The document discusses the key elements and principles of visual art. The elements include line, shape, space, texture, color, form and movement. Principles include balance, harmony, contrast, scale, proportion, emphasis, hierarchy and variation. Examples of artworks are provided to illustrate how different elements and principles are used.

1. Arts Elements
and
Visual Principles

2. ELEMENTS OF ART
• Are the visual, tactile, spatial (and sometimes the sonic)
sensory qualities used when creating or talking about
2D, 3D and time based artworks.
• Arts elements are traditionally associated with particular
arts disciplines and art forms. In visual arts, these
elements include…

3. LINE
• Line is a mark on a
surface that describes
a shape or outline. It
can create texture
and can be thick and
thin.
• ‘Cataract 3’ by Bridget
Riley, 1967. PVA on
canvas.

4. Ellsworth Kelly. From series of plant drawings.

5. Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres. Alberto Giacometti. Se lf-Po rtrra it. 1954
Po rtra it o f M e . Ha y a rd a nd he r
m
Da ug hte r Ca ro line . 1815

6. Rembrandt. Sketches for Chris t He a ling the Sic k. 1647-49

7. SHAPE
• Shape is a 2D line
with no fo rm or
thickness.
• Shapes are flat and
either ‘geometric’ (eg.
a square) or ‘organic’
(eg. A swirl or ripple)

9. Richard Serra
Jo e

10. Richard Serra
Jo e

13. SPACE
• . • There are 2 types of
space, positive and
negative.
• Positive space is the
space taken up an object
in the area.
• Negative space is the
space a ro und the object,
or space that is no t taken
up by an object.

14. SPACE
• Depth is created by a visual
perspective used to give the illusion
of depth or distance on a flat surface.
Sometimes depth is included as part
of s p a c e .
– Line a r Pe rs p e c tive is a way
of showing depth where
distant objects are made
proportionally smaller than
nearer ones.
– Horizon Lines and
Vanishing Points determine
the scale of objects within

15. TEXTURE
• There are 2 types of
texture used to talk
about the surface
qualities of artworks,
used to describe the
roughness or
smoothness in
objects and surfaces
Detail of ‘Sunflowers’ by Van
Gogh, (1888, oil on canvas)
showing texture of impasto
technique.

16. VISUAL TEXTURE
• Visual Texture is
the illus io n of
texture, created on
a flat surface.
Graphite pencil drawings of fur.
Graphite pencil and charcoal
drawing of glass by Koo
Hyunhee, a year 12 student
from Westfield High (America)

17. TACTILE TEXURE
Tactile texture is
the roughness or
smoothness of a
surface.
In this image the
ridges and peaks of
thickly applied paint
in works using a
technique called
Detail of ‘Sunflowers’ by Van im p a s to .
Gogh, (1888, oil on canvas)
showing texture of impasto
technique.

22. COLOR
• Refers to specific hues (pure colors without tint
or shade, which are created by adding white or
black pigments respectively), and has three
properties
CHROMA
INTENSITY
VALUE

23. CHROMA/INTENSITY
Chrom is
a
about how
vivid colors
are perceived.
Essentially,
it’s a measure
of a color’s
purity
compared to
grey.

24. CHROMA/INTENSITY
The brightness or dullness of a color is
referred to as the color’s intensity.
A pure color is high intensity, whereas a
color that has been mixed with it’s
complementary color is called a low
intensity color.

25. VALUE
Value (sometimes called ‘tone’) is
concerned with the LIGHTNESS and
DARKNESS of a color and is achieved
by adding white or black to a color to
create tints (by adding white) and
s ha d e s (by adding black).

27. Irving Penn

28. Artemesia Gentileschi
Jud ith De c a p ita ting Ho lo fe rne s
c. 1620

29. Michelangelo Drawing

30. Caravaggio. Sup p e r a t Em m a us . 1601.

31. FORM
• Form is a 3D object
having volume and
thickness.
• The illusion of form
(volume and
thickness) can be
implied with light and
shade, but true 3D
form can be viewed
from multiple angles,
as an object in
physical space.

32. MOVEMENT
• Refers to a visual
sense of motion used
to establish the flow
of the composition
from one area to
another.
• In this sculpture the
artist makes effective
use of movement.
The eye is drawn
through the form by
the angles of the arm,
legs and torso, and

33. COMPOSITION
• The arrangement/placement of
arts elements according to visual
principles. Examples of formal
compositional devices are the ‘rule
of thirds’, and the ‘golden section’.
• The image at the top depicts a
photograph composed using the
traditional ‘golden mean’
compositional framework. In this
type of composition, places where
the guidelines intersect are key
points for placing important
elements of your image.
• The image at the bottom depicts a
photograph composed using the
‘rule of thirds’ compositional
framework.

