
Shading
m
m
Natural
color
Methods of creating value
Blending
Stippling
Hatching
Crosshatching
Scribbling
COLOR
DERIVED FROM
REFLECTED LIGHT
Color Wheel
TEXTURE
HOW AN OBJECT FEELS
OR LOOKS AS IF IT
MIGHT FEEL
SMOOTH
MATTE
MATTE
ROUGH
SHINEY
Real/Implied Texture in Art
Meret Oppenheim, Fur lined tea
cup/ Surrealism
Dürer - Rhinoceros