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The Vocabulary of Art

Figure 4.1 Elizabeth Murray, The Sun and the Moon, 2005.

2© 2010, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Chapter Four, Part A

The Visual ElementsLine

Shape & Mass

Light

Color

Texture & Pattern

Space

Time & Motion

3

Line: path of moving point.Actual & Implied (contour/outline;direction & movement; hatching, cross-hatching, stippling)

Shape: (2-D) enclosed lineActual & Implied

Mass: (3-D) depth, height & widthFigure (positive) & Ground

(negative)Figure-ground reversal

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Chapter Four, Part A

The Visual Elements

Light: digital & electronicActual & Implied

Value: relative light & darkChiaroscuro (light & dark)

Color: HueAnalogous (warm & cool)PrimarySecondaryComplementaryPointillism: optical mixing

4

The primary function of line in art is to record the borders of forms and convey direction and motion.

Line

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…is the path of a moving point.…Line implies direction and movement

Line

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7Figure 4.2 Keith Haring, Untitled, 1982. Figure 4.3 Sarah Sze, Hidden Relief, 2001.

Line

- indicate the boundaries between regions

-can be used as symbols

- are expressive

8

Line: Contour and Outline

Outlines: defines a two-dimensional shape(outline the shape of your hand on a piece of paper)

Contour: are interior and exterior boundaries (edges) of an implied three-dimensional form.

(adding lines to the outline of your hand to

make it look real)

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Line: Direction and Movement

Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908), Aquila, Abruzzi, Italy, 1951. Photograph. © Henri Cartier-Bresson/Magnum Photos.

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Line: Direction and Movement

- Our eyes tend to follow lines to see where they are going. Artists use this concept to direct our eyes around an image and to suggest movement

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Direction

Vertical linesseem assertive, or denote growth & strength.

Horizontal linesappear calm or placid.

Diagonal lines are the most dramaticand imply action.

Figure 4.6 and 4.7 Eakins, The Biglin Brothers Racing, 1873-74.

Line: Direction and Movement

12

Line: Direction and Movement

- we experience more than just literal drawn lines as lines. (we react to any linear form as a line.)

13

Deals with eye movement and implied motion

Line: Implied Line

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Deals with eye movement and implied motion

Figure 4.8 and 4.9 Géricault, The Raft of the Medusa, 1818-19.

Line: Implied Line

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Shading and Modeling: …Creates mass

-Hatching:Closely spaced

parallel lines-Cross-hatching:Parallel lines

intersect like a checkerboard

-Stippling: Dots spaced close or far apart to

suggest darker or lighter areas

Line

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…records the borders of form and conveys direction and motion. That is the primary function of line in art.

Line

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Calmness

A B

18

Anger

A B

19

Passion

A B

20

Stillness

A B

21

Ascension (Moving upwards)

A B

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Figure 4.13 Emmi Whitehorse, Chanter,1991.Figure 4.12 Bill Reid, The Raven and the First Men, completed 1983.

Shape: a two-dimensional image with identifiable boundaries.i.e. circles or squares

Mass/Form:A three-dimensional form with identifiable boundaries.i.e. spheres and cubes

Shape and Mass

23

Figure 4.13 Emmi Whitehorse, Chanter,1991.Figure 4.12 Bill Reid, The Raven and the First Men, completed 1983.

Geometric: shapes that reflect geometry(squares, circles, rectangles, etc.)

Organic: irregular shapes that evoke the living forms of nature.

Shape and Mass

24

Implied Shape

Figure 4.16 Raphael, The Madonna of the Meadows, 1505.

Actual and Implied Shape

Figure 4.12 Bill Reid, The Raven and the First Men, completed 1983.

25

Implied Shape

…used by artists to unify their compositions

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Implied Shape

27Figure 4.14 Aztec, circular shield, before 1521.

Shape and Mass

Figure (positive shape): the shape we detach and focus on

Ground (negative shape): the surrounding visual information that the figure stands out from

- we perceive shapes by mentally detaching them from their surroundings and see them as distinct images.

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Figure-ground reversal: The concept of positive and negative space.In representational work, it is the shape of the object. In nonrepresentational work, it is the shape that appears dominant or active.

Shape and Mass

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Light, Value, and Color

Actual light

Light reveals the material world to our eyes in a way that helps us understand forms and spatial relationships

Implied light

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Light:Actual light

Importance for three-dimensional work

Actual Light

31

Actual Light

32

Value: Shades of light and dark

Implied Light and Value

Chiaroscuro: Means light/dark. Artists employ values to record contrasts of light and shadow in the natural world

33

Value: Shades of light and dark

Value

“good” value is a seemless transistion from light to dark

White is the highest value

Black is the lowest value

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Figure 4.20 Leonardo da Vinci, The Virgin and Saint Anne with Christ Child and John the Baptist. Figure 4.21 Charles White, Untitled, 1979.

Implied Light and Value

Modeling in Two Dimensions through valueChiaroscuro: Means light/dark. Artists employ values – lights and darks – to record contrasts of light and shadow in the natural world

35

Implied Light and Value

Chiaroscuro: Means light/dark. Artists employ values – lights and darks – to record contrasts of light and shadow in the natural world

36

Implied Light and Value

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Color wheel:Made up of the colors refracted by Sir Isaac Newton’s prism

Color

Color Theory

38

ColorPrimary colors:

Red

Yellow

Blue

Secondary colors:

Orange

Green

Violet

Tertiary colors (Intermediate):

Product of a primary color and an adjacent secondary color

Color Theory

39

ColorColor Theory

Warm colors: colors on the red-orange side of the color wheel.

Cool colors: colors on the blue-green side of the color wheel

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1. Hue:Name of the color

2. Value:Relative lightness or darkness

3. Intensity:Relative purity of a color

Color

Color Properties

(the purest colors have high intensity, while the duller colors have less intensity)

41

2. Value:Relative lightness or darkness

Color

Color Properties

Normal value = the value at which we expect to find that hue.

42

3. Intensity:Relative purity of a color

- AKA – chroma or saturation

Color

Color Properties

- the purest colors have high intensity, while the duller colors have less intensity

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Color Harmonies (color schemes) = the selective use of two or more colors in a single composition

Color

44

Color Harmonies

Monochromatic:Variations of the same hue, often with differences of value and intensity

Color

45

Color Harmonies

Complementary:Colors that are directly opposite each other on the color wheel

Color

46

Color

Color Harmonies

Analogous:Adjacent hues on the color wheel

47

Color

Color Harmonies

Triadic:Three equidistant colors on the color wheel

48

Color

Optical Effects

Optical color mixture: when small batches of different colors are close together, the eye may blend them to produce a new color

49

Color

Optical Effects

50

Pointillism: Dots of pure color that tend to mix in our eyes to produce the illusion of color mixtures

Color

Optical Effects

51

Emotional responsesto color are both cultural and personal.

Color

Emotional Effects

52© 2010, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Chapter Four, Part A

The Visual Elements

Line: path of moving pointActual & Implied (contour/outline;direction & movement; hatching, cross-hatching, stippling)

Shape: (2-D) enclosed lineActual & Implied

Mass/Form: (3-D) depth, height & width

Figure (positive) & Ground (negative)

Figure-ground reversal

Light: digital & electronicActual & Implied

Value: relative light & darkChiaroscuro (light & dark)

Color: HueAnalogous (warm & cool)PrimarySecondaryComplementaryPointillism: optical mixing