3
The Elements of Visual Art
This lesson describes each of the elements of visual art and principles of organization. This lesson will guide you in reading and understanding the lessons where artworks are discussed.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
describe the elements of visual art
discuss the requirements to analyze a visual art
The Visual Art
Visual arts refer to still, unmoving pictures, paintings, sculptures, photographs, digital images, installation or architecture that are created by artists. They are the representation or embodiment of an idea, an experience, a concept, a stage of vitality, emotion, feeling or a result of interaction with the environment, and a product of human thinking.
Visual art includes paintings, sculpture, calligraphy, photography and architecture.
Visual images are made arranging elements and organizing the design using selected materials of art-making.
The Elements of Visual Art
- Lines
- Shapes and Forms
- Texture
- Color
- Space and Movement
Lines
Line is used to lead the viewer’s eyes throughout the artwork. It can lead your eyes into, around, and out of the visual images within the artistic frame. A line has width as well as length, but usually, it is the length that occupies more space than its width. The use of line also evokes expressive feelings and ideas.
There are five basic kinds of lines:
- vertical
- horizontal
- diagonal
- curved
- zigzag
Vertical lines move up and down. They express stability and show dignity, poise, stiffness, formality and upward mobility.
Horizontal lines are parallel to the horizon. They express feelings of rest, peace, quiet and stability, permanence or solidarity. They make you feel relaxed and calm.
Diagonal lines slant, as is they are either rising or falling. Diagonal lines suggest action and movement. They convey dynamism, vitality, and animation.
Curved lines slowly change direction and form wiggly curves, spirals or circles.
Zigzag lines combine diagonal lines that form angles and suddenly change directions.
Roughness or smoothness of a visual texture is determined by the light or dark values it has. A rough texture is characterized by a surface that reflects light unevenly. Smooth surface, on the other hand, reflects light evenly.
Color
Color is an element of art that results from the light waves reflected from objects to your eyes. They are warm or cool colors. Warm colors: red, orange, and yellow are associated with warm things such as fire or sunlight. Cool colors such as blue, green, and violet are associated with cool things like ice, snow, water or grass. Warm colors seem to moving close to the viewer while cool colors have a receding effect.
Three properties of color that make up the colors we see:
- hue
- value
- intensity
Hue is the name of a specific color in the color spectrum or the bands of color that are present in a color wheel.
Primary hues: red, yellow, blue
Secondary hues are made by mixing two primary hues. For example, red and yellow make orange, red and blue make violet, blue and yellow make green. The resulting colors, orange, violent and green are secondary hues.
Intermediate colors are made by mixing a primary color with its secondary color. For example, red (primary color) and orange (secondary color) make red-orange.
Yellow is the lightest hue because it reflects the most light. Violet is the darkest hue because it reflects the least light. Black, white and gray are neutral colors. The colors of all the light create white. White reflects all the colors of the visible light spectrum to the eyes.
Value
Value is indicated through the lightness or darkness of a color. The amount of light a color reflects determines the color value. When a pencil is pressed hard to draw a line, it produces dark value. When it is used lightly, it makes a line of light value. You can change the value of any hue by adding black or white.
Tint is a light value of a hue. Its dark value is called a shade. The arrangement of light and shadow is called chiaroscuro. In Italian, chiaro means <bright,= and <oscuro= means dark,
Intensity is the brightness or dullness of a hue.
High-intensity color is a pure or bright hue.
Dull-intensity color is a dark or dull hue.
Many artists organize colors following a color scheme to avoid a confusing or unpleasant way of putting colors together.
Color schemes: monochromatic, analogous, complementary or split-complement.
Monochromatic color scheme uses only one hue. White and black added in varying degrees to show the different shades and tints of the hue.
Analogous colors are found side by side within the color wheel. For example, red. Red-orange: red and orange are close to one another in the color wheel. They are different hues but they are related in color.
Complementary colors are colors opposite each other. Example, red and green are located opposite each other in the color wheel in the chart.
Split complement is the combination of one hue and the hues on each side of its complement. For example, red- orange, blue and green from a split-complementary scheme.