ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN

How Do We Make Art?

We mark on the page to create lines, shapes, objects, and spaces. We color parts in to call attention to them and make everything aesthetically pleasing (pretty).

Elements of Design – “The How”These are the things that make up any work of art.

Think of them as the ‘tools’ or ‘ingredients’ artists use to create their work.

LineShape

FormSpace

Color Value Texture

Line

Line is the most basic of the elements. ALL ARTWORK CONTAINS LINE. What are some different kinds of line?

Find the Line(s)

Find the Line(s)

Find the Line(s)

Lines are Created by:

Line of vision Patterns Edges of art Edges of colors objects

Shapes

Shapes are 2-DIMENSIONAL enclosed spaces.

There are two different kinds of shapes: Geometric Organic

Form

Form is a 3-DIMENSIONAL enclosed space.

They are the same as shapes expect that they are/or appear to be 3D.

Space

The feeling of depth or that you could move/interact with an artwork.

It can be real (like a sculpture) or visual (like a painting).

Positive and Negative Space

Color

We reproduce color through pigments. Pigments are the chemicals that create colors. They work a bit differently than visible light but

produce similar effects.

Three Properties of Colors

Hue – The name of a color Value – The lightness or darkness of a

color Intensity – The brightness or dullness of

a color

Color Ranking

• Colors are broken down

into three main rankings.

• Primary (Circles)

• Secondary (Squares)

• Tertiary (Triangle)

The Primary Colors

Red Yellow Blue

• The primary colors are the main colors.

• They CANNOT be made through mixing.

• ALL other colors can be made by mixing primaries (and white and black).

The Secondary Colors

Orange Green Violet

• These colors are created by mixing two primary colors together.

The Tertiary Colors

• These colors are made

by combining a primary

and a secondary color.

• They typically have

combination names such

as Red-Orange.

• Remember 1+2=3.

Warm vs. Cool

The color wheel can be spilt on the diagonal to divide it into warm and cool colors.

What are some differences between warm and cool colors?

Warm Colors

Warm colors are reds, oranges, and yellows – some greens and violets can be warm too.

What are some things that we associate with warm colors?

Cool Colors

Cool colors are greens, blues, and violets.

What are some things that we associate with cool colors?

Analogous Colors

These are colors that are similar. They share colors. They are NEXT to each other on the

color wheel.

Complimentary Colors

These colors are opposites.

They do not share colors.

They are ACROSS the color wheel from each other.

Blue - OrangeRed - GreenYellow - Violet

Intensity

If you mix a color with its compliment, you will loose intensity.

Mixing compliments will make blacks and browns.

Color and Mood

Color very much changes the mood or feeling of an artwork.

What happens if you use bright/warm colors?

What happens if you use dark/cool colors?

Value

The lightness or darkness of a color/area/object.

Value takes a shape and makes it a form.

Texture

Texture can either be visual or actual Visual – things look like you could touch

them Actual – real texture, such as a sculpture

Principles of Design – “The Why”These are the rules or goals that artists

follow to create a successful artwork. Balance Unity Variety Emphasis Proportion Movement Rhythm and Pattern

Balance

How parts of an artwork are arranged to create a sense of equal weight or interest

Symmetrical Balance: similar elements on each side of the work; like a mirror

Oriental Poppies1928Georgia O’Keefe

Balance

Asymmetrical balance: balance created while using different sizes, colors, or shapes

Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte1884Georges Seurat

Asymmetrical Balance

Asymmetrical is still balanced! One side has 1 or 2 larger, more important

object(s) Other side many smaller, less important

objects Think of it like this:

One dollar = four quarters Which would you pick up first?

Balance

Radial balance: all elements radiate from a center point in a circular fashion

Rose WindowNotre Dame CathedralParis, France

Unity

All parts of a design work together to create a feeling of wholeness. Think of the elements working as a ‘team’.

Paris Street, Rainy Day1877

Gustave Caillebotte

Variety

The use of different lines, shapes, colors, and textures to create interest in an artwork

Composition VIII1923Wassily Kandinsky

Flip side: Where’s the Unity?

Emphasis

Some visual elements are given more importance than others to catch and hold a viewer’s attention

What your eye is drawn to first

Untitled (I Shop, therefore I Am)

1987Barbara Kruger

Emphasis

Emphasis is created through: Variety – The things that are different Color – The brighter the more it draws

attention Placement – Things closer to the center are

deemed more important Size – Larger things are considered more

important

Rhythm or Pattern

Repeating elements create visual or actual movement in an artwork.

Okazaki. Tenshin-no Hashi1834Ando Hiroshige

Movement

Visual elements are combined to create a sense of action.

Horse Fair1853-1855

Rosa Bonheur

Movement = Rhythm/Pattern

Proportion

The relation of an object to another in size, amount, or number.

Clothespin1976Claes Oldenburg

What size are these objects?

Let’s Practice

Resources

Piet Mondrian, Composition with Yellow, Blue, and Red, 1921, oil on canvas, 72.5 x 69 cm, Tate Gallery. London

Stuart Davis, Colonial Cubism 1954 (90 Kb); Oil on canvas, 44 7/8 x 60 1/8 in; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Anish Kapoor, Cloud Gate, Millennium Park, Chicago, 2002-2004

Alexander Calder, Big Sail, MIT campus, 40 feet high,1966

Wassily Kandinsky, Composition VII, 1913 M. C. Escher, Drawing Hands, 1948 Ursula von Rydingsvard, Plate with Dots Detail, 2006