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Principles of Arts

The document discusses the seven principles of art: balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and unity/variety. It provides definitions and examples for each principle. Balance can be achieved through symmetry, asymmetry, or radial symmetry. Contrast is created through differences between elements. Emphasis draws attention to a dominant area. Movement guides the eye through lines, edges, or repetition. Pattern uses uniform repetition. Rhythm relies on organized variety. Unity/variety balances cohesion with interest through areas of consistency and change.

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Mananguite Marjorie
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59 views

Principles of Arts

The document discusses the seven principles of art: balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and unity/variety. It provides definitions and examples for each principle. Balance can be achieved through symmetry, asymmetry, or radial symmetry. Contrast is created through differences between elements. Emphasis draws attention to a dominant area. Movement guides the eye through lines, edges, or repetition. Pattern uses uniform repetition. Rhythm relies on organized variety. Unity/variety balances cohesion with interest through areas of consistency and change.

Uploaded by

Mananguite Marjorie
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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MANANGUITE, MARJORIE G.

BEED2-A

WRITTEN REPORT

The Principles of Art

Imagine you're using your favorite pen to draw a spaceship. You take into careful consideration where to
place this spaceship on the page and how far away to draw the moon and stars that the spaceship is
about to fly by. You want to show that the spaceship is moving, so you draw a few squiggles. Finally,
because of your love of star gazing, you color in a nearby shooting star with your favorite shade of yellow
and voila; you have just created your own artwork.

The principles of art represent how the artist uses the elements of art to create an effect and to help
convey the artist's intent.

The principles of art and design are balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and
unity/variety.

The use of these principles can help determine whether a painting is successful, and whether or not the
painting is finished.

The artist decides what principles of art he or she wants to use in a painting. While an artist might not
use all the principles of design in one piece, the principles are intertwined and the use of one will often
depend on another. For example, when creating emphasis, the artist might also be using contrast or vice
versa. It is generally agreed that a successful painting is unified, while also having some variety created
by areas of contrast and emphasis; is visually balanced; and moves the viewer's eye around the
composition. Thus it is that one principle of art can influence the effect and impact of another.

The 7 principles of art

Balance

-refers to the visual weight of the elements of the composition. It is a sense that the painting feels stable
and "feels right." Imbalance causes a feeling of discomfort in the viewer.

Balance can be achieved in 3 different ways:

Symmetry, in which both sides of a composition have the same elements in the same position, as in a
mirror-image, or the two sides of a face.

Asymmetry, in which the composition is balanced due to the contrast of any of the elements of art. For
example, a large circle on one side of a composition might be balanced by a small square on the other
side
Radial symmetry, in which elements are equally spaced around a central point, as in the spokes coming
out of the hub of a bicycle tire.

See the article, Balance, for some visual examples of how the elements of art can be used to achieve
balance.

Contrast

-is the difference between elements of art in a composition, such that each element is made stronger in
relation to the other. When placed next to each other, contrasting elements command the viewer's
attention. Areas of contrast are among the first places that a viewer's eye is drawn. Contrast can be
achieved by juxtapositions of any of the elements of art. Negative/Positive space is an example of
contrast. Complementary colors placed side by side is an example of contrast. Notan is an example of
contrast.

Emphasis

-is when the artist creates an area of the composition that is visually dominant and commands the
viewer's attention. This is often achieved by contrast.

Movement

-is the result of using the elements of art such that they move the viewer's eye around and within the
image. A sense of movement can be created by diagonal or curvy lines, either real or implied, by edges,
by the illusion of space, by repetition, by energetic mark-making.

Pattern

-is the uniform repetition of any of the elements of art or any combination thereof. Anything can be
turned into a pattern through repetition. Some classic patterns are spirals, grids, weaves. For examples
of different pattern types see the Artlandia Glossary of Pattern Design. A popular drawing practice is
Zentangles, in which an abstract or representational outline is divided into different areas, each of which
contains a unique pattern.

Rhythm

-is created by movement implied through the repetition of elements of art in a non-uniform but
organized way. It is related to rhythm in music. Unlike pattern, which demands consistency, rhythm
relies on variety.
Unity/Variety

-You want your painting to feel unified such that all the elements fit together comfortably. Too much
unity creates monotony, too much variety creates chaos.You need both. Ideally, you want areas of
interest in your composition along with places for your eye to rest.

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