ELEMENTS AND

PRINCIPLES OF ART
CHAPTER 2: LESSON 1
What are the Elements of Art?
The elements of design are the fundamental aspects of any visual
design which include shape, color, form, line, value, and texture.
Graphic designers use the elements of design to create an image that
can convey a certain mood, draw the eye in a direction, or evoke a
number of feelings.
THE ELEMENTS OF ART
1. COLOR
2. LINE
3. VALUE
4. SPACE
5. SHAPE
6. FORM
7. TEXTURE
1. COLOR
 Helps establish a mood for your composition.
 Is used by designers to portray mood, light, depth, and point of
view.

What is Color in Art?

Artists use color to depict and describe the subject.
Properties of Color in Art
◦ Hue- refers to the color itself, which is distinct from any other color,
and represents the name we assign that color.
◦ Value- is the darkness or lightness of a hue. When hues are mixed with
white, the resulting color will have a lighter value called tints. When
hues are mixed with the color black, they have a darker value called
shades.
◦ Chroma- refers to the purity of a color. Chroma is related to saturation,
with high-chroma colors appearing brighter, and with low-chroma
colors appearing duller.
A Brief Guide to the Color Wheel
◦ Primary Colors- are colors that are combined to make a range of
other colors.
◦ Secondary Colors- are the result of mixing two primary colors.
◦ Tertiary Colors- are the combination of one primary color with
one secondary color.
◦ Complementary Colors- are colors that are found opposite each
other on the color wheel.
◦ Analogous Colors- sit next to each other on the color wheel.
◦ Warm Colors- reds, oranges, and yellows are referred to as warm
colors.
◦ Cool Colors- blues, greens, and purples are referred to as cool
colors.
◦ Monochromatic Colors- color scheme is chromatic when it only
features shades or tints of a single hue.
◦ Neutral Colors- Black, greys, whites and shades of beige are often
referred to as neutral colors.
2. LINE
 refers to the way that two points in space are connected. Whether
they’re horizontal lines, diagonal lines, or vertical lines, lines can
help direct the eye toward a certain point in your composition.
3. VALUE
 refers to the lightness or darkness of a color. The values of a color
are often visualized in gradient, which displays a series of
variations on one hue, arranged from the lightest to darkest.
 is a basic element of art that refers to the gradual change of
lightness or darkness of a color.
 is most evident on the grey scale where black is represented as
lowest or darkest and white is represented as the highest or lightest
value.
The Benefits of Values in an Oil Painting
◦ Value creates contrast and adds emphasis. The human eye tends
to be drawn to areas of high contrast. This is a technique that is
used to draw attention to specific areas of a painting that the artist
wants to emphasize thus creating a focal point.
◦ Value creates the illusion of depth. Value is an important tool to
suggest roundness or depth. It helps to create depth within by
making an object look three-dimensional or a landscape to appear
to recede into the distance.
Types of Value in Art
o High key- contain the most white and are on the palest end of
gradient scale.
o Low key- contain the most black, and are on the darker end of the
gradient scale.
o High contrast- when two colors have opposite values, such as
very dark and very light blue, they are considered high contrast.
o Low contrast- when two colors have values that are only slightly
different from one another, they are considered low contrast.
4. SPACE
 is an element of art that can draw your audience’s attention to your
intended focal points, or give the illusion of a three-dimensional
space.
 is one of key elements of art that refers to the distance around and
between the subjects and aspects of a composition.
The 3 Types of Space in Art
◦ Positive Space- refers to the space around the subject or subjects
in a picture.
◦ Negative Space- refers to the empty spaces surrounding or in
between the subject or subjects in a work of art.
◦ Three-dimensional Space- is defined as art with all the
dimensions of height, width, and depth.
a. linear perspective- refers to the use of geometric tools, like a
vanishing point, to create the appearance of depth.
 b. diminishing scale- dictates that the farther you are form an
object, the smaller it appears.
c. atmospheric perspective- refers to the object becoming light
color as you move away from it in space.
5. SHAPE
 is a two-dimensional area that is surrounded by an outline.
 graphic artists can use other elements including line, color, value, and
shadow to give a shape the appearance of a three-dimensional shape.
 there are three types of shapes:
a. organic shapes- occurs naturally in the world
b. geometric shapes- are angular and mathematically consistent.
c. abstract shapes- represent things in nature but aren’t perfectly
represented.
Geometric and Organic Shapes in Art
◦ Geometric Shapes- are precise, regular, angular, geometric
constructions that are mathematically consistent.
◦ Organic Shapes- sometimes called biomorphic shapes- are free-
form, irregular, or asymmetrical structures that occur in the natural
world.
6. FORM
 pertains to the way that a shape or physical configuration occupies
space.
 is one of the principles of art that dictates how artists represent
dimensional shapes in two-dimensional or three-dimensional art.
 is one of the elements of visual art which pertains to the way that a
shape or physical configuration occupies space.
Types of Form in Art: Geometric vs Organic

