Art 1 – Spring Review Packet
Elements of Art
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Form = object that encloses volume, takes up dimensional space, 3D: includes cubes, spheres,
cylinders, people, animals, houses, anything 3D with shading
Line = continuous mark made on some surface by a moving point
• Implied Line = series of unconnected points that cause your eye to create a line
Shape = enclosed space defined by other elements of art, usually 2D
• Geometric Shape = shapes used in math or with hard edges; circle, square, triangle, etc
• Organic Shape = squiggling, natural or undefined shape; can be a person, animal or nonrepresentational; every shape that is NOT a geometric shape
Color = How light reacts when it reflects on an object or surface; has 3 properties:
• Hue = the NAME of a color
• Intensity = how bright or dull a color is (bright like a highlighter pen)
• Value = lightness or darkness of a color (highlights or shading)
Texture = refers to the surface quality or “feel” of an object; roughness or smoothness, hardness
or softness
• Actual Texture = something you can reach out and feel to understand the texture quality;
example: a cat is fuzzy and you can feel it
• Implied Texture = texture created by art techniques that you can only see to understand;
example: picture of a cat looks fuzzy
Space = the distance or area between around, above or within things
• Positive Space = an object or noun; people, houses, animals, trees, etc
• Negative Space = background
Value = describes the darkness or lightness of a color, highlights or shading
• Low Value = art term for shadows
• High Value = art term for highlights
Principles of Design
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Emphasis = developing points of interest to pull a viewer’s attention
• Focal Point = the specific place in an artwork that draws the most attention
• Thematic emphasis = focusing on more idea or concept
Balance = Sense of stability; 3 types of balance:
• Symmetrical = image is identical on both sides
• Asymmetrical = image is different on each sides but still conveys a sense of stability
• Radial = image is the same no matter how you turn it, typically round in nature
Harmony = using similar elements throughout the artwork, gives the artwork an “uncomplicated”
feel
Variety = using different shapes, textures and colors to add interest
Movement = adds excitement to a work by showing action and direction; moves a viewer’s eye
throughout the artwork.
Rhythm = a type of movement, seen in repeating shapes and colors; also called Pattern
• Repetition = using the same image over and over again
Proportion = refers to the relationships of size of objects in an artwork; smallness or largeness
• Scale = another term for proportion
Unity = a feeling of “oneness”, where all parts of the artwork come together to make a “whole”
feeling
Types of Line
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Contour Line = lines creating boundaries that separate one area from another; they define the
edges and surface ridges of an object
Outline = outside edge of an object, around the very edge
Blind Contour Line = Drawing in which only contour lines are used to represent subject matter.
Artists keep their eyes on the object they are drawing and concentrate on direction and curves.
Types of Line Shading
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Hatching = lines going in the same direction
Cross Hatching = lines going in different, overlapping directions
Stippling = shading using dots or broken lines
Colored Pencil Terms
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Linear = color pencil technique showing contour and value change, use of LINES
Mixing = using light pencil pressure with a color pencil in an already existing GRAPHITE drawing
Sgraffito= scraping away or scratching into the outer surface to reveal underneath
Burnishing = using white (or any light color) with heavy pressure over an area of color
Wax bloom = the hazy finish that sets in on a color pencil drawing after a period of time
Layering = overlapping graphite pencils with colored pencils.
Frottage = creating a texture or pattern by coloring over a texture surface. A rubbing.
Color Terms
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Color Wheel = organizational method of understanding color relationships, generally seen in a
circle
Primary Colors = exist by themselves, cannot be made by mixing other colors
Secondary Colors = created by mixing one primary color with another primary color; orange,
green, purple
Tertiary Colors (also called Intermediate Colors) = created by mixing one primary color with a
secondary color that is adjacent to it on the color wheel; red-orange and red-purple, yellow-green
and yellow-orange, blue-green and blue-purple
Tint = color mixed with white, a lighter color
Shade = color mixed with black, a darker color
Complimentary Colors = colors set in which colors are located directly across the color wheel
from each other; red and green, blue and orange, purple and yellow
Analogous Colors = color set in which colors are next to each other on the color wheel; redpurple, red, red-orange
Warm Colors = red, yellow, orange
Cool Colors = Blue, purple, green
Monochromatic = artwork that uses only tints and shades of one color; example: image using just
light greens and dark greens
Achromatic = artwork that using only black, white and greys; to be without color
Basic Terms
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Gesture Drawing = any drawing which attempts to capture action or movement, often using fast
broad strokes to capture larger shapes and figures
Thumbnail Sketch = A brief/small sketch of ideas for brainstorming and composition
Composition = The overall arrangement and organization of visual elements on a 2D surface
Critique = using knowledge of art terms and technique to evaluate and analyze a work of art
Various Art Techniques
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Collage = is a technique where the artwork is made from an assemblage of different forms, thus
creating a new whole
Alebrije = the Spanish name for fantastical creatures, and is more commonly applied to the
hand-carved figures of the Oaxacan folk artists in Mexico
Armature = the base structure of a 3D sculpture (the “Frame”)
Paper Mache
Mixed Media
Perspective
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One-point Perspective = Where all objects look like they disappear into the distance while one
side faces forward to the picture plane.
