Visual Arts Concepts and Terminology

Vocabulary flashcards generated from the visual arts question bank covering art elements, principles, materials, perspectives, traditional crafts, and specific artworks.

Chitra-sutra

A text section that elaborates on sourcing, extracting, preparing, and using colours, listing 5 basic colours.

Complementary Colours

Colours that are located directly opposite to each other on the colour wheel.

Analogous Colours

Colours that lie next to each other on the colour wheel.

Tints

Colours created by adding varying amounts of white.

Sumok Thyaktuk

Traditional bamboo hats made by the Lepchas of Sikkim, taking about a month to weave each hat.

Sholapith

A craft tradition of West Bengal and Odisha using the milky-white spongy core of the Shola plant.

Malakars

Artisans associated with the Sholapith tradition.

Linear Perspective

A technique in which parallel lines appear to converge towards a vanishing point to create spatial depth.

Aerial Perspective

Perspective technique using colour tonalities and changes in detail to depict distance and depth, causing distant objects to appear hazier and less detailed.

School of Athens

A painting created by Raphael.

Emperor's March to Kashmir

An artwork created by Abanindranath Tagore.

Santhal Dance

An artwork created by Jamini Roy.

Visual Art

A powerful means of expression through which ideas, experiences, and emotions can be communicated.

Art Journal

A documentation or record of everyday experiences in forms such as writing, sketches, photographs, videos, and other visual forms.

Collage Journalling

A form of journalling that involves collecting and pasting materials such as pictures, textile scraps, and woven fibres into a journal.

Frottage

A technique used to create rubbings of textured surfaces.

Value

An element of art that refers to variations created through tints, tones, and shades.

Hierarchy

A principle of visual design that refers to order of importance.

Medium

The materials, tools, and processes used to make visual artwork.

Graphite

The material that pencil lead is made of, which can turn into diamond under very high temperature and pressure.

Turpentine

A substance used as a thinner by oil painters.

Oil Pastels

Pastels described as similar to wax crayons but more vibrant.

Palette Knife

A tool that can be used to create textures with paint.

Black Pigment (Traditional)

A pigment created by traditional artists using soot from oil lamps.

Sketching

An exercise for spontaneous observation and drawing used across many disciplines.

Point

An element of art created using dots of varying sizes.

Shape and Form

An element of art that can be used to create a three-dimensional form through light and shade.

Space

An element of art that involves positive and negative areas.

Texture

An element of art that can be explored through textured materials and rubbings such as frottage.

Elements of Art

The seven fundamental elements given in the text: point, line, shape and form, texture, colour, value, and space.

Principles of Visual Design

The six principles of visual design listed in the text: unity and harmony, balance, rhythm and movement, emphasis, proportion, and hierarchy.

Daily Sketching Weekly Target

The weekly target of eight sketches per week in the suggested daily sketching schedule.