◦ Geometric Form- refers to precise, regular, angular, geometric

shapes that are mathematically consistent, including spheres, cubes,
pyramids, cones, and cylinders.
◦ Organic Form- represent organic, irregular shapes that often occur
in the natural world, which are usually asymmetrical, free-form, or
curved.
7. TEXTURE
 is one of the elements of design that is used to represent how an
object appears or feels.
 tactile texture is a physical sense of touch, whether it’s rough,
smooth, or ribbed.
 visual texture refers to the imagined feel of the illustrated texture,
which can create more visual interest and a heightened sensory
experience.
Difference between Implied and Physical
Texture
◦ Physical texture- (actual) refers to its tactile texture that you can
feel when you touch it. For example, the physical texture of a work
of art may be soft, hard, smooth, or rough.
◦ Visual- (implied) artists who create works of art on a two-
dimensional surface, such as painters or draftsmen, are creating a
visual texture of their work by manipulating materials on their
canvas.
Venus of Urbino by Titian
(1532-1534)
In this large-scale painting,
Titian depicts a nude woman
lounging on a bed. He uses
his paint to indicate the
surface quality of the
blanket she’s laying on, and
the upholstery of her bed.
His ability to convincingly
depict the different textures
of these costly fabrics is a
sign of his mastery of visual
texture.
What are the principles of good design?
The principles of good design are the tools every artist uses to
create an effective composition. These tools are balance, contrast,
emphasis, movement, proportion, repetition, simplicity, space, and
unity. How well an artist understands and uses these tools will
determine if the composition is a weak or strong one.
PRINCIPLES OF GOOD DESIGN
1. Balance
2. Contrast
3. Emphasis
4. Movement
5. Proportion
6. Repetition and Rhythm
7. Simplicity
8. Space
9. Unity
1. BALANCE
 a feeling of equality in weight, attention, or attraction of the
various elements within the composition as a means of
accomplishing unity.
 can be defined as a sense of equilibrium and is achieved when the
visual weight of objects is distributed equally within a composition.
Horizontal, Vertical and Radial Balance
Balancing the components within a painting is best illustrated by
visualizing weighing scales or a playground see-saw. As you can see,
balance is not achieved through an actual physical weighing process,
but through visual judgment on the part of the observer. In this
respect, to balance a 2D composition requires a skillful distribution
of its components in such a way that the viewer is satisfied the piece
is not about to topple over.
Horizontal Balance- when components are balanced left and right
of a central axis they are balanced horizontally.
Vertical Balance- when they are balanced above and below, they are
said to be balanced vertically.
Radial Balance- when components are distributed around the center
point, or spring out from a central line, this is referred to as radial
balance.
Types of Balance
There are two types of balance-symmetrical or asymmetrical.
Symmetrical balance is also referred to as symmetry or formal
balance. Asymmetrical balance is also called asymmetry or informal
balance. Of these two types, symmetrical balance is the most stable
visually.
Symmetrical Balance
 is when the weight is equally distributed on both sides of the
central axis. Symmetry is the simplest and most obvious type of
balance.
Asymmetrical Balance
 is when both sides of the central axis are not identical, yet appear to
have balance. The way to use asymmetry is by balancing two or more
unequal components on either side of the fulcrum by varying their size,
value or distance from the center.
2. CONTRAST
 is a principle that is often applied when an artist wants to add
visual interest, excitement and drama to an art piece.
 refers to the positioning of opposing components in a work of art.
It occurs when two or more related elements are strikingly
different. The greater the difference, the greater the contrast.
Opposing Elements in Art
The key to working with contrast is to make sure the differences
are obvious. The most common ways of creating contrast are by
