Elements and Principles

Principles and Elements of Art

Megan CoonVAEDU

January 26th

Principles of Art

- THE WAYS IN WHICH THE ELEMENTS ARE ARRANGED, A FEELING OF VISUAL WEIGHT.

FORMAL BALANCE IS SYMMETRICAL. INFORMAL BALANCE IS TYPICALLY

ASYMMETRICAL

BalanceLeonardo da Vinci , The Last Supper, 1495-1498, dry wall (fresco)

Unity- WHEN ALL THE

ELEMENTS OF A PIECE COMBINE TO MAKE A PIECE HARMONIOUS,

COMPLETE, AND WHOLE. THE

DIFFERENT ELEMENTS COMPLIMENT EACH

OTHER.

Vincent Van Gogh, The Starry Night, 1889, oil on canvas

Movement- THE DIRECTION IN WHICH ART DIRECTS THE VIEWERS EYES

THROUGH THE PIECE. THIS GIVES LIFE TO

ARTWORK

Francisco Goya, The Forge, 1817, oil on canvas

Proportion-THE RELATIONSHIPS

BETWEEN THE ELEMENTS

THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE PIECE,

THROUGH AMOUNTS

Leonardo da Vinci, Vitruvian Man, c. 1487, drawing pen and ink on paper

Repetition, Rhythm Pattern

-THE MOVEMENT IN A PIECE OF ART,

REPETITION CREATES THIS MOVEMENT

THROUGH REPEATING OF SHAPES AND

COLORS. THIS REPETITION FORMS

RHYTHM AND PATTERN

Andy Warhol, Campbell Soup Cans, 1962 , silk screen

Emphasis-THE PART OF A

PIECE OF ARTWORK THAT CATCHES

YOUR EYE WHEN YOU FIRST LOOK,

THE FOCUS OR CENTER OF ATTENTION

John Trumbull, Surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia, 1820, oil on canvas

Variety-THE DIFFERENCES IN A PIECE OF ART,

CONTRASTING ELEMENTS LIVEN

UP THE PIECE

Georges Seurat, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, 1884-1886, oil on canvas

Elements of Art

Color-WHEN LIGHT HITS

AN OBJECT AND REFLECTS BACK TO THE VIEWERS EYE,

HAS THREE PROPERTIES 1. HUE, 2. VALUE,

AND 3. INTENSITY OR CHROMA

Claude Monet, Bathing at La Grenouillere, 1869, oil on canvas

Line- THE PATHWAY OF A

POINT MOVING THROUGH SPACE, CAN

VARY IN WIDTH, LENGTH, CURVATURE,

DIRECTION, AND TEXTURE. IS A RECORD

OF MOVEMENTM.C. Escher, Relativity, 1953, lithograph

Shape-WHEN A LINE MOVES

THROUGH THE PIECE AND CONNECTS WITH ITS

START. THIS ENCLOSURE IS A SHAPE. MAY BE A PERCEIVED AREA OF

ELEMENTS

Elizabeth Murray, Wiggle Manhattan, 1992, lithograph

Space-THE DISTANCE OF AN

AREA AROUND, BETWEEN, WITHIN OR ABOVE SHAPES. IT CAN BE 3D OR 2D, ACTUAL

OR PICTORIAL

Francisco Lucientes, He Can No Longer at the Age of 98, 1819-1823, brush india ink wash.

Texture- THE “FEEL” (SURFACE

QUALITY) OF AN OBJECT. EXAMPLES WOULD BE

ROUGHNESS, SMOOTHNESS, OR

SOFTNESS. THERE ARE DIFFERENT TYPES OF

TEXTURE, ACTUAL TEXTURE IS ONE THAT CAN

BE FELT BY A VIEWER.

Vincent Van Gogh, Sunflowers, 1888, oil on canvas.

Value or Light and Shade

- THE CONTRAST BETWEEN LIGHT AND

DARK. THIS CONTRAST COULD BE STRONG OR

LIGHT. THIS ARRANGEMENT WITHIN A PIECE IS SOMETIMES

CALLED CHIAROSCURO. Gerrit van Honthorst, Christ Crowned with Thorns, 1620, oil on canvas.