34. PRINCIPLES OF ART
The ways that art elements are used,
arranged, or organized to create
artworks.
Arts principles are also referred to as
‘compositional’ or ‘structural’ devices
or conventions. They include:

35. BALANCE
• Refers to the way in
which visual weight is
distributed throughout the
art piece. A composition
can be symmetrically or
asymmetrically balanced,
which means that both
sides of an image are
visually equal, or
unequal, respectively.
• The top image shows the
difference between
symmetrical and
asymmetrical balance,
while the image at the
bottom shows
‘approximate symmetry’

39. Rose Window. Cathedral of St. John the Divine

42. Christo. Running Fe nc e
Dra wing . 1973

43. Edvard Munch

44. Richard
Diebenkorn.
O c e a n Pa rk N .
o
29.
1970

45. Lucian Freud

47. Rachel Whiteread

48. Alice Neel.
Lo nline s s
1970

49. Egon Scheile. Po rtra it
o f the Pa inte r A n
nto
Pe s c hka , 1909

50. Edouard Vuillard

52. Paula Rego.
The Fa m ily
1988

53. Andrew Wyeth. Chris tina ’s World. 1948

54. David Hockney.
Yv e s -M rie A le e p .
a s
1976

55. Fra Angelico.
The Annunc ia tio n.
1442.

56. Henri Matisse. Ba the rs with a Turtle .

57. James Ensor.
Se lf-Po rtra it Surro und e d by
M s ks .
a
1899.

58. Thomas Eakins. The A ne w Clinic . 1889
g

59. HARMONY
• When visual elements
within an artwork interact
well together in an
aesthetically pleasing
manner.
• This principle is closely
related to unity , and often
concerned with
combining similar art
elements to create a
pleasing appearance.

60. CONTRAST
• The difference between
two things.
• High contrast would be
the difference between
black and white or bright
yellow and dark purple.
• Low contrast would be
the difference between
middle value colours and
greys.
• Contrast can also apply
to size, shape, colour and
texture etc.

61. SCALE
• Scale is the size or
apparent size of an
object in relation to
other objects and
it’s environment.
• Relative to other
objects.

62. PROPORTION
• Refers to the way that
elements and objects
work together in an
artwork. Using
proportion, artists can
make sure that the
different parts of an
artwork make sense
within their
composition.
The Vitruv ia n M n a
Le o na rd o Da Vinc i,
C. 1 48 7 . Pe n a nd ink with wa s h o ve r m e ta lp o int

63. Kent Twitchell. LA Marathon Mural. 405 Freeway.

64. HIERARCY
• Refers to the way
objects and figures
are placed to show
relative importance of
those objects or
figures.
• In this image, the
cyclist is at the top of
the visual hierarchy,
then the shadows of
the other cyclists and
then the landscape
which serves as the

65. Fra Filippo Lippi.
Sa int La wre nc e
Enthro ne d with Sa ints
a nd Do no rs .
c. Late 1440s

66. EMPHASIS
• Emphasis is produced by
visually stressing the
importance of one
element over another in
order to create a sense of
hierarchy to control where
the viewer looks first.
Areas of emphasis may
be planned using
compositional devices
such as the ‘rule of
thirds’, or created using
color and so on.
Henri de Toulouse Lautrec - "At
the Moulin Rouge", 1892/1895 Oil
on Canvas

67. VARIATION
• A device used to
make key areas stand
out, achieved by
using differing lines,
shapes, and colors
within the artwork.
• This principle can be
used to create
movement and direct
the eye of the viewer
through the artwork.
In this image, the
variations displayed
are primarily color,
shape and texture.

68. VARIATION (CONT’D)
• For example, if a
warm orange dot is
placed on an artwork
that is mostly cool
colors, the eye of the
viewer is drawn to the
orange spot.

69. ABSTRACTION
The
‘Riesenrad’ • Refers to the
ferris wheel
at the
deliberate departure
Prater, from natural
Vienna appearances.
• Images are simplified,
Abstracted modified or changed
image of to varying degrees to
ferris wheel-
details emphasize certain
removed to qualities or content, or
emphasise
line and
to convey meaning.
shape. • DIFFERENT than
non-representational
art.

70. CROPPING
• When a selected
image is improved by
the removal of the
outer parts to improve
framing, accentuate
the subject, mood or
drama of a work, or to
alter the aspect ratio.

71. MOVEMENT & RHYTHM
• By creating
movement, you are
able to control where
the viewer looks in
your image, and keep
them looking at your
image for longer.
• How has the artist led
our eyes around the
‘Reptiles’, M. C. Escher, 1943, Lithograph. image?

72. Bridget Riley.
A st 2.
rre
1965

73. Beatriz Milhazes

75. What Arts Elements and
Principles Can You Identify?

76. Cave paintings of Hyenas, Chauvet caves,
estimated to be around 32,000 years old.

77. Ansel Adams, ‘The Tetons and the
Snake River’ (1942), photograph.

78. Caravaggio, ‘David
with the Head of
Goliath’ c. 1610, Oil
on canvas

79. Banksy, ‘Graffiti Removal’, May 2008, spray paint
(removed in August 2008)

80. Bridget Riley, “Cataract 3”, 1967. PVA on canvas

81. M C Escher, “Drawing Hands”, 1948,
Lithograph

82. Meret Oppenheim, “Object”, 1936, mass produced
tea set and fur.

83. Francisco de Goya
“The Sleep of Reason
Produces Monsters”
c. 1797
Etching

84. “Ejiri in the Suruga Province”, Hokusai, 1832,
woodblock print

85. Pablo Picasso, “Guernica”, 1937. Oil on canvas

86. Hokusai, “Great Wave off Kanagawa”, 1832,
woodblock print.