This post forms part of an introduction to the elements and principles of composition and design and follows on from yesterday's post about the elements of design. It's an overview. More can be written about each and every principle - and has been! Show
Good composition doesn't happen by accident. A quick reminder. The analogy which I find helpful for remembering which is which is to compare the elements and principles of art and design to the ingredients and method of a recipe. Cookery and composition have quite a lot in common!
Also, bear in mind that composition is essentially about resolving how the competing demands of different principles enable an artist to produce their best work. What are the principles of art? Principles of design or principles of art - certain qualities inherent in the choice and arrangement of elements of art in the production of a work of art. Artists "design" their works to varying degrees by controlling and ordering the elements of art. Considering the principles is especially useful in analyzing ways in which a work is pleasing in formal ways. How any work exhibits applications of these principles can further or modify other characteristics of a work as well. The Artlex definition then goes on to discuss how there is no agreement about what should be included in the list of principles and which are the most important principles. Some take the view that principles are 'ideals' while some are of the opinion that the principles provide benefits in terms of producing and assessing art. There seems to be broad agreement that the following principles of design are important. These aren't rules - but it generally seems to be the case that you are more effective at breaking with a rule once you know about and understand it. Principles of design If you click on the link to the ArtLex page for each principle you can find examples of artwork and quotations. Some art students find it helpful to focus on different aspects in turn in order to develop skill in blending a whole. Balance balance - A principle of design, balance refers to the way the elements of art are arranged to create a feeling of stability in a work; a pleasing or harmonious arrangement or proportion of parts or areas in a design or composition. Portions of a composition can be described as taking on a measureable weight or dominance, and can then be arranged in such a way that they appear to be either in or out of balance, or to have one kind of balance or another. Balance can be symmetrical, or formal; or it can be asymmetrical, or informal. It can also be radial. Greg Albert suggests that visual weight and visual energy are exclusive. He also has a whole chapter devoted to how to achieve a dynamic balance. Before the Ballet, 1890/1892 by Edgar Degas (French, 1834 - 1917) Degas will be one of the artists featured on this blog this year - partly because of his interesting compositions which sometimes seem to seek to challenge the limits of balance and asymmetry. Another interesting artwork in this connection is Race Horses. Balance will be discussed in the post about Composition and Still Life - and how to assemble and create a still life set-up. Emphasis emphasis- Any forcefulness that gives importance or dominance (weight) to some feature or features of an artwork; something singled out, stressed, or drawn attention to by means of contrast, anomaly, or counterpoint for aesthetic impact. A way of combining elements to stress the differences between those elements and to create one or more centers of interest in a work. Often, emphasized elements are used to direct and focus attention on the most important parts of a composition — its focal point. Emphasis is one of the principles of design. A design lacking emphasis may result in monotony. There are various ways in which elements can be used to create an emphasis. The creation of a focal point or a centre of interest will be discussed in a blog post be next week. The opposite of emphasis is horror vacui - a horror of an empty space and a compulsion to crowd every space with marks so that the emphasis of a piece becomes lost. harmony - Agreement; accord. A union or blend of aesthetically compatible components. A composition is harmonious when the interrelationships between its parts fulfill aesthetic requisites or are mutually beneficial. As a principle of design, harmony refers to a way of combining elements of art to accent their similarities and bind the picture parts into a whole. It is often achieved through the use of repetition and simplicity. Repetition is a special form of harmony which is often linked to pattern, proportion and rhythm. It can mean
Series paintings - such as Monet's paintings of Rouen cathedral (do click the sun wheel!)- are a special form of repetition. Notan relates to the harmony between darks and lights. Greg Albert illustrates in his book how to achieve harmony within value contrast. Movement Movement - The act or process of moving, especially change of place or position, an effort. This can either be actual motion or it can be implied —the arrangement of the parts of an image to create a sense of motion by using lines, shapes, forms, and textures that cause the eye to move over the work. A principle of design, it can be a way of combining elements of art to produce the look of action. In a painting or photograph, for instance, movement refers to a representation or suggestion of motion. In sculpture too, movement can refer to implied motion. On the other hand, mobiles and kinetic sculptures are capable of actual motion as well. This is a painting I always take visitors to the National Gallery to see. It's a simply enormous egg tempera painting - one of three (the others are in the Louvre and the Uffizi) - and despite the deterioration of the paint and modelling it is hugely effective at conveying the sense of movement associated with a battle. Pattern Pattern - The repetition of any thing — shapes, lines, or colors— also called a motif, in a design; as such it is one of the principles of design. There are ten classes of patterns, each with a particular function, that make up the entire physical world — natural and human-made — at all scales: Repetition and tesselation are ways of creating a pattern. Some artists, like Gustav Klimt, are particularly attracted to pattern-making and emphasise pattern within areas of a painting. You can see more of his paintings here (slow to load) and at the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere. Proportion Proportion - A principle of design, proportion refers to the comparative, proper, or harmonious relationship of one part to another or to the whole with respect to size, quantity, or degree; a ratio. Often proportion is allied with another principle of art, emphasis. For example, if there is a greater number of intense hues than dull hues in a work, emphasis is suggested. For another example, if one figure is made to look larger compared to other figures in a composition, it is said to be out of proportion and is given greater importance. This concerns itself with the 'proper' or pleasing ratio of one thing to another. So, for example,
Apparently Piet Mondrian used the golden ratio extensively in his work.
