Unit 2: The language of Art and Architecture

formal elements

basic units of visual language ( building blocks )

lines

A connection between two different points

light & value

creating the appearance of natural light on objects (shading)

light: artwork orlen reflects "ambient" light

value: the characteristic of lightness or darkness of a color (tone)

hue

pure stale of color

value

lightness and darkness of color (black 4 white are values, not colors)

shade

making it darker

tones

removing the colors sense of light

intensity

whether the color is either light or dull

subtractive color mixing

physical mixing or pigments (paints, markers, makeup)

subtractive because your removing light

red blue yellow : muddy brown (absorbing light)

additive color mixing

color system applies to screens

red green blue = white lights ) reflecting light )

primary colors

red blue yellow

secondary colors

orange green purple

tertiary colors

mixing a primary color with a secondary color (redish orange, greenish blue, bluish purple)

analogous colors

colors similar in appearance ( red, redish orange, orange )

complementary colors

opposite colors of each other ( red and green )

warm colors

red, orange, yellow

cool colors

green, blue, purple

texture & pattern

texture: the tactile quality of a surface (how it feels)

pattern : configuration with a repeated visual form

tactile texture

you can actually touch and feel it

visual texture

looks textured but isn’t (screen, paining, illusion?)

shape & volume

shape: a two dimensional shape (square, circle)

volume: three dimensional shape (cube, sphere)

mass: physical bulk

space

perspective is the illusion of depth on A flat picture plane

one point perspective

frontal plane of a volume that is closest to the viewer

two point perspective

single edge of a volume is closest to the viewer

three point perspective

edge of a volume is closest to the viewer

multipoint perspective

different perspectives present in the same work

time & motion

-time: amount or time viewer spends with work, if work is moving, duration of the work

-motion. can be implied by brush strokes or literal (video piece where we see someone walking)

- chance / improvisation / spontaneity. can play with time and motion, artwork may change slightly between viewings, or is the product of A particular duration

principles of composition

composition is the arrangement of the formal elements in a work of art

balance

the property of equality in visual weight

symmetrical balance

visual weight is distributed evenly throughout the composition

asymmetrical balance

careful distribution of uneven dimensions

rhythm

repetition of carefully placed elements

regular rhythmn

smooth and even

eccentric rhythmn

irregular, but the visual elements still manage to connect

proportion & scale

proportion: the size of one part in relation to that or another within a work of art or the work of art as a whole.

scale: the size of something in relation to what we assume to be normal (human scale relates it back to human size)

emphasis

focal point in an artwork

unity & variety

unity: the quality of overall cohesion within artwork

variety: the element of difference within an artwork