Week Six Art Terminologies & Concepts

Three-Dimensional Art:

Three-Dimensional: Possessing height, width, and depth. Artworks that exist in space and can be viewed from multiple angles.
Freestanding: A type of sculpture that is meant to be viewed from all sides and is not attached to a background. Also known as "in-the-round."
In-The-Round: Another term for freestanding sculpture, emphasizing that it can be viewed from all angles.
Relief: A type of sculpture in which the sculpted elements remain attached to a solid background of the same material. It projects out from that background.
Bas Relief: (also Low Relief) Sculpture that projects only slightly from the background surface. The depth of the forms is shallow.
High Relief: Sculpture that projects significantly from the background surface, often with elements that are almost detached from the background.
Additive Sculpture: A sculptural process in which material is built up, shaped, and added to create the final form. Examples include modeling with clay or constructing with various materials.
Modeling: A sculptural technique where pliable material (like clay or wax) is shaped and built up by hand to create a form. It is an additive process.
Armature: A rigid internal support structure used in sculpture, particularly in modeling, to provide stability for soft materials like clay or plaster.
Plastic / Plasticity: In art, "plastic" refers to a material that is pliable and easily shaped, while "plasticity" is the quality of being able to be molded or modeled.
Ceramic: Objects made of clay and hardened by firing in a kiln. Includes pottery, sculpture, and tiles.
Ceramist: An artist who works with ceramics.
Greenware: Unfired pottery or ceramic sculpture. At this stage, the clay is dry but very fragile.
Earthenware: A common type of porous ceramic that is fired at a relatively low temperature. It is often opaque and usually requires a glaze to be waterproof.
Porcelain: A fine, hard, translucent ceramic material, typically white, that is fired at very high temperatures. It is known for its durability and delicate appearance.
**Throwing: The process of shaping clay on a potter's wheel.
Firing: The process of heating clay or ceramic objects in a kiln to a high temperature, which causes chemical and physical changes that harden the material permanently.
Kiln: A specialized oven or furnace used for firing ceramic objects, glass, or enamels at high temperatures.
Glaze (in Ceramics): A vitreous (glass-like) coating applied to ceramic objects that, when fired, fuses to the clay body, making it impermeable, durable, and often decorative.
Cast: A sculptural process in which a liquid material (such as molten metal, plaster, or resin) is poured into a mold and allowed to solidify. The mold is then removed, revealing a replica of the original form.
Patina: A surface coloration or change that develops on certain materials (especially bronze and copper) due to age, oxidation, or chemical treatment. It can be natural or artificially induced.
Bust: A sculptural portrait that depicts only the head, neck, and shoulders of a person.
Glass: A hard, brittle, typically transparent or translucent substance, made by fusing sand with soda and lime and cooling rapidly. Used for practical objects and artistic forms.
Blown Glass: A technique of forming glass by blowing air through a long tube (blowpipe) into a blob of molten glass, expanding it into a desired shape.
Gloryhole: In glassblowing, an opening in a glass furnace where a piece of glass is reheated to keep it pliable during the blowing process.
Stained Glass: Colored glass used to form decorative windows or other objects, typically held in place by lead strips.
Gothic: A style of architecture and art prevalent in Western Europe from the 12th to the 16th centuries, characterized by pointed arches, ribbed vaults, flying buttresses, and large stained-glass windows.
Chasing: A metalworking technique in which a design is impressed into the front of a metal surface using a hammer and various punches, pushing the metal inward to create a raised design on the back.
Repoussé: A metalworking technique in which a design is hammered or pressed from the reverse side of a metal sheet, creating a raised design on the front. Often combined with chasing.
Subtractive Sculpture: A sculptural process in which material is removed or carved away from a larger mass to create the final form. Examples include carving in wood or stone.
Carving: A subtractive sculptural technique in which material (such as wood, stone, or ivory) is cut, chipped, or gouged away to create a form.
Intarsia: A form of wood inlay, where pieces of different colored wood (and sometimes other materials like ivory or mother-of-pearl) are cut and fitted together to create a mosaic-like pattern or image.
Assemblage: A three-dimensional art form created by joining together various found objects and materials.
Found Object: An ordinary object that an artist designates as a work of art (or part of one). Its aesthetic qualities are appreciated in an art context, often without alteration.
Readymade: A term coined by Marcel Duchamp to describe ordinary manufactured objects that he selected and designated as works of art. Often slightly altered or simply presented in a new context.
Artifact: An object made by a human being, typically an item of cultural or historical interest. In art, it can refer to a work that feels like it has been discovered rather than purely created.
Appropriation: The act of borrowing, copying, or altering existing images or objects for new artworks. It often involves recontextualizing the original.
Constructivism: An artistic and architectural philosophy that originated in Russia beginning in 1919. It rejected the idea of "art for art's sake" and emphasized art as a practice for social purposes, often using geometric forms and industrial materials.
Mixed-Media: Artworks that are created using a combination of two or more different materials or media.
Kinetic Sculpture: Sculpture that incorporates movement as an essential part of its artistic expression. This movement can be powered by motors, wind, or other forces.
Installation: An art form consisting of three-dimensional works often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. They often involve large-scale constructions or arrangements of objects.
Site-Specific: Artwork created to exist in a certain place. The artist takes the location into account while planning and creating the artwork.
Earthworks: (also Land Art) Artworks created by manipulating the natural landscape with earth, rocks, or other natural materials. They are often large-scale and impermanent.
Performance Art: A live art form in which the artist's body is often the medium, and the work involves actions performed in front of an audience. It can involve elements of theater, dance, music, and visual art.
Wearables: Artworks designed to be worn on the body, blurring the lines between art, fashion, and craft.
Fiber: A general term referring to materials made from natural or synthetic fibers, used in textiles, weaving, and other fiber arts.
Loom: A machine or frame used for weaving thread or yarn to produce fabric.
Weft: In weaving, the horizontal threads that are interlaced through the warp threads.
Warp: In weaving, the vertical threads that are held taut on a loom, through which the weft threads are passed.
Textile: Any cloth or fabric made by weaving, knitting, or felting fibers. Can also refer to the art and craft of creating such materials.
Embroidery: The art of decorating fabric or other materials with a needle and thread or yarn.
Tapestry: A heavy fabric, often richly decorated with woven designs or scenes, used as a wall hanging or furniture covering. The design is woven directly into the fabric.
Knitting: A method of creating fabric by interlocking a series of loops of yarn with needles.