Rhythm - A visual tempo or beat. The principle of design that refers to a regular repetition of elements of art to produce the look and feel of movement. It is often achieved through the careful placement of repeated components which invite the viewer's eye to jump rapidly or glide smoothly from one to the next. Rhythm is about intervals and placement. Greg Albert has an interesting notion about intervals which he characterises as 'the one rule of composition' and which he writes about in his book "The Simple Secret to Better Painting" - which I'm hoping to review tomorrow. Unity unity - The quality of wholeness or oneness that is achieved through the effective use of the elements and principles of design. A totality that combines all of its parts into one complete, cohesive whole. Often it is realized through a deliberate or intuitive balancing of harmony and variety. However, this balance does not have to be of equal proportions. Harmony might outweigh variety, or variety might outweigh harmony. Harmony aids efforts to blend picture parts together to form a whole. Variety adds visual interest to this unified whole. A composition is unified when the relationships between its parts interact to create a sense that no portion of the composition may be changed without altering the aesthetic integrity and meaning of the artwork. When unity is achieved with insufficient harmony and variety, the result is monotony. Unity is largely synonymous with coherence. How to achieve a coherent whole - by thinking about, working with and balancing the different elements and the principles for how to blend them - is probably one of the biggest challenges an artist will ever have. Whether you plan in advance or work out the issues through the process adopted for drawing and/or painting the important point is that producing a work of art with impact requires some knowledge and some thought. Analysing what makes a painting effective is a very useful exercise. Variety variety - A principle of design that refers to a way of combining elements of art in involved ways to achieve intricate and complex relationships. Variety is often obtained through the use of diversity and change by artists who wish to increase the visual interest of their work. An artwork which makes use of many different hues, values, lines, textures, and shapes would reflect the artist's desire for variety. Unity is the principle which is its variety's opposite; but when there is too little variety, the result is monotony. Variety relates to all the main elements of design - shape, form, colour, line, value etc. The repetition of shapes helps to promote unity - but since regularity can be boring there are also benefits to be had from varying the sizes throughout the painting. Again, composition is about reconciling and balancing various demands. Checklists Later on in the project I'm going to post some checklists which will incorporate my 'best tips'. These are things to think about and look out for - even if they are not always the ones I remember to employ! Further Information Links to all the posts in this Making A Mark series about composition and design can be found in Composition and Design - Resources for Artists (this updates continuously as this project progresses) What is the use of difference and change to increase the visual interest of the work?Variety is often obtained through the use of diversity and change by artists who wish to increase the visual interest of their work. An artwork which makes use of many different hues, values, lines, textures, and shapes would reflect the artist's desire for variety.
What principle of art refers to the use of differences or modifications to create visual interest?Variety: Using the art elements to create differences in an artwork that add visual interest. Harmony: The accentuating of similarities within an artwork to create unity. The opposite of variety.
What is the use of differences?2 Answers. different is an adjective and can be used in sentences like : We are both different in terms of our mentality. difference is a noun and can be used in sentences like : The only difference between us is our mentality.
What refers to how good all the visual elements are working together in a piece of art?Harmony And Unity
Harmony is a bit vague compared to some of the other principles. Generally speaking, it refers to how well all the visual elements work together in a work of art.
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