creating differences in:
◦ color- complimentary colors on the wheel, i.e. red vs. green, blue
vs. orange, yellow vs. violet
◦ hue- saturated vs. muted colors
◦ movement- fast vs. slow
◦ shape- organic vs. geometric shapes
◦ size- large vs. small shapes
◦ space- positive vs. negative
◦ temperature- warm vs. cool
◦ texture- rough vs. smooth
◦ value- light vs. dark
The Significance of Contrast
 Contrast is significant because it adds variety to the total design
and creates unity. It draws the viewer’s eye into the painting and
helps to guide the viewer around the art piece.
 Contrast also adds visual interest. Most designs require a certain
amount of contrast, if there is too much similarity of the
components in any design, it will become monotonous. Too little
contrast results in a design that is bland and uninteresting to view.
3. EMPHASIS
 the stress placed on a single area of a work or unifying visual
theme.
 is another important design element.
 is when the artist gives dominance to or stresses a particular area
or element of focus in a painting.
Adding Emphasis
The way of achieving emphasis is by creating a center of interest,
also called a focal point. A focal point is an area where the eye tends
to center and is the focus of the viewer’s attention. It is created by
making one area or element in the painting standout or most
important visually all other elements are contributing but
subordinate. Subordinates are other compositional elements that
have been minimized or toned down in order to bring attention to the
center of interest.
Ways to Create Emphasis
◦ Contrast- the more strongly an element contrasts with its
surroundings, the more it stands out and draws attention to itself.
◦ Isolation- similar to placement, isolating an element from a group
of other elements will make it stand out.
◦ Line- an arrow, line, or other similar objects can be used to
indicate movement or direction and lead the eye towards an
element.
◦ Placement- elements centered on the canvas will command the
viewer’s attention, however, artists tend to avoid putting focal point
in the center of the canvas.
◦ Size or Scale- this refers to how something seems in scale or size
as it is compared to the objects around it. The larger the scale the
more it will stand out and attract the eye.
4. MOVEMENT
 the suggestion of action or direction, the path our eyes follow
when we look at a work of art.
 is the principle of good design which gives the artist control over
what the viewer sees next.
 shows action and creates a feeling of motion within a
composition. It also serves as a guide to direct the eye from one
element to the next.
Repetition and Rhythm
Movement also contributes to the overall unity in a piece by creating
a relationship between the various components of a work. There are
various ways to create this relationship, it can be done by using
repetition and rhythm.
The use of repetition to create movement occurs when elements
which have something in common are repeated regularly or irregularly
thereby creating a visual rhythm. Repetition doesn’t always have to
mean exact duplication either; however, it does require similarity or
near-likeness.
 Rhythm is the result of repetition which leads the eye from one
area to another in direct, flowing, or staccato movement. It can be
produced by continuous repetition, by periodic repetition, or by
regular alternation of one or more forms or lines. A single form may
be slightly changed with each repetition or be repeated with periodic
changes in size, color, texture, or value.
Movement through Action
Movement can also be created by action. In two-
dimensional works of art, action must be implied.
Implied action in a painting creates life and activity.
This is best illustrated by the direction the eye takes
along an invisible path created by an arrow, a gaze, or
a pointing finger.
Movement is created in the painting on
the right as your eye travels from the
little girl on the blanket and moves up the
stairs.
5. PROPORTION
 the relation of things in size, number, amount, or degree.
 is the relationship of two or more elements in a composition and
how they compare to one another with respect to size, color,
quantity, degree, setting, etc.; i.e. ratio.