Elements of Art
A List of the Elements
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Line
Shape
Form
Space
Value
Color
Texture
Line
• Actual lines are lines that you can
see.
• Implied lines are lines that seem to
be there because of actual lines,
shapes or colors.
Artist: Salvador Dali Study
for “Don Quixote”
Notice that Dali used line
• To work rapidly
• Use gesture to show more than one
movement in the same drawing
• What was he suggesting by using the
line? Why is it called a “study”? Was
this his final art piece?
Sketch Book Homework/Line
• Choose an object in your house.
What types of lines does it have?
Sketch the object and label the lines.
Then make another sketch of the
object, changing the lines. Make
them thicker, or curve them more.
How do different lines alter the mood
of your sketch?
Shape
• Shape is an area that has height
and width. Artist use two types of
shapes.
• Geometric shapes are precise
mathematical shapes like circles,
squares, rectangles, and triangles.
• Organic shapes irregular shapes
like those found in nature
Fernard Leger Disks 1918
Fernard Leger
• French Artist (1881-1955)
• Wanted to become an architect
• Used clearly defined shapes in solid
colors to create bold patterns on his
canvases
• Shapes came from the world around
him because he was inspired by the
industrial age, simplified architectural
and mechanical shapes
• Did he us organic or geometric shapes?
• What objects might have inspired the
shapes he used?
Sketchbook
Homework/Shape
• Draw at least ten shapes from the
world around you. Label each shape
to identify where it came from and
what type of shape it is. Choose
three or four of the shapes you have
drawn. Create a small composition
with them by drawing a rectangle
and filling it with the shapes you
have chosen.
Form
• While a shape only has two
dimensions, a form has three. It has
height, width, and depth. A form is
something that you can hold or go
around. Basketballs, snow, cones,
and alligators are all forms.
Form
• Geometric Forms- include objects
such as spheres, cylinders, cubes,
cones and pyramids.
• Organic Forms- are irregular, like
the natural forms of pinecones and
armadillos.
Artist- Umberto Boccioni Sculpture- Unique
Forms of Continuity in Space 1913
• What does this sculpture remind you
of?
• The form is distorted and
exaggerated to express an
emotion or evoke a feeling.
he captured movement in
form by showing the figure
striding and by sculpting the
limbs to look as if garments
were blowing in the wind.
What do you think Boccioni
was trying to convey?
Example of Drawing 3-D Forms
Sketchbook
Homework/Form
• Because drawing is two-dimensional,
artist must create the illusion of form
to show a three-dimensional object.
Use lines, light, and shadow to draw
the illusion of several 3-D forms such
as spheres or cubes. Keep one side
of the object light, and darken the
opposite side.
Space
• An element of art, space is the area
in and around an object. It can be
empty or full, nearby or far away.
Positive & Negative Space
Positive Space & Negative
Space
• Positive Space is the area occupied
by an object.
• Negative Space is the area around
the object, and that defines the
object’s edges
• The rock formations in the photograph
below are the positive space. The opening
in the rock creates negative space. Artists
who work in 2-D, such
as painters, often
create depth in their
artworks. Depth is the
use of perspective to
give the illusion of deep
space on a 2-D plane. Another way artist
create depth is to use overlapping, the
process of putting on object, color or line
in front of another.
Artist- Claes Oldenberg
Sculpture- Geometric MouseScale A 1969-1971
• In this sculpture, Oldenburg used
geometric shapes to create a
representation of a mouse’s head. What
shapes form the positive space? By
tipping the mouse’s head, Oldenburg
created negative space
between the head and the
ground. He also created
negative space within the
Sculpture with openings in the large square
of the mouse’s face. What might the
openings represent?
Sketchbook
Homework/Space
• Choose an object from nature or
from home. Draw the object
multiple times in a single
composition, making it seem close,
far and very far away. Use
overlapping and diminishing size to
give your drawing the illusion of
depth.
Areas in Space
• Foreground- the object that are
closest to the viewer.
• Background- the area farthest from
the viewer
• Middle ground- the area between
foreground and background
Artist- Grant Wood Painting- Stone
City Iowa 1930
• Wood overlapped objects to make the
ones on top appear closer to the viewer.
