Elements of art and design

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. 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.

Harmony

Harmony: The quality of how the visual elements are working together in a composition. It is achieved when all elements have unity and cohesion, giving a sense of completion to an artwork.

Line

Line art or line drawing is any image that consists of distinct straight or curved lines placed against a (usually plain) background, without gradations in shade (darkness) or hue (color) to represent two-dimensional or three-dimensional objects.

pattern

Pattern is an underlying structure that organizes surfaces or structures in a consistent, regular manner. Pattern can be described as a repeating unit of shape or form, but it can also be thought of as the "skeleton" that organizes the parts of a composition.

Rhythm

Rhythm can be described as timed movement through space; an easy, connected path along which the eye follows a regular arrangement of motifs. ... Visual rhythm can be created in a number of ways. Linear rhythm refers to the characteristic flow of the individual line.

Unity

A principle of art, unity occurs when all of the elements of a piece combine to make a balanced, harmonious, complete whole. Unity is another of those hard-to-describe art terms but, when it's present, your eye and brain are pleased to see it.

Shape

A shape is an element of art. Specifically, it is an enclosed space, the boundaries of which are defined by other elements of art (i.e.: lines, colours, values, textures, etc.). Shapes are limited to two dimensions: length and width.

Movement

An art movement is a tendency or style in art with a specific common philosophy or goal, followed by a group of artists during a restricted period of time, (usually a few months, years or decades) or, at least, with the heyday of the movement defined within a number of years.

Color

Color is the element of art that is produced when light, striking an object, is reflected back to the eye. There are three (3) properties to color. First is hue, which simply means the name we give to a color (red, yellow, blue, etc.).

Contrast

Contrast is a principle of art. When defining it, art experts refer to the arrangement of opposite elements (light vs. dark colors, rough vs. smooth textures, large vs. small shapes, etc.) in a piece so as to create visual interest, excitement, and drama.

emphasis

Emphasis is defined as an area or object within the artwork that draws attention and becomes a focal point. Subordination is defined as minimizing or toning down other compositional elements in order to bring attention to the focal point. ... Therefore, the red circle is the focal point of the composition.

proportion and scale

Scale and proportion in art are both concerned with size. Scale refers to the size of an object (a whole) in relationship to another object (another whole). In art the size relationship between an object and the human body is significant.

Space

Space, as one of the classic seven elements of art, refers to distances or areas around, between, and within components of a piece. Space can be positive or negative, open or closed, shallow or deep, and two-dimensional or three-dimensional.

Balance

Symmetrical balance refers to balance that is achieved by arranging elements on either side of the center of a composition in an equally weighted manner. Symmetrical balance can be thought of as 50/50 balance or like a mirror image.

Value

Value and Hue. Value is defined as the relative lightness or darkness of a color. It is an important tool for the designer/artist, in the way that it defines form and creates spatial illusions. Contrast of value separates objects in space, while gradation of value suggests mass and contour of a contiguous surface.

Form

may be two-or three-dimensional, descriptive, implied, or abstract. Shape An element of art that is two-dimensional, flat, or limited to height and width.

Texture

texture is the perceived surface quality of a work of art. It is an element of two-dimensional and three-dimensional designs and is distinguished by its perceived visual and physical properties. Use of texture, along with other elements of design, can convey a variety of messages and emotions.