Design Basics: Chapter 8

distortions

a departure fro an accepted perception of a form or object. Distortion often manipulates established proportional standard.

abstraction

a visual representation that may have little resemblance to the real world. Abstraction can occur through a process of simplification or distortion in an attempt to communicate an essential aspect a from or concept

shape

a visually perceived area created either by an enclosing line or by color and value changes defining the outer edges

idealism

an artistic theory i which the world is not reproduced as it is but as it should be. All flaws, accidents, and incongruities of the visual world are corrected

figure

any positive shape or form noticeably separated from the background or the negative space

rectilinear

composed of straight lines

biomorphic

describes shapes derived from organic or natural forms

curvilinear

rounded and curving forms that tend to imply flowing shapes and compositions

naturalism

the skillful representation of the visual image, forms, and proportions as seen in nature with a n illusion of volume and three-dimensional space

ground

the surface of a two-dimensional design that acts as the background or surrounding space for the 'figures' in the composition

form

when referring to objects, it is the shape and structure of a thing. When referring to two-dimensional artworks, it is the visual aspect of composition, structure, and the work as a whole