• Objects, like trees and buildings, appear
smaller the farther
away they are.
The objects that are
near are darker and
More detailed than the
Objects that are far away, drawing the
Viewer’s eye to the objects that are closer.
What emotion or feeling does this sense
of deep space evoke?
Sketchbook Homework/Depth
• Use what you have learned about
showing space to draw an outdoor
scene. Use a variety of organic shapes,
geometric shapes, and lines to draw an
outdoor scene that shows space. Use
the techniques you have learned about
space to show the foreground, middle
ground, and background. Increase the
illusion of space by adding details to
shapes in the foreground with markers
or colored pencils.
More Areas in Space
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Perspective
Linear Perspective
Horizon Line
Vanishing Point
Atmospheric Perspective
Perspective
• When you stand near the corner of a
building and look along one wall, the
front corner of the building seems
bigger than the back corner. Lines on
the building that are actually parallel
seem to get a closer together the
farther they are from you. And far
down the road, over the hill, objects
seem to get fuzzier and lighter. These
are tricks of human perception, which
artists use to convey depth in their
work.
Space and Perspective
• Linear Perspective- is a technique in
which artists use actual and implied lines
to create an illusion of space and depth
on a two-dimensional surface.
Horizon Line
• Horizon Line- In name given to the
viewer’s eye level, is the implied line
where the sky meets the ground.
Vanishing Point
• Vanishing Point- The point on the
horizon where lines in a painting or
drawing converge, or come together.
Artist- Carlo Crivelli Painting- The
Annunciation with Saint Emidius 1486
Atmospheric Perspective
• Atmospheric Perspective- is
another technique for creating the
illusion of depth. This technique, also
called aerial perspective, is used to
create the appearance of atmosphere
and space in a work of art. Objects
that are close are darker in order to
draw the eye; objects that are farther
away are lighter and more muted.
These changes in light and dark help
create the illusion of depth.
Artist- Thomas Moran Painting- A
Miracle of Nature 1913
Sketchbook
Homework/Perspective
• Make two sketches that show linear
perspective in outdoor scenes.
Choose objects with strong linear
qualities like buildings and tables.
Make notes about what you find
difficult in representing theses
scenes. Describe different ways to
solve the difficulties you
encountered.
More areas in Space
• One-point Perspective
• Two-point Perspective
Interior Perspective
• One-point perspective- is a
technique of using a single vanishing
point to show space and depth on a
two-dimensional plane.
Interior Perspective
• Two-point perspective- employs
two vanishing points to show space
and depth on a two-dimensional
surface.
Sketchbook Homework/Linear
Perspective & Atmospheric
• Use what you have learned about
linear and atmospheric perspective to
create a drawing of an interior scene.
Choose a room in your house to draw.
Use the techniques of one-point
perspective to make the object fit in.
Use markers, crayons, or color pencils
to create atmospheric perspective by
making the objects in the foreground
darker than the background objects.
Value
• Value- an element of art, is the
degree of lightness or darkness of a
color.
• Shading- a gradual change from
light to dark values
Here is how we create
Value
• Shading- A gradual change from
light to dark.
Shading Techniques- Blending, stippling,
hatching and cross-hatching
• Artist• Mary Williamson
• Drawing- She Flies
With Other Wings2006
Blending-gradually changing
the value
Stippling- a pattern of dots
Hatching- thin parallel lines
Cross-Hatching-lines that
cross one another
Artist-Diego Rivera Drawing- Study of
a Sleeping Woman 1921
2 Assignments; Sketchbook
Homework/ Part 1 Value Scale
• 1-Draw a two-inch by four-inch rectangle
in your sketchbook. Divide the rectangle
into eight equal spaces. Use these
spaces to create a value scale that show
gradual shading (from light to dark).
Leave the first space white and show
gradual increase in shading.
Sketchbook Homework Part
2/Portrait
• Draw a portrait of a famous person
using blending, stippling, hatching,
and cross hatching.
