HUMANITIES C102

ART APPRECIATION
 LESSON 4

ELEMENTS OF ART
 1. Line s

Vertical lines are straight up and down lines that are moving in space without any slant
and are perpendicular to horizontal lines. They suggest height and strength because they
extend towards the sky and seem unshakeable.
-
Diagonal lines are straight lines that slant in any direction except horizontal or vertical.
When in use, they suggest movement or lack of stability.

Zigzag lines are a series of diagonal lines joined at ends. They can convey action and
excitement, as well as restlessness and anxiety. zigzag lines example
Curved lines are lines that bend and change direction gradually. They can be simply wavy
or spiral. Such lines convey the feelings of comfort and ease, as well as sensual quality
as they remind us of the human body.
 Functions of Lines in Art and Design

Identification- the most basic function of capturing the essence of the subject. The brain is able to identify a few
varying lines put together in a certain way as a human or an object.

Three-dimensional- provides a sense of space. Variation of a line in tonality, width, weight, focus and intensity is what
allows for the effect to occur. If an object is far, the tone of the line will be lighter and thinner, than for the object that
is close (darker and thicker).

Organization- the basic underdrawing (or sketch) for artwork in painting/drawing, as well as separating or grouping
elements on a page in design.

Movement- guides the viewer’s eyes in the desired direction, as well as showing the movement of a subject.

Texture- using different variations of a line to imply textures. For example, smooth texture is created with straight or
curved unbroken lines, messy texture can be created by using a different tool, and fur textures are created with a
specific pattern.
2. SHAPE
3. COLOR
 Color Theory Terms and Definitions

Color - element of art derived from reflected light. We see color because light waves are
reflected from objects to your eyes.
Color wheel - color spectrum bent into a circle.
Primary colors – the most basic colors on the color wheel, red, yellow and blue. These colors
cannot be made by mixing.
Secondary colors - colors that are made by mixing two primary colors together. Orange, green
and violet (purple).
Tertiary colors - colors that are made by mixing a primary color with a secondary color.
Hue - the name of the color.
Intensity - the brightness or dullness of a color.
Color value - the darkness or lightness of a color. Ex pink is a tint of red.
Tints - are created by adding white to a color.
Shades - are created by adding black to a color.
Optical color - color that people actually perceive- also called local color.
 4. VALUE
-how light or dark something is on a scale of white to black (with white being the highest
value and black being the lowest value);
-one of the most important variables to the success of a painting, even more so than your
selection of color (hue); and
-simple to understand, however the inclusion of color can make it a challenging concept to
grasp

You could have two different colors which appear completely different, but have exactly the same value. There
would be little contrast between these colors despite the different hues.

On the other hand, you could have many different values of the same hue. These are called tints and shades. You
can produce tints of a color by adding white and shades by adding black.
5. FORM
-three-dimensional and encloses volume, having length, width, and height, versus shape, which
is two dimensional, or flat
-form is a shape in three dimensions, and, like shapes, can be geometric or organic.
-forms that are mathematical, precise, and can be named, as in the basic geometric forms:
sphere, cube, pyramid, cone, and cylinder.
A circle becomes a sphere in three dimensions, a square becomes a cube, a triangle becomes a
pyramid or cone.
Geometric forms are most often found in architecture and the built environment, although you
can also find them in the spheres of planets and bubbles, and in the crystalline pattern of
snowflakes, for example. Organic forms are those that are free-flowing, curvy, sinewy, and are
not symmetrical or easily measurable or named. They most often occur in nature, as in the
shapes of flowers, branches, leaves, puddles, clouds, animals, the human figure, etc., but can
also be found in the bold and fanciful buildings of the Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi (1852 to
1926) as well as in many sculptures.
 6. TEXTURE

defines the surface quality of an artwork - the roughness or smoothness of the material
from which it is made

Texture in two ways: optically (through sight) and physically (through touch).

Optical Texture
-artist may use his/her skillful painting technique to create the illusion of texture.
 7. SPACE
-the perspective (distance between and around) and proportion (size) between
shapes and objects and how their relationship with the foreground or
background is perceived.

TYPES OF SPACES AN ARTIST CAN ACHIEVE FOR DIFFERENT EFFECT:

1. Positive space refers to the areas of the work with a subject, while negative space
is the space without a subject.

2. Open and closed space coincides with three-dimensional art, like sculptures,
where open spaces are empty, and closed spaces contain physical sculptural
elements.
“The beauty of the universe consists

not only of unity in variety,

but also of variety in unity.”

GOD BLESS.