BALANCE
Balance is the distribution of visual weight of the elements within a composition.
The sense of balance is innate; as children we develop a sense of balance in our
bodies and observe balance in the world around us.
Lack of balance or imbalance disturbs us.
There is a place for purposeful imbalance.
We always assume horizontal balance with a center vertical axis with the left and
right sides achieving a sense of equilibrium.
There is also a vertical balance with a horizontal axis dividing top and bottom.
Because of our sense of gravity we are accustomed to seeing more weight on
the bottom then on top. This results in stability and calmness.
SYMMETRICAL BALANCE
The simplest type of balance to create and recognize is Symmetrical Balance.
Symmetrical balance is when like shapes are repeated in the same positions on
either side of the vertical axis.
One side in effect becomes the mirror image of the other side.
Conscious symmetrical repetition while clearly creating perfect balance can be
undeniably static, so the term of formal balance is used to explain the same
idea.
Symmetrical balance does not, by itself, preordain any specific visual results.
Rare in painting then in architecture.
A strong compositional device by:
Can have a strong sense of symmetry in an asymmetrical work by having the
emphasis on the central axis and common elements on both sides.
Symmetry feels an unreal sense that hardly anything in nature is symmetrical.
ASYMMMETRICAL BALANCE
Balance is achieved with dissimilar objects that have equal visual weight or equal
eye attraction.
Alternate term is informal balance
Asymmetrical balance seems less planned and casual yet it is more intricate and
complicated to use than symmetrical balance.
Attempting to balance dissimilar items involves more complex considerations and
more subtle factors.
BALANCE BY VALUE AND COLOR
Value difference, light and dark, attracts our eye’s attention.
Example: black against white and gray against white.
Color:
Our eyes are always attracted to color.
Given a choice we will look at a colored image rather then a black and white one.
A smaller area of bright color can balance a larger area of a duller, more neutral
color.
BALANCE BY SHAPE AND TEXTURE
Smaller shapes more complicated shapes can balance larger dull shapes.
Smaller areas of texture or pattern can balance larger simple forms
Any visual texture with variegated dark and light pattern holds more interest for
the eye than does a smooth, unrelieved surface.
Printed text in ads read as a pattern of lights and arks and can balance off large
shapes.
BALANCE BY POSITION AND EYE DIRECTION
Balance by Position –well known principle of physics that two items of unequal
weight can be brought to equilibrium by moving the heavier inward toward the
fulcrum.
In design this means that a large item placed closer to the center can be
balanced by smaller item placed out toward the edge.
Eye direction is carefully plotted, not only for balance but also for general
compositional unity.
RADIAL BALANCE
All the elements radiate or circle out from a common central point.
Radial Balance is not entirely distinct from symmetrical or asymmetrical balance.
It is merely refinement of one or the other, depending on whether the focus
occurs in the middle or off center.
Used in crafts & architecture.
Radial balance is rare in western art but seen in other countries such as Tibet.
The major compositional advantage in radial balance is the immediate and
obvious creation of an emphasis.
Good in advertising but is unnatural and orderly.
Radial Symmetry
Centrifugal Balance:
Occurs when the visual forces expand outward
Centripetal Balance:
Occurs when the visual forces move inward, suggesting a compression of space
Concentric Balance:
Is a nesting sequence
CRYSTALLOGRAPHIC BALANCE
Allover Pattern
This is a special refinement of symmetrical balance.