Elements and Principles of Arts PDF

GE2404 ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES OF ARTS In this module, we’ll discover how the elements and principles of art work together to make art interesting. Are you ready to discove...

GE2404 ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES OF ARTS In this module, we’ll discover how the elements and principles of art work together to make art interesting. Are you ready to discover how these pieces fit together to create great art? Let's get started! The Elements of Art The elements of art are the building blocks artists use to create a work of art. Without including at least some of them, one cannot produce art. By understanding the fundamental elements of art, we can evaluate a work of art, explain what the artist has done, and express our ideas and conclusions in a shared language. Line – It gives structure and shape to artwork, guides the viewer’s eye, and conveys emotion or movement. Shape – It provides the basic forms that make up a composition, organizes elements, and creates patterns. Color – It evokes mood, expresses emotions, and creates visual interest. Colors can also convey symbolism and highlight focal points. Space – It determines the relationships between objects in composition and creates depth, perspective, and a sense of openness or confinement. Texture – It enhances the tactile quality of artwork and makes it visually and physically interesting by indicating how surfaces would feel. Value – It contrasts between light and dark areas, creates depth, emphasizes shapes, and gives objects a sense of solidity. Form – It adds depth and realism to artwork by representing three-dimensional objects to give volume. Transcreation Transcreation in arts involves reinterpreting or adapting creative works to fit new cultural contexts, preserving their essence and purpose. It involves creative adaptation and cultural sensitivity to maintain the original artistic vision. Examples: Vincent Van Gogh was greatly influenced by Japanese woodblock prints. His painting “The Courtesan (after Eisen),” inspired by Keisai Eisen, reflects his fascination with Japanese art and contemporary magazine images through his unique use of color and style. Van Gogh’s “Bridge in the Rain (after Hiroshige)” is a vibrant painting directly inspired by a Japanese print by Utagawa Hiroshige. Auguste Rodin’s “The Thinker” has greatly influenced modern sculpture. Artists worldwide have adapted their expressive forms and themes to address contemporary issues while preserving their deep emotional and psychological impact. For example, Aristide Maillol's work “La Nuit, 1902-1909” was inspired by Rodin’s innovative style. 03 Handout 1A *Property of STI Page 1 of 4  GE2404 Factors Influencing Transcreation Transcreation adapts and reinterprets existing artworks to fit new contexts while keeping the essence of the original. This is how distortion, transformation, and appropriation influence this process: Distortion – It refers to changing the characteristics of the original piece, such as its shape, color, or form. Example: In the painting “Bridge in the Rain (after Hiroshige),” Van Gogh reinterprets Hiroshige’s woodblock print by changing its colors, shapes, and brushstrokes, resulting in a vivid, swirling painting with dramatic contrasts. This transformation reflects Van Gogh’s emotional style and personal touch, giving the original scene a unique, energetic quality that stands out from the precise Japanese print. Transformation – It refers to changing the medium or context of the original work. Example: “The Persistence of Memory” by Salvador Dalí might be adapted into a 3D digital model, offering a new way to experience the melting clocks. Appropriation – It refers to using elements from the existing work to create something new. Example: In the painting “The Courtesan (after Eisen),” Van Gogh takes Keisai Eisen's Japanese woodblock print of a courtesan and reinterprets it in his own style. He keeps the main subject and composition but uses his unique brushwork, colors, and emotional expression to give it a modern twist. This means Van Gogh reworks Eisen’s traditional design to fit his personal and contemporary artistic vision. The Principles of Art The principles of art are fundamental guidelines for organizing the elements of art within the creations. These principles create and provide coherence to artworks that guide the viewer's attention and enhance the overall impact and aesthetic quality of the piece. Unity – It ensures all elements in the composition work together harmoniously to create a cohesive whole. Example: “The Birth of Venus” by Sandro Botticelli achieves unity through the harmonious arrangement of