ELEMENTS OF ARTS (LINE, FORM, COLOR, SPACE, TEXTURE)
LINE - the basic building block of a visual design.
HORIZONTAL LINE – is primarily the line of rest and quietness, relaxation,
contemplation.
VERTICAL LINE – pointed, balanced, forceful and dynamic.
DIAGONAL LINE – the line of action. The degree of action is shown in the
angle of diagonal.
COMPOSITION WITH RED, YELLOW AND BLUE (1937 1942) Piet Mondrian
CURVE LINE – show action and life and energy; they are never harsh and
stern.
JARAMA II, Frank Stella
FORM - relates closely to line in both definition and effect. Form comprises the
shape of an object within the composition, and shape is often used as a synonym
for form.
GEOMETRIC FORMS -are forms that are mathematical, precise and can be
named, as in the basic geometric forms: sphere, cube, pyramid, cone, and cylinder.
ORGANIC FORMS -are those that are free flowing, curvy, sinewy, and are not
symmetrical or easily measurable or named
THE KISS LOVERS, Gustav Klimt
COLOR - constitutes an additional and very important aspect of the composition of
an artwork.
HUE -specific color. The traditional color spectrum consists of seven basic
hues (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo. and violet).
VALUE -sometimes called key, is the relationship of blacks to whites and grays.
Thus, value is understood simply as the lightness or darkness of a color.
INTENSITY -sometimes called chroma or saturation, comprises the degree of
purity of a hue. It is understood as the brightness or dullness of a color.
SPACE – an area where the other elements can interact. Two types: positive and
negative space. Double negative space refers to a blank space used as negative
space, example a field of color or pigment.
TEXTURE - the way something feels or the way it looks like it feels. It can be used in
paintings like impasto, stamping, and scratching in pottery, embossing when making
prints, and many other.
PRINCIPLE OF ARTS (PATTERN, CONTRAST, BALANCE, EMPHASIS, UNITY,
PROPORTION/ SCALE, RHYTHM/ MOVEMENT)
PATTERN - the essence of any design that is repeated: how the basic elements in the
picture repeat or alternate. The part that is repeated is called a motif. Patterns can be
regular or irregular.
CONTRAST - differences in a work of art, light and dark, rough and smooth, curved
line and straight
BALANCE – is the distribution of the visual weight of objects in a work of art, color,
size and texture. The concept of balance employs certain innate judgements.
EMPHASIS – the main idea, the main focus and the thing your eyes see first. It is
referring to the focal point of a design and the order of importance of each element
within a design.
UNITY - there is unity if all the elements in a composition work together toward
meaning. The artists strive for a sense of self-contained completeness in their
artworks. Thus, an important characteristic in a work of art constitutes the means by
which unity is achieved.
PROPORTION/ SCALE – the size of something compared to what is next to it. It is the
visual size and weight of elements in a composition and how they relate to each
other.
RHYTHM/ MOVEMENT – visual elements in a work of art that create a sense of action
or implied motion. Movement is controlling the elements in a composition so that
the eye is led to move from one to the next and the information is properly
communicated to your audience.