Scale & Proportion:

Scale: The size of an object or artwork relative to another object, or to a system of measurement (like the human body).
Natural Scale: When an artwork or object is depicted at its actual, real-life size.
Human Scale: The size of an object or artwork in relation to the typical human body. Often used to create a sense of relatability or grandeur.
Monumental: Referring to an artwork that is impressively large in scale, often conveying a sense of grandeur, importance, or permanence.
Hierarchic Scale: A technique used in art in which the size of figures is determined by their thematic importance, rather than by their actual size in reality. Larger figures are more important.
Proportion: The relationship of parts to a whole within an artwork, or the relationship of one part to another in terms of size, quantity, and degree.
Format / Aspect Ratio: The shape or dimensions of a two-dimensional artwork (e.g., painting, photograph) or a screen, expressed as the ratio of its width to its height.
Golden Ratio: (also Golden Mean or Divine Proportion) An irrational number, approximately 1.618, often represented by the Greek letter phi (ϕ). It is found when the ratio of two quantities is the same as the ratio of their sum to the larger of the two quantities. It has been observed in nature and used by artists and architects for centuries due to its perceived aesthetic harmony.

Texture:

Texture: The perceived surface quality of a work of art, how something feels or looks like it would feel if touched.
Tactile Texture: The actual, physical surface quality of an artwork that can be felt by touch.
Natural Texture: The texture inherent in a material as it occurs in nature (e.g., the roughness of bark, the smoothness of polished stone).
Artificial Texture: Texture that has been created or altered by human intervention (e.g., carved wood, painted surfaces, woven fabric).
Simulated / Implied Texture: The illusion of a three-dimensional surface texture created on a two-dimensional plane through artistic techniques, such as drawing or painting, where the texture is seen but not felt.
Verisimilitude: The appearance of being true or real; the quality of seeming like truth. In art, it refers to the convincing appearance of reality in a work.

