Principles and Rhythm

Principles and Rhythm
+ Contrast

By: Natasha Moon

The Principles of Art are basically the rules that artist use to organize the elements of art. The Principles of Art consist of: Rhythm, Movement, Balance, Proportion, Variety, Emphasis, Harmony and Unity. Artists use these principles to help accomplish the image they have in mind for their artwork, using each of the rules and elements along the way. For example, if an artist decided to create a painting of the sea, they would have to think of the contrasting colours, the movement of the water, and how everything would look together in their head.


Rhythm is the principle of art that shows the movement by repeating of elements. Most people believe that rhythm is usually a term used for dance or music, however their is also visual rhythm. Visual Rhythm is recognized through the use of our eyes and is produced by repeating positive spaces with negative spaces. An example of this is Vincent-Van-Gogh's Starry Night, where he repeats one style of art without using any other kinds of styles.

Contrast is a technique were the artist creates the focal point of a painting by using the different elements in art.

Lines

Lines

Look at a painting or drawing, have you ever wondered how the artist made that? Well the process to create that piece of art is done by using different types of lines. Lines are the basic foundation of art, they can be used to create anything the artist can imagine.  They can come in various shapes, sizes, colours, and Thickness depending on what the artist wants to use and can used to create various styles of art. 

Some of the most well known kinds of lines are: Organic, Geometric, Real, and Implied. Many people who have no idea about art wonder 'What is the difference between Organic and Geometric lines?' when asked about them. Well Organic lines are wavy and seem to have a more flowing feeling to them, and they have no points or edges. While Geometric lines are made up of straight lines, edges, and points. Now real and implied lines are another thing people have trouble with. Real lines are found everyday for example; a crosswalk line on the road, is real line. An implied line is objects that have space between them but they are implied to look like a line, an example of this; If pillows of all the same size, shape, and colour were placed in a row. Now those lines are not the type of lines that we use. there are many different kinds of lines, some examples of them are are: Vertical, Horizontal, Diagonal, Zigzag, and Curved. Lines can also be made or changed in various ways, such as; the length, the width, the texture, the direction, and the degree on the curve.

Art as a Language

Art as a Language

Communication is something used everyday, for everyone around the world, it's a way we can express our feelings towards someone or something. Most people believe that communicating is just talking, but communication can be shown in various different ways. Art is just one of the many different ways in which we can communicate with each other. With art you can see what or believe what the artist is feeling, without actually meeting the artist or talking with them.  Art is a way you can express yourself without using oral communication or writing, it is similar to a musician uses their instruments to express their moods. An example of an artist expressing themselves is the painting below. This painting makes me feel that the artist has had some hardships in their life because most of the colours are darker, but the contrasting colours are brighter and more vibrant making me think that they remember and cherish the good times in their life.

You can use elements and principles to create art, while also showing your feelings or expressing yourself about certain topics. There are seven different elements that are needed to create the building blocks of art. The elements  needed to create art are: Texture, Value, Line, Space, Form, and Colour. Using the elements of art, the artist could create the basic foundation of art. The rules that control how the artists organize the elements of art, are known as the principles of art. The principles that are needed to know for art are: Rhythm, Balance, Movement, Variety, Emphasis, Proportion, Harmony, and Unity. Using these, you can create art that express yourself and your feelings. So next time you want to communicate how your feeling try drawing or painting as another way to tell others how you feel.

Mnemonic Devices

Mnemonic Devices

A Mnemonic device is almost like a mental "tool" to help with remembering something. It can be very helpful especially if you are not very good at remembering things like I am. The process to make one is simple, create names, or use words that start with the same letter and make a sentence out of it.

My Mnemonic device for remembering the Elements of Art and Principles of Art are:

Elements of Art                 Principles of Art

Terra = Texture                 Hail = Harmony

Vander =Value                  Ryder = Rhythm 

Likes = Line                     Porter = Proportion

Speedy = Space                Bringing = Balance

Shakes = Shape                United = Unity

For = Form                       Vale = Variety

Cole = Colour                   Colours = Contrast 

                                          Making = Movement

                                          Enlightenment = Emphasis