Elements of Art
Elements of Art
Elements of Art
1. Horizontal lines
2. Vertical lines
3. Diagonal lines
4. Jagged lines
1. Actual line
2. Implied line
Shape
• is an enclosed space. When a line crosses itself or intersects with other lines to enclose a
space it creates a shape.
• an area or a plane with distinguishable boundaries (usually lines)
• Shape is two-dimensional.
• Form is three-dimensional shape.
• Sometimes, the two terms can be used interchangeably.
3. Geometric shapes
strength
aggression
dynamic movement
Star
fame
glory/honor
brightness
guidance
dream/aspiration
perfection
eternity
oneness
connection
community
wholeness
endurance
movement
safety
perfection
feminine
warmth
comfort
sensuality
fulfillment
all cycles: the seasons, life and death, etc.
the self
the universe
timelessness
protection
gold or money
nothing/emptiness
Heart- love
Oblong
Cylinder
Cone
1. Positive shape
• foreground
• In a drawing or painting, positive shapes are the solid forms in a design such as a bowl of
fruit. In a sculpture, it is the solid form of the sculpture.
2. Negative shape
• background
• In a drawing, it is the space around the positive shape or the shape around the bowl of
fruit. In sculpture, it is the empty shape around and between the sculptures.
Color
• is the byproduct of the spectrum of light, as it is reflected or absorbed by objects,
received by the human eye and processed by the human brain
Hue
Saturation
• purity/intensity/strength of a color
Color Classifications
• Primary
o red, yellow and blue
o In traditional color theory, these are the 3 pigment colors that can
not be mixed or formed by any combination of other colors. All
other colors are derived from these 3 hues.
• Secondary
o green, orange and violet (purple)
o made by mixing two primary colors
• Tertiary
o combinations of primary and secondary colors
• Warm
o the plus side of the color wheel (from red through orange to yellow)
o produce excitement and cheerfulness
o convey emotions from simple optimism to strong violence
o for neutrals: black, brown, tan, gold, and beige are considered warm
• Cool
o the minus side of the color wheel (from green through blue to violet)
o associated with weakness and unsettled feelings
o tend to have a calming effect
o cold, impersonal, antispectic colors, comforting and nurturing
o for neutrals: white, ivory, silver, and gray are somewhat cool
• Complementary
o colors opposite each other in the color wheel
o Because they are opposites, they tend to look especially lively when used
together. When you put complementary colors together, each color looks brighter
and more noticeable.
• Analogous
o colors adjacent each other in the color wheel
o tend to look pleasant together because they are closely related
• Tint
o hue + white
• Shade
o hue + blackmbolisms
• Red
• Yellow
• Orange
• Pink
o sweet, nice, romance, playful, delicate, joy, love, warm
• Gold
o riches, extravagance, bright, traditional
• Blue
• Green
• Purple
Value
• lightness or darkness of a surface/color
• conveys the mysterious as well as the dramatic as light and dark become conflicting
forces translated onto the symbolic plane
• sets the mood of the work, and, along with color, expresses subjective feeling and inner
states of mind
Types of Value and their Meaning
1. light
• positive symbolism
2. medium
• neutral symbolism
3. dark
• negative symbolism
Value Contrast
Chiaroscuro
• a composite word made up of the Italian chiaro "clear," and oscuro "dark"
• method of gradually shifting from light to dark through a successive gradation of tones to
create the illusion of a curved surface
Texture
• surface character of a material that can be experienced through touch or the illusion of
touch
• produced by natural forces or through an artist’s manipulation of the art elements
• adds variety and contributes to the illusion of depth in a work of art
Types of Texture
1. Actual / Tactile
2. Simulated / Visual
• quality of a surface that is experienced through the sense of sight
• an illusion which makes an object look the way it would be when touched
• are seen in two-dimensional art such as photographs, paintings or drawings, where
objects seem to have the actual textures of fur, velvet, grass and the like
Texture Terms
• smooth/fine
• rough/abrasive/coarse/rugged
• shiny
• dull/matte
• slick/slippery
• sticky
• wet
• dry
• hard
• soft
• silky
• satiny
• velvety
• sandy
• furry
• feathery
• slimy
• oily
• gritty
• porous
• irregular
• warm
• cold
• jagged/spiky/sharp
• clear
• blurred
Impasto
Movement
• the process of relocation of objects in space over time
• the design element that operates in the fourth dimension - time
• the component of a composition that implies or gives the sensation of activity or action
Types of Movement
1. Actual / Literal
2. Simulated / Compositional
Space
• an extent or expanse of a surface or three-dimensional area
• the area between things or inside of something
Types of Space
synonymous to positive and negative shapes
1. Positive space
2. Negative space
1. Overlapping planes
• where objects appear to be on top of one another, each closer to the observer than the
next
2. Variation in size
• Objects found at the bottom of the frame are closer to the observer.
• Farther distances are indicated by the positions of the objects higher in the picture plane.
4. Variation in color
• Warm and bright colors give the illusion that they are closer to a viewer than the cool
colors.
• Figures are painted in the foreground using warm colors, and those in the background in
cool colors.
5. Showing Perspective
6. Shading