Elementsof

DESIGN

Composition• Composition is the placement or arrangement of

visual elements or ingredients in a work of art, as distinct from the subject of a work. It can also be thought of as the organization of the elements of art according to the principles of art.

“Consulting the rules of composition before taking a photograph, is like consulting the laws

of gravity before going for a walk.”

- Edward Weston

Elements of Design (7)

•Line•Shape•Color•Texture•Value•Form•Space

The elements of design can be best described as the basic things that can be seen in an artwork. Think of the elements of design as the letters in the alphabet.

Line• Line - is a mark on a surface that can describe a shape or

value. It can create texture and can be thick and thin. Types of line can be described as actual, implied*, vertical, horizontal, diagonal, curvy, contour lines**.

• Thick lines can make shapes appear closer, while thin lines can appear further away.

* Implied lines - Aline in an artwork that is not physically there but suggested by points in the artwork.

** Contour lines - A contour line is the line which defines a form or edge - an outline.

Shape• Shape - is a two-dimensional plane with no form or thickness.

Shapes are flat and can be grouped into three categories, geometric, irregular, and organic.

• Geometric shapes can be easily measured.

• Irregular shapes cannot be easily measured.

• Organic shapes are shapes that are found naturally in nature.

Color• Color - refers to specific hues and has three properties,

hue, intensity and value. The color wheel is a way of showing the chromatic scale in a circle using all the colors made with the primary colors. Complimentary pairs, when mixed, can produce dull and neutral color. Black and white can be added to produce tints (add white), shades (add black) and tones (add gray).

• Hue is the common distinction between colors positioned around a basic primary color wheel.

• Intensity (chroma/saturation) is the purity of a color, or its freedom from white, black, or gray.

• Value is the quality lightness or darkness. That is, black is a dark value or low value. White is a light value or high value.

Texture• Texture is how something looks or feels to the

touch (i.e. slimy, soft, smooth, rough, etc.). It can be real or implied by different uses of media.

Value• Value is the degree of light and dark in a design.

It is the contrast between black and white and all the tones in between. Value can be used with color as well as black and white. Contrast is the extreme changes between values.

Form• Form is a three-dimensional object having

volume and thickness. The illusion of a 3-D effect can be achieved with the use of light and shading techniques. Form can be viewed from many angles.

Space• Space refers to variations in the perspective, and

proximity of objects in relation to their surrounding background. Space can be defined as open or confined. There are two types of space; positive space and negative space.

• Positive space refers to the area inside a shape.

• Negative space refers to the outer area of a shape.

elements of design

Use of line

Use of Shape

Use of color

Use of texture

Use of SPACESPACE

FORM

VALUE