Elements and Principles of Art: A Concise Guide
Elements and Principles of Art
The Point: The point is the basic element. A simple mark made with a tool on a surface is perceived as a point.
Weight Composition
Weight composition involves using areas and lines to structure the artwork. These include vertical, horizontal, and diagonal axes, as well as the center, sides, top, and bottom. The placement of elements within these structural areas determines the overall weight composition.
A balanced harmonic compositional weight is achieved through careful element placement. Weight composition in tension occurs when elements are clustered in one area.
The Framework
The framework defines the perceptual and material limits of the artwork, differentiating the inner and outer surfaces of the image.
Frameworks vary in shape and format, giving particular meaning to the images they contain. An explicit enclosing frame is present when drawings and figures are complete and not cut off.
Lines
Types of lines include:
- Wavy line
- Straight line
- Open line
- Continuous line
- Broken line
- Modulated line
The Firm: The firm refers to individual expression through size, spacing between letters, stress, tours, marking, and gesture.
Texture
Texture is the surface quality of an object, determined by its external appearance or the treatment of materials.
Visual texture lacks physical irregularities (e.g., photos, fingerprints). Tactile texture presents irregularities that can be felt (e.g., rough surfaces, brushstrokes).
Texture is composed of small, juxtaposed elements that lose their individuality, creating a unified surface that the eye perceives as texture rather than individual forms.
Form
Form is created when lines delineate contours. It refers to the structural characteristics of objects, their limits (linear or surface), and the correspondence between interior and exterior.
The point is the basic element. A simple mark made with a tool on a surface is perceived as a point.
Weight composition involves using areas and lines to structure the artwork. These include vertical, horizontal, and diagonal axes, as well as the center, sides, top, and bottom. The placement of elements within these structural areas determines the overall weight composition.
A balanced harmonic compositional weight is achieved through careful element placement. Weight composition in tension occurs when elements are clustered in one area.
The framework defines the perceptual and material limits of the artwork, differentiating the inner and outer surfaces of the image.
Frameworks vary in shape and format, giving particular meaning to the images they contain. An explicit enclosing frame is present when drawings and figures are complete and not cut off.
Types of lines include:
- Wavy line
- Straight line
- Open line
- Continuous line
- Broken line
- Modulated line
The firm refers to individual expression through size, spacing between letters, stress, tours, marking, and gesture.
Texture is the surface quality of an object, determined by its external appearance or the treatment of materials.
Visual texture lacks physical irregularities (e.g., photos, fingerprints). Tactile texture presents irregularities that can be felt (e.g., rough surfaces, brushstrokes).
Texture is composed of small, juxtaposed elements that lose their individuality, creating a unified surface that the eye perceives as texture rather than individual forms.
Form is created when lines delineate contours. It refers to the structural characteristics of objects, their limits (linear or surface), and the correspondence between interior and exterior.