Art I Fall Semester Exam Part Two : Shape and Form

Shape

An enclosed space defined by other art elements such as line, color and texture.

Figure and Ground

The perceptual tendency to divide visual patterns into 2 kinds of shapes with the figures appearing on top of and surrounded by the ground. In pictorial art the relationship between images and background are often referred to a positive and negative space.

Positive and Negative Shape

The figures in the picture; The ground in the picture

Rhythm

A principle of design that refers to ways of combining elements to produce the appearance of movement in an artwork.

Emphasis

A principle of design in which one element or a combination of elements create more attention than anything else in a composition.

Shape Constancy

The tendency to see the shape of a 3-d object as unchanging regardless of any change in position or angle from which it is viewed.

Foreshortening

A method of applying perspective to an object or figure so that it seems to recede in space by shortening the depth dimension, making the form appear 3-d.

Organic

A free form or shape that represents living things and has irregular edges.

Geometric

Mechanical human-made shapes such as squares, triangles and circles. They have regular edges.

Positive Space

The enclosed areas or objects in the artwork. They may suggest recognizable objects or nonrepresentational shapes.

Negative Space

The space not occupied by an object or figure but circulating in and around it contributing to the total effect of the composition.

Movement

A principle of design that refers to ways of arranging elements to create a sense of motion.

Implied Movement

The appearance of movement in a static artwork resulting from the artist’s use of elements.

Optical Movement

An illusion of movement caused by the response of the eye to the elements arranged in artworks.