Balance:

Balance: The distribution of visual weight in an artwork. It gives a sense of stability and equilibrium.
All-Over Balance: A type of balance where visual elements are distributed evenly across the entire surface of the artwork, without a clear focal point or hierarchy.
Symmetry: A type of balance in which elements are arranged identically or very similarly on either side of a central axis. Creates a sense of formality and stability.
Radial Symmetry: A type of symmetry where elements are arranged equally around a central point, radiating outward. Think of a snowflake or a mandala.
Asymmetry: A type of balance in which elements are arranged differently on either side of a central axis, but still create a sense of equilibrium or visual harmony. It is often more dynamic and informal than symmetry.
Know the various reasons objects have "weight" in an image:
- Size: Larger objects tend to have more visual weight.
- Color: Saturated, intense, or dark colors tend to have more visual weight than desaturated, light, or pale colors.
- Placement: Objects closer to the center of an image, or objects placed strategically on a diagonal, can draw more attention. Objects near the edge can also pull attention.
- Isolation: An object isolated in space tends to have more weight.
- Complexity/Detail: More detailed or complex objects can hold more visual weight than simpler ones.
- Texture: Strong or prominent textures can add visual weight.
- Contrast: High contrast (e.g., light against dark) draws the eye and adds weight.
- Familiarity/Symbolism: Objects that are culturally significant or personally meaningful can carry more psychological "weight."
- Direction/Implied Movement: Lines or implied movement can lead the eye and contribute to perceived weight.

Unity & Variety

Harmony: The pleasing combination of parts into a whole. In art, it refers to the agreement or coherence among elements in a design, creating a sense of completeness and order.
Unity: The sense of oneness, wholeness, or cohesion in a work of art. All the elements work together to create a unified and harmonious whole.
Variety: The use of different elements or qualities within an artwork to create visual interest and prevent monotony. It provides contrast and keeps the viewer engaged.
Composition: The arrangement and organization of visual elements (lines, shapes, colors, forms, etc.) within a work of art. It's how an artist structures their piece.
Grid: A network of horizontal and vertical lines, often used as a framework for organizing a composition and creating a sense of order and structure.
Compositional Unity: The visual harmony and coherence achieved through the careful arrangement of the formal elements of art (e.g., repetition of shapes, lines that lead the eye).
Conceptual Unity: Unity in an artwork achieved through the coherence of ideas, themes, or meanings, even if the visual elements themselves are diverse. The underlying message or concept brings the work together.

Gestalt:

Gestalt is a German word meaning "form" or "shape." In psychology, Gestalt principles describe how the human mind organizes visual information into meaningful wholes.

Gestalt Psychology: A school of psychology that emphasizes that the mind organizes individual perceptions into a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. It focuses on how we perceive patterns and relationships.
Closure: The Gestalt principle that states that our brains tend to complete incomplete figures or forms by filling in missing information, seeing a whole rather than disconnected parts.
Figure-Ground Reversal: A visual phenomenon where the viewer's perception of what is the "figure" (the main subject) and what is the "ground" (the background) can switch back and forth, creating an ambiguous image.
Prägnanz: (Law of Simplicity or Good Form) The fundamental Gestalt principle that states that we tend to perceive things in the simplest, most stable, and most complete way possible. Our brains favor clear and concise interpretations.
Prior Knowledge: The influence of past experiences, learned information, and existing mental frameworks on how we perceive and interpret new information or visual stimuli.
Context: The circumstances or environment in which something exists or occurs. In perception, context can significantly influence how we interpret visual information.
Similarity: The Gestalt principle that states that we tend to group together elements that are similar in appearance (e.g., similar in color, shape, size, or texture).
Common Fate: The Gestalt principle that states that we tend to perceive elements that move in the same direction or seem to belong together as a group.
Continuity: The Gestalt principle that states that we tend to perceive elements arranged on a line or curve as more related than elements not on the line or curve. We prefer to see smooth, continuous paths rather than abrupt changes.
Symmetry: The Gestalt principle that states that we tend to perceive symmetrical elements as belonging together and forming a cohesive whole. Symmetrical objects are perceived as unified figures.
Proximity: The Gestalt principle that states that we tend to group together elements that are close to each other in space.
Common Region: The Gestalt principle that states that we tend to group elements together if they are located within the same closed region or boundary.