Horizon Line = Where the sky and the land meet, often far off in the distance.
Vanishing Point = Lines that are parallel and level with the ground in your picture plane appear
to meet at the same point on the horizon line. This point on the horizon is called the vanishing
point. Think of standing on a railroad track and looking down the row of wooden ties. They
appear to get smaller and closer together in the distance.
Picture Plane = This is the area of the picture we are drawing. It is controlled by the size of our
paper, canvas, or fabric. The picture plane is the “window” we are seeing our subject matter
through.
Horizontal = Left & Right, parallel with the bottom of your picture plane
Vertical = Up & Down, parallel with the side of your picture plane
Orthogonal Lines = diagonal lines coming from the vanishing point
Receding = To go towards the back or move away
Foreshortening = The term foreshortening refers to the artistic effect of shortening lines in a
drawing so as to create an illusion of depth.
BE READY to identify two separate images: one-point perspective and two-point perspective
Block Printing
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Linocut = a design carved in relief into a block of linoleum
Additive Art = adding materials to the surface of something to create art (Example: painting)
Subtractive Art = taking away parts of an object or surface to create art (Example: carving)
Reduction Linocut = An art process where an artist works in reverse to apply layers of color to
build an image from the bottom up. Once an area of colour has been printed it must be carved
away to allow it to show through when the next, darker colour is printed over the top. This calls
for extreme accuracy in laying the same piece of paper on the lino block for each colour. It also
means that the artist cannot go back to a previous colour because that part of the lino block has
been carved away.
Relief = sculpture consisting of shapes carved on a surface so as to stand out from the
surrounding background
Motif = A single or repeated design.
Brayer = a hand roller used in printmaking techniques to spread ink or to offset an image from a
plate to paper
To Ink = the process of using a brayer to apply ink to a print block or plate
Plate = a printable surface on which a relief carving has been made, another word for a lino block
To Pull a Print = the act of transferring an inked plate’s image onto paper, stamping
Print = The image made after the inked plate has been transferred to the paper.
Proof = A test print to check the progress of the inked plate.
Register = To line up.
Edition = A series of final prints
Final = The last print on the paper.
Watercolor Terms
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Pigment = another term for color, in watercolor it refers to paint
To Load = the act of putting paint or pigment onto your paint brush
Pallet = the place where you mix your paints
Color Pallet = the colors the artist chooses to work with
Bleeding = when color is painted next to another wet color, the two mix together
Flat Wash = even coat of pigment
Graded Wash = Wash that fades from light to dark, heavy amounts of pigment to less pigment
Wet-on-wet Technique = painting clean water onto the paper first and then adding pigment to
the damp paper allowing color to spread across the area
Dry Brush Technique = using very little water to load the brush and apply the pigment, creating
rough textured areas with sharp edges
Splattering = using a large amount of water and pigment to drip or “splatter” paint onto the
painting surface
Salt Texture = create a flat wash with heavy amounts of water, while the area is still wet apply
salt to create a star-like texture
Lifting = while a painted surface is still wet, use a crumpled paper towel or rag to blot an area to
create texture or to remove pigment from an area
Wax Resist = using a medium (such as white crayon, wax, rubber cement, or masking fluid) to
mask off an area to either protect the white paper or to protect a previously painted area
Clay Terms
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Ceramics = Any clay piece fired in a kiln to make it hard and durable; from the Greek word
Keramos, meaning burned earth.
Clay = A natural product of weathering and decomposition of rocks. Clay is plastic when wet and
permanently hard when fired.
Pinch = A hand building method of squeezing clay between the fingers to shape it.
Coil = A ropelike piece of clay used in hand building.
Slab = A flat , even piece of clay used for hand building.
Throwing = The making of forms on the pottery wheel
Wedge = To knead clay as a means of improving its consistency and eliminating air pockets.
Score = to scratch the surface of the clay where it will be joined to another piece.
Slip = A mixture of clay and water used to hold pieces together, can also be pigmented and used to
add color to greenware.
Weld = a technique for joining two clay surfaces. Both surfaces are scored, moistened with slip
and pressed together firmly. The seam is then smoothed out.
Leatherhard = Clay that is partly dry; damp enough to cut with a knife and to handle without
losing its shape.
Bone Dry = The stage at which an unfired clay piece is completely dry. Bone dry clay looks and
feels chalky.
Greenware = Any unfired clay project
Bisque or bisqueware = a clay piece that has been fired at a low temperature to prepare it for
glazing.
Glaze = a glasslike coating that melts and bonds with clay when heated to a high temperature.
Glaze Firing = The second firing that heats the glazed clay pieces to a high temperature, causing
the glaze to melt and form a glassy coating.
Fire = The process of heating pottery inside a kiln
Kiln = A special oven in which clay objects are heated or fired.
Bevel = Cut at an angle
Foot = A supporting rim of clay at the base of a pot
Template = pattern or cutting guide
Dry Foot = to clean the bottom of the pot or remove the glaze from the bottom 1/4th inch
Air Bubble = trapped water or air inside clay
Seam = where two pieces of clay come together, or are joined together