Color
• The color
wheel
Primary Colors
• Primary colors
Are the colors
from which all
other colors are
mixed.
RED
BLUE
YELLOW
Secondary Colors
• Secondary colors- Mixing two
primary colors.
Intermediate or Tertiary Colors
• Intermediate colors- are mixed from a
primary color and one secondary color.
Artist- Wassily Kandinsky PaintingComposition II
• Identify
primary,
secondary
and
tertiary
colors.
Color Families
• Warm Colors= reds, yellows, and
oranges.
• Cool colors= greens, blues, and
violets.
Artist- Georgia O'Keefe Painting- From
the Plains 1 1953
• Look at O'Keeffe's painting. Two primary
colors dominate this painting. What are
they? O'Keeffe mixed these two colors to
create which secondary color? Look for
the light and dark values of this artwork.
What kind of emotion does this bright
limited palette evoke? What color family?
Sketchbook Homework/Color
Value Chart
• Make a color value chart by drawing
a grid that is twelve squares tall by
five squares wide. Use colored
pencils or crayons to color in a
different primary, secondary, or
tertiary color in each row. In each
column, vary the value of each color
from left to right, lightest to darkest.
Color Value Chart
Color Schemes
• Color scheme- is a plan for combining
colors in what you wear and in a work of
art.
• Hue- color
• Monochromatic- “mono” means one and
“chrome” means color.
• Analogous- hues in a color schemes are
beside one another on the color wheel, and
share a common hue.
• Complementary- color scheme employs
colors that are across each other on the
color wheel.
• Neutral- colors include black, white, and
shades of gray.
Monochromatic
• One color scheme.
• What is the color
scheme here?
Analogous
• Colors next to each other on the color
wheel and share a common hue.
Complementary
• Colors that are across from each
other on the color wheel
Artist Pablo Picasso Painting Two Sisters 1902
• Spanish artist Pablo Picasso used a mostly
monochromatic color scheme for this painting.
The areas that diverge from the blue hues
create contrast. Notice how Picasso used values
of blue to show depth and form. What reason
could an artist have for using a monochromatic
color scheme? What feeling or mood does the
artist seem to be expressing in this artwork?
Tints, Shades, and Intensity
• Tint- are made by mixing a hue with white.
• Shades- are made by mixing a hue with black.
• Intensity- of a hue refers to its brightness or
dullness. Pure unmixed colors are most intense.
Mixing Tips- To mix a tint, begin with white paint
on your palette. Add a small amount of color and
mix the paints. Add color in small amounts to
reach the tint you want. To mix a shade, add a
little black. Add black in small dots, because it
can darken the color very fast!
Artist-Vincent Van Gogh Painting- The
Red Vineyard, 1888
Notice how Van Gogh's use of
complementary colors makes the blue
clothing of the figures stand out against
the orange of the plants. The intensity of
the colors adds to the color scheme’s
effect.
Sketchbook Homework/Color
Scheme Sketches
• Make 3 quick sketches of the same
scene. Use colored pencils to give
each sketch a different color scheme.
Make one sketch’s color scheme
monochromatic, one analogous and
one complementary. Make notes
about how each color scheme
changes the mood of the drawing.
Texture
• Texture- is the way an object feels to
touch, or the way it may look.
• Tactile texture- or actual texture is
the way a surface feels to the touch. An
alligator’s skin has tactile texture.
• Visual texture- is the way a surface
looks like it would feel. A painting of
an alligator’s skin might appear rough,
but if you were to touch the painting, it
would not actual feel like an alligator.
Artist-Barbara Benedetti Newton Watercolor
with colored pencil- Fancy 2002
• In the drawing, the apples look so real
that it seems like you could pick one up
and eat it! Newton used visual texture to
show the smooth
shiny surfaces of
the apples and the
silver plate. Notice
how the ribbon
appears soft, silky,
and shiny. How do
these textures
contrast with those
of the lace?
Sketchbook
Homework/Texture
• Closely observe the variety of
textures in your bedroom. Make
sketches of some of these textures.
Next to each sketch indicate where
you observed the texture. Now
create a composition using the
texture you sketched.