figures, colors, and overall composition. Balance – It refers to the distribution of visual weight in a composition, whether symmetrical (equal weight on both sides of a central axis), asymmetrical (an unequal balance that still achieves harmony), or radial (balance around a central point) to achieve harmony. Example: “The Starry Night” by Vincent Van Gogh demonstrates asymmetrical balance with the swirling sky balanced by the village and cypress tree in the foreground. Emphasis – It refers to the focal point or area that stands out and attracts the viewer’s attention, often created through contrast, size, or placement. Example: “The Persistence of Memory” by Salvador Dalí illustrates the unusual and striking imagery of the clock melting, creating a focal point that captures the viewer’s attention. 03 Handout 1A *Property of STI Page 2 of 4  GE2404 Contrast – It refers to the noticeable difference between elements, enhancing their strengths and creating visual interest. Example: “Composition VIII” by Wassily Kandinsky used contrasting colors, shapes, and sizes to create dynamic visual contrasts. Proportion – It refers to the size relationships between different elements in a composition, maintaining harmony and scale. Example: “Vitruvian Man” by Leonardo da Vinci illustrates the concept of ideal human proportions based on the writings of the Roman architect Vitruvius. Pattern – It refers to the arrangement of alternated or repeated elements such as shapes, lines, colors, or motifs. Example: “The Great Wave Off Kanagawa” by Katsushika Hokusai features dynamic and stylized waves, creating a rhythmic pattern that dominates the composition. Variety – It refers to the use of several elements of design to hold the viewer’s attention and to guide the viewer’s eye through and around the work of art. Example: “Campbell’s Soup Cans” by Andy Warhol used repetition of the soup cans as a motif but varied the colors and arrangements. The Rule of Thirds Another method for structuring a composition is the Rule of Thirds. Using the Rule of Third, an image is divided into thirds horizontally and vertically. Artists frequently use horizontal lines to separate the foreground and background content. The overlapping areas of the red circles, as shown in 03 Handout 1B, are known as the focal points. These can be used to draw the viewer's attention to certain elements of a composition. When applying the Rule of Thirds, it is generally better not to fill all four of the focal points. It is preferable to emphasize only some of them. Samuel Peploe has composed Still Life with Coffee Pot (c. 1905) using the principles of the Rule of Thirds: the horizontal line of the table edge runs along the bottom third of the painting the reflected light down the center of the teapot is on a vertical line two-thirds of the way across the frame the bright orange and lemon to the left of the frame sit at one of the focal points References: BBC Bitesize. (2023, March 8). The rule of thirds - Proportion – AQA. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zxpnb82/revision/4#:~:text=The%20Rule%20of%20Third%20splits,known %20as%20the%20focal%20points. Du Plessis, A. (2024, January 8). Unity in Art – Taking a look at unity and variety in art. Art in Context. https://artincontext.org/unity-in-art/. 03 Handout 1A *Property of STI Page 3 of 4  GE2404 Esaak, S. (2023, April 5). The 7 elements of art and why knowing them is important. https://www.thoughtco.com/what-are-the-elements-of-art-182704. Fussell, M., & Fussell, M. (2020, July 16). The rule of thirds in art. The Virtual Instructor Blog. https://thevirtualinstructor.com/blog/the-rule-of-thirds-in-art. Hill, K. (2024, August 9). Masterpiece Story: Bridge in the Rain (after Hiroshige) by Vincent van Gogh. DailyArt Magazine. https://www.dailyartmagazine.com/painting-of-the-week-vincent-van-gogh-bridge-in-the-rain-after- hiroshige/. Jonathan, V. a. P. B. (2012, December 24). Vincent van Gogh, the copyist – Part 1 – Japonisme. My Daily Art Display. https://mydailyartdisplay.uk/2012/12/24/vincent-van-gogh-the-copyist-part-1-japonisme/. Legaspi, C. (2021, January 22). How to use the rule of thirds in art. Creative Bloq. https://www.creativebloq.com/art/how-use-rule-thirds-art-21619159. Marder, L. (2024, May 2). The 7 Principles of Art and Design. ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/principles- of-art-and-design-2578740. Rodin, M. (n.d.). The Thinker | Musée Rodin. Musée Rodin. https://www.musee- rodin.fr/en/musee/collections/oeuvres/thinker. Van Gogh Museum. (n.d.). Courtesan (after Eisen) Vincent van Gogh, 1887. https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/collection/s0116V1962. 03 Handout 1A *Property of STI Page 4 of 4