This document discusses various artistic techniques used to convey proportion, scale, perspective, depth, and exaggeration in artwork. It provides definitions and examples for each technique. Proportion refers to the correct relative sizes of parts of the human body or objects. Scale shows the size of something relative to other objects. Perspective uses lines to create the illusion of depth. Exaggeration depicts something in a more dramatic way than real life. Depth creates the sense that objects are closer or farther through techniques like overlapping, size, and color variations.

1. Proportion in Art

2. Proportion

3. Notice how in these drawings the people all look
in correct proportion, the size of their body parts
(like their heads or arms) are the right size
compared to the rest of their body. They don’t
have a leg that’s too small or a foot that’s too
big. They all fit the size that they’re supposed to
be based on all the other sizes.
Proportion ​
the relationship
in size of one
part of a work of
art to another.

4. Out of Proportion

5. Out of Proportion
When there is something in an artwork
that is obviously out of proportion, it can
add excitement, mystery, confusion, or
humor.
What is out of proportion in this picture
and what feeling does it give the
painting?

6. Scale

7. Scale is sometimes used to show how big or small something is because it is
very big or very small. If something is really small it will be placed next to a
quarter to show how small it is. If it is really big it will be shown with people
to show how large they are.
In this picture, what are used to show scale? How big do you think these
sculptures are and how do you think they got there?
Scale​
The relative size of
one object to another.

8. Exaggeration

9. This is often done by exaggerating scale to make something seem
outrageous. It can be one part of something, like an extremely large
head, or it can be all of something, like in this example.
What are these sculptures of and why are they exaggerated? How can
you tell they are exaggerated to be very big?
Exaggeration​
showing
something in a
more extreme or
dramatic way than
it is in real life.

10. Perspective

11. In this example, the artist uses linear perspective to make it look like there
is depth in this flat painting. That means all the lines in the painting all go
back to one vanishing point, and all the lines in the building move toward
that point as well, making it look like there is depth in the painting.
Perspective​
a way of showing three-
dimensional objects on a
two-dimensional surface,
giving the appearance of
depth in space

12. Depth

13. There are many ways to show depth, like perspective mentioned above. You
can use overlapping (like the woman in the front right is overlapping the man
next to her, you can see all of her but not all of him, so it looks like she’s
closer), scale (in this way scale means things that are closer look bigger, like
the man in the hat lying down, and things farther away look smaller, like the
man in the middle lying next to a tree) and color (the farther away the objects
are the lighter their colors and the closer they are the darker their colors) to
show depth in this painting.
Depth​
making things look closer
or farther away and making
a two-dimensional object
seem three dimensional.