Principles of Design
Artist manipulate the elements of art to form compositions that have a certain unity. In trying to determine what holds an effective work together, theorists have
distinguished a number of principles that seem to be involved.
Repetition, Variety or Contrast, Rhythm, Balance, Compositional Unity, Emphasis, Economy, and Proportion.
These principles give us a basis for understanding how art works aesthetically.
Repetition
One of the basic ways that artist have unified their
designs is to repeat a single design element: a line, shape, form, texture, value, or color.
The repetition of a design element serves to give the
viewer a perception of order, thereby unifying the overall
composition.
Lucy T. Pettway, Birds in the Air, 1981.
Magdalena Abakanowicz, Agora, 2005. Cast Iron.
Jose Clemente Orozco, Zapatistas, 1931. Oil on canvas.
Guernica, oil on canvas by Pablo Picasso, 1937
Variety
Variety: Change rather than sameness in design elements.
Variety is often seen in the context of repetition or as the
companion of repetition. While repetition brings a kind of order, variety often serves
to “activate” an artwork, leading the viewer’s eyes from
place to place to survey the whole work.
Lance Wyman, logo for XIX Olympiad, 1966.
Variety
Another way in which variety is expressed is through transitions, or gradual changes from one state to another, a line may change in character, or a form may dissolve into unfilled space.
Also contrast, an abrupt change, is expressed in this painting.
Helen Frankenthaler, Essence Mulberry, 1977. Woodcut.
Jacopo Tintoretto, Leda and the Swan, Oil on canvas. 1570-75.
Rhythm
Rhythm: The visual equivalent of notes
and pauses in music, created by
repetition, variety, and spacing in a
design. Rhythm is similar to
repetition and serves the same
purpose; they sometimes go hand
in hand.
Sol LeWitt, Wall Drawing #1131, "Whirls and Twirls", 2004
BalanceBalance: The distribution of
apparent visual weights through a composition. We subconsciously assign visual weight to parts of a work, and we tend to want the
parts to be distributed through the work in such a way that they seem
to balance each other.
Symmetrical Balance: Distribution of equal forces around a central
point or axis. If an imaginary vertical axis were drawn right
through the center of the piece, the two halves of the central
figure and the geometric animal extending to the sides would be exact mirror images balancing
each other.
Wood chest of the Haida people of Queen Charlotte Island, off the northwest coast of North America, 19th century.
Balance
• Elements may also be symmetrically arranged around a central point in all directions, in which case the composition may be referred to as radial balance.
Tibetan thangka, The Wheel of Life, 20th century, Tempera.
• When the weights of dissimilar areas counterbalance each other, the result is called asymmetrical.
Thomas Gainsborough, Mr. and Mrs. Andrews, 1749. Oil on canvas
Sometimes artists violate the principle of balance intentionally to create tension in their works.
Nancy Graves, Trace, 1979
Compositional Unity
Compositional Unity: Compositional unity is
determined by the relationship of elements contained in a work. Sometimes a single
element (a shape or a color, for example) is used to create
the overall compositional unity; sometimes two elements are set up in
opposition, creating a kind of “energy of opposition” or
tension.
Pietro Perugino Italian, c. 1450 - 1523The Crucifixion with the Virgin, Saint John, Saint Jerome, and Saint Mary Magdalene [right panel], c. 1482/1485
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, The Boating Party, 1881. Oil on Canvas.
Hagesandrus, Athenodorus, and Polydorus, Laocoon, first century, Marble.
Emphasis
Emphasis: Predominance of one area or element in a composition.The artist may want to emphasize a single area or element of design in a
composition, perhaps by setting up a focal point around which the rest of the elements are placed. However, when dealing with a pattern, equal emphasis may
be given to all parts through the repetition of a single design element.
EconomyEconomy: The use of as few
means as possible to achieve a desired visual result.
A work of art or a design might be effected through economy of
means by “presenting only the minimum of information needed by the viewer.” This approach is followed by graphic designers as
well as fine and applied artists who wish to convey the essence of
an idea as clearly as possible.
Liang Kai, The Poet Li Bo, 13 century. Ink on paper.
Economy
Graphic designers are challenged to suggest very complex forms or ideas with very few visual clues. A successful logo is a highly refined image that shows the nature of an entire group or corporation with an absolute minimum of marks.
Peter Good, logo for the Hartford Whalers Hockey Club, 1979.
Proportion
Proportion refers to the relative size and scale of the various
elements in a design. The issue is the
relationship between objects, or parts, of a
whole. This means that it is necessary to
discuss proportion in terms of the context or
standard used to determine proportions.
John Singer Sargent, Daughters of Edward Darley Boit, 1882
Our most universal standard of measurement is the human
body; that is, our experience of living in our own bodies. We
judge the appropriateness of size of objects by that measure.
Architectural spaces intended to impress are usually scaled to a
size that dwarfs the human viewer. This is a device often used in public spaces, such as
churches or centers of government. The same principle
is often applied to corporate spaces through which the
enterprise wishes to impress customers with its power and
invincibility.
Proportion
Claes Oldenburg, Clothespin, 1976.
Scale is the relative size of an artwork. The size of an artwork quite often affects how the art is viewed and interpreted by the audience.
Do-Ho SuhPublic Figures, 2001Glass fiber reinforced resin, bronze, steel structure. 2094 x 2748 x 2840 cm
“Let’s say if there’s one statue at the plaza of a hero who helped or protected our country, there are hundreds of thousands of individuals who helped him and worked with him, and there’s no recognition for them. So in my sculpture, ‘Public Figures,’ I had around six hundred small figures, twelve inches high, six different shapes, both male and female, of different ethnicities." - Do-Ho Suh
William BlakeThe Vision of the Last JudgmentPen and watercolor,510 x 395 mm1808