art 9 per

Neutral Colors

"Earth Colors" not found on the color wheel; black, white, gray, brown

Closed Composition

A composition in which all of the artwork is contained within the boundaries of the picture plane.

Open Composition

A composition in which the artwork seems to continue outside the boundaries of the picture plane.

Landscape

A large area with a particular kind of scenery

Primary Colors

red, yellow, blue

Watercolor Paint

Water-based paint that is activated by water and is transparent.

Tempera Paint

Water-based paint that is creamy and opaque.

Color Wheel

a circle with different colored sectors used to show the relationship between colors.

Portrait

a drawing, painting, or photograph of a person, especially the face

Self-portrait

a portrait of an artist produced or created by that same artist.

Collage

artistic technique of pasting or gluing materials over other materials.

Monochromatic colors

All the hues (tints and shades) of a single color

Transparent

Allowing the passage of light or able to be seen through.

Surrealism

An art movement that displayed vivid dream worlds and fantastic unreal images. Popularized by Magritte and Dali.

Impressionism

An art movement where painters try to catch visual impressions made by color, light, and shadows. Popularized by Monet.

Still Life

An artwork made up of inanimate objects, such as fruits, flowers, or other objects.

Line of Symmetry

A line that divides a figure into two halves that are mirror images of each other.

Oil Pastels

A painting and drawing medium with pigment suspended in a waxy crayon-like tool.

Variety

A principle of design concerned with diversity or contrast. Variety is achieved by using different shapes, sizes, and/or colors in a work of art.

Emphasis

A principle of design that defines an area or object in an artwork that draws attention and becomes a focal point.

Rhythm

A principle of design that is used repeatedly to create a feeling of organized movement.

Pattern

A principle of design that organizes art elements in a consistent and regular manner; along with repetition it creates visual excitement.

Balance

A principle of design that refers to the arrangement of the parts in an artwork to give a sense of overall equality in visual weight.

Proportion

A principle of design that refers to the relationship of size and scale between certain art elements in an artwork.

Unity

A principle of design that relates to the sense wholeness in a work of art and connects a variety of art elements and principles.

Movement

A principle of design used to create the look and feeling of action and to guide the viewer's eye throughout the work of art.

Geometric Shape

A shape that has clearly defined edges that are mathematically consistent.

Expressionism

A style of art in which the artist uses their artwork to express their inner feelings or ideas.

Cubism

A style of art in which the subject matter is portrayed by geometric forms, especially cubes; popularized by Picasso in the early 20th century.

Abstract Art

A style of art that does not show a realistic subject, usually transforming the subject into lines, colors or shapes.

Radial Balance

A type of balance in visual art in which all elements are balanced around and radiate from a central point.

Symmetrical Balance

A type of balance in visual art where a design is evenly distributed around a central vertical or horizontal axis.

Assymmetrical Balance

A type of balance in visual art where a design looks balance even though it is not symmetrical.

Vanishing Point

A vanishing point is a point in space, usually located on the horizon, where parallel edges of an object appear to meet.

One point perspective

A way to show three-dimensional objects on a two-dimensional surface, using one vanishing point on a horizon line.

Non-representational Art

Abstract art that does not attempt to reproduce the appearance of objects, figures, or scenes in the natural world.

Layering

Adding multiple media on top of each other when creating a piece of art

Line

An element of art that is the path of a moving point through space

Form

An element of art that is three-dimensional and encloses volume; includes height, width AND depth.

Shape

An element of art that is two-dimensional, flat, or limited to height and width.

Color

An element of art that refers to light reflected off of objects and is made up of three properties: hue, value, and intensity.

Space

An element of art that refers to the distance or area between, around, above, below, or within things.

Value

An element of art that refers to the lightness or darkness of a color.

Texture

An element of art that refers to the way things feel, or look as if they might feel if touched.

Positive Space

Any space in an artwork that is being filled by some other art element.

Negative Space

Any space in an artwork that is empty of other art elements and surrounds a shape or form.

Mixed media

Art made with a combination of different materials or more than one medium.

Complementary Colors

Colors located directly opposite one another on the color wheel; red-green, blue-orange, yellow-violet

Tertiary Colors

Colors made by mixing a primary color with a secondary color; yellow-orange, red-orange, red-violet, blue-violet, blue-green, yellow-green

Secondary Colors

Colors made by mixing two primary colors; orange, green, violet (purple)

Warm Colors

Colors that advance in space and create the illusion of heat and active energy; reds, oranges, yellows

Analogous Colors

Colors that are next to each other on the color wheel

Cool Colors

Colors that recede in space and create the illusion of cold or soothing energy; blues, greens, purples

Atmospheric Perspective

Creating the illusion of depth of space by fading colors and eliminating detail in objects that are further away.

Shades

Darker values of a color made by adding black

figure drawing

Drawing the whole body of a person

Futurism

Early 20th century Italian art movement that emphasized the machine as art and used force lines and hard edges to imply technology and speed.

Organic Shape

Free forms, or shapes and forms with irregular edges; a non-geometric shape.

Principles of Design

How the elements of art can be organized to achieve the following visual effects: Unity, variety, emphasis, rhythm, movement, balance, pattern, and proportion.

Horizon

In a landscape, the line at which the sky and Earth appear to meet.

Tints

Lighter values of a color made by adding white

Opaque

Not allowing the passage of light or not able to be seen through.

Juxtaposition

Placement of two things closely together to emphasize comparisons or contrasts.

Contrast

Refers to the arrangement of opposite elements in an artwork to create visual interest, excitement, and drama.

Medium

The materials that are used to create a work of art.

Contour Lines

The outlines of a shape or figure or object.

Middle Ground

The part of a composition that appears between the background and the foreground.

Foreground

The part of a composition that appears closest to the viewer.

Background

The part of a composition that appears to be farthest away from the viewer.

Composition

The placement or arrangement of visual elements in a work of art.

Craftsmanship

The quality of neatness and attention to detail

Elements of Art

The visual components of color, form, line, shape, space, texture, and value that are considered the building blocks of art.