Art & Design - 3ºESO
Unit 11
Francisco Rañal Loureiro (revised by C. Pigott)
- The Composition
11.1. Composing
In the visual language, to compose means to arrange all
the elements in an artwork (lines, shapes, textures, values and
colours) to obtain a harmonic unity according to a certain
underlying order previously decided by the artist.
Like music composers arrange musical notes in the course
of time to create a melody, artists organize visual elements in two
or three dimensions to create a picture, a sculpture or a building.
But composition is not only one of the most important
concepts in art, it is also part of our everyday life. We are
composing when we arrange flowers in a vase, furniture in a room
or every time we take a photograph.
In art, no fixed or unbreakable rules exist, but there are
traditions and conventions that must be observed if we want to
create an academic (standard) artwork. Every artist should know
those academic regulations in order to consciously respect or
violate them.
11.2. Elements Of A Composition
11.2.1. The Picture Frame
The picture frame is the outermost boundary of the
working area or picture plane.
The picture frame is essential for any composition and
should be clearly established at the beginning of a pictorial
organization. Once its shape, size and proportion are defined, all
the art elements and their application will be influenced by it and
will have to harmonize with it to avoid disrupting the unity of the
picture.
Squares, triangles, circles and ovals can be used as frame
shapes, but the most popular frame is the rectangular shape,
which offers infinitely varying proportions of two-dimensional
space. Horizontal rectangles are the most common picture frame
for landscapes, while portraits are usually painted on vertical
rectangles or on squares.
11.2.2. Points Of Interest
As the eye travels over the picture surface, it pauses
momentarily at the most significant picture parts and also at areas
of increased contrast of size, colour, texture, etc. These parts are
called points of interest.
The centre of the picture is considered too obvious to place
a point of interest, so it is carefully avoided. Otherwise the
composition tends to appear too simple, primitive and boring.
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Art & Design - 3ºESO
Francisco Rañal Loureiro (revised by C. Pigott)
The areas near each side of the picture are used as
margins that allow the image “to breathe”, so they are called “air”
and no point of interest is placed on them.
Since Antiquity, four points, called golden centres, have
been used to resolve, in a balanced manner, the tension between
the centre and the boundaries, so the points of interest are usually
placed on them. The golden centres are determined by the
intersection points of the four lines that divide each side of the
picture in three equal parts.
11.2.3. Master Lines
In any visual artwork (painting, sculpture, building,…) some
lines guide the spectator’s attention in the perception process.
Those lines are called master lines or virtual lines of the artistic
composition.
Very often these lines are less than obvious, hidden in the
composition structure. But they are always extremely important for
the expressivity of the artwork so their design is usually the first
step in the creation process. Master lines are responsible for
internal relations, visual rhythms, movements, tensions,
harmony…
In a landscape, the main master line is the horizon. Placing
it in the middle of the picture area is usually considered obvious
and, therefore, distasteful. Instead, both the upper and the lower
third of the picture are preferred. Thus, the artist has to determine
where, in the sky or on the ground, the most interesting
information is found.
11.2.4. Masses And Visual Weight
Gravity is the force that makes things fall to the ground and
keeps the planets in their orbits. We spend our lives under
gravity’s influence, and it affects the way we view art.
Most artworks are viewed in a vertical orientation and we
tend to think that gravity attracts the visual components towards
the bottom, even though we know that they are solidly attached to
the picture or piece. For example, a ball drawn high in the pictorial
field produces tension between the ball and the baseline of the
picture plane, because we have the expectation that gravity will
cause the ball to drop. On the contrary, a ball placed low or near
on the baseline provides a sense of peace or resolution, gravity
having already acted on the ball.
In art, a mass is a shape that appears to stand out from the
space surrounding it, or appears to create the illusion of a solid
body of material. Mass implies a downward gravitational
attraction. But also colour, value and texture contribute to define
the mass final visual weight. For instance, dark and saturated
colours “weigh” more than pale colours.
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Art & Design - 3ºESO
Francisco Rañal Loureiro (revised by C. Pigott)
11.3. Balance And Symmetry
At the simplest level, balance refers to the gravitational
equilibrium of pairs or groups of units (lines, shapes or masses)
that are arranged on either side of a central axis.
In picture making, usually the artist balances forces
horizontally, vertically and diagonally in all directions and
positions. Balance is so important to unity that it is impossible to
consider any organization without it.
Symmetry is the simplest form of artistic balance. Pure
symmetry occurs when the elements are identically arranged on
both sides of a central axis. Approximate symmetry appears when
there are slight differences on both sides of the image. These
differences add variety to the image and increase the viewer’s
interest, but at the expense of some harmony.
However, balance can also be created through asymmetry
by achieving an intuitive equilibrium between opposing forces and
their tensions (for instance, shape and open space). In this case,
the result is usually vital, dynamic and expressive.
11.4. Rhythm
In art, just as in music or dance, the repetition of elements
and motifs, if strategically placed and suitably accented, will result
in rhythm.
Rhythm is another important element of any composition
because it provides dynamism. Depending on how it is used, it
can provide an artwork with both excitement and harmony.
The most common visual rhythms are:
- repetition: one element is reiterated regularly in the
picture plane
IIIIIII
- alternation: two or more elements are alternated in a
constant pattern
I I I I I II
- symmetry: the elements are arranged equally on both
sides of an axis
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
- progression: the size and/or colour of an element are
progressively modified
I
I
I I
I I
I
- convergence and divergence: the elements convey the
sense of movement towards or away from a
central point.
Usually all these fundamental rhythms are not found alone,
but combined in such a way that can only be perceived after a
careful observation.
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