Elements & Principles of art

by

Arjun Kumar Singh

Assistant professor Lovely Professional University Punjab, India

1 Movement 2 Unity 3 Harmony 4 Variety 5 Balance 6 Contrast 7 Proportion 8 Pattern and rhythm

1. Movement Movement shows actions, or alternatively, the path the viewer's eye follows throughout an artwork. Movement is caused by using elements under the rules of the principles in picture to give the feeling of motion and to guide the viewer's eyes throughout the artwork. In movement an art should flow, because the artist has the ability to control the viewer's eye. The artists control what the viewers see and how they see it, like a path leading across the page to the item the artist wants the viewer's attention focused on.

Cloud Monet, Impression Sunrise 1860

Georges-Pierre Seurat, Pointillism, 1880s

Vincent van Gogh Year 1889 Type Oil on canvas Dimensions 73.7 cm 92.1 cm (29 in 36 in) Location Museum of Modern Art (F612, JH1731) [1], New York City

Marshal Duchamp

M F Hussains painting from Horse series

2. Unity
A principle of art, unity occurs when all of the elements of a piece combine to make a balanced, harmonious, complete whole. Unity is another of those hard-to-describe art terms but, when it's present, your eye and brain are pleased to see it.

The Calling of Saint Matthew by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio completed in 1599-1600 , Contarelli Chapel

The Yellow Christ (1889), by Gauguin

Jan van Eyck

3. Harmony Harmony is achieved in a body of work by using similar elements throughout the work, harmony gives an uncomplicated look to a piece of artwork or sculpture. Color harmony or color theory is also considered a principle through the application of the design element of color.

Tree of life by Gustav Klimt

Untitled by Ganesh Pyne

Bharat Mata by Awanindra Nath Tagore

From Black series by Francis Goya

M F Hussains painting from Mother serise

4. Variety Variety is the quality or state of having different forms or types, notable use of contrast, emphasis, difference in size and color

Paintings by Sayedhaidarraja

Paintings by Sayed Haidar Raja

Paintings by Salvador Dali

Paintings by Vijender Sharma

5. Balance As a basic principle of art (specifically of design), balance refers to the ways in which the elements (lines, shapes, colors, textures, etc.) of a piece are arranged. Balance is one of those useful terms to know, if one is to employ Art Speak. Balance can be symmetrical ("formal"), where elements are given equal "weight" from an imaginary line in the middle of a piece. For the most basic example of symmetry, think of your eyes in relation to either side of your nose. Balance doesn't necessarily mean symmetry, though. Asymmetrical ("informal") balance occurs when elements are placed unevenly in a piece, but work together to produce harmony overall.

Paintings by Vijender Sharma

Paintings by Vijender Sharma

Picassos Guernica

6. Contrast A principle of art, contrast refers to the arrangement of opposite elements (light vs. dark colors, rough vs. smooth textures, large vs. small shapes, etc.) in a piece so as to create visual interest, excitement and drama. The colors white and black provide the greatest degree of contrast. Complementary colors also highly contrast with one another. An artist can employ contrast as a tool, to direct the viewer's attention to a particular point of interest within the piece.

Picasso

Three Musician by Picasso

7. Proportion Proportion is a principle of art that describes the size, location or amount of one element to another (or to the whole) in a work. It has a great deal to do with the overall hamrony of an individual piece. Think of Leonardo's Vitruvian Man (you know the guy: naked, inserted within a rectangle within a circle, arms outstretched, legs shown both together and spread, etc.) for a clear idea of just how much thought has gone into proper proportioning over the ages.

Painting by Partho Das

Caravaggios painting

8. Rhythm Rhythm is a principle of art that's difficult to summarize in words. Assuming that you've picked up on a rhythm in music before, take what you heard with your ears and try to translate that to something you'd see with your eyes. Rhythm, in art, is a visual beat. A pattern has rhythm, but not all rhythm is patterned. For example, the colors of a piece can convey rhythm, by making your eyes travel from one component to another. Lines can produce rhythm by implying movement. Forms, too, can cause rhythm by the ways in which they're placed one next to the other. Really, it's easier to "see" rhythm in just about anything other than the visual arts. Literally-minded types should stick to music for rhythm.

M F Hussains painting from Horse series

Paul Gauguin's painting

9. Pattern A principle of art - and probably the universe itself pattern means the repetition of an element (or elements) in a work. An artist achieves a pattern through the use of colors (children playing with Legos know this instinctively), lines (think: Op Art) or shapes (as with mosaics, tessellations, etc.).

Painting by S H Raja

Tree of life by Gustav Klimt