Quicklinks to all course lessons: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Lesson 5 sections: 5-1 5-2 5-3 5-4 5-5 5-6 5-7 5-JFF 5-IDEA
Lesson 5 sections: 5-1 5-2 5-3 5-4 5-5 5-6 5-7 5-JFF 5-IDEA
A05-03: Principles of Art and Design: Unity
Objectives:
- Understand that the principles of art and design are the why's - the reasons behind designing something the way we do. They are based on the science of how we perceive and interpret a graphic. They are balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and unity.
- Understand that the elements of art and design are the tools we use to implement the principles: line, space, form, color, value, texture, and shape.
- Understand that principle of unity is the harmony between all parts of the work of art, which creates a sense of completeness.
Learn:
If you search on "Principles of Design" or "Principles of Art," you will end up with many differing lists, with many overlapping terms or concepts. For example, the one art site defines the principles as balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and unity. The J. Paul Getty Museum of Art defines them as balance, emphasis, movement, pattern, repetition, proportion, rhythm, variety, and unity. It's not that big of a deal for us in this class - but it's good to know the vocabulary and think about these principles as we design images, compose photos, create graphics, or make documents.
The elements of design and art we are learning about are the tools. They are the "how we do this" part of the process. For example, "How can we use a line to create movement?" We use line, space, form, color, value, texture, and shape to do things.
The principles are more the "why do I do this?" - the design thinking. For example, we use the principle of balance to balance the visual weights of objects in an image to create a pleasing arrangement, and the things we might be balancing are line, space, forms, colors, values, textures, and shapes. These principles work in concert together. As with the elements of design, you'll find several, if not all, principles used in a piece of artwork. For our class, we'll use the Getty museum's list of principles...
(Most images below were found on Pinterest - click on any image to enlarge it.)
Unity: Unity is the feeling of harmony between all parts of the work of art, which creates a sense of completeness. Unity is achieved by harmonious use of the elements of art - lines, shapes, colors, form, texture, space, and value, as well as principles of composition, such as balance, repetition, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, proportion, and variety. If you've achieved unity in a design - it feels right - it clicks.
If you search on "Principles of Design" or "Principles of Art," you will end up with many differing lists, with many overlapping terms or concepts. For example, the one art site defines the principles as balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and unity. The J. Paul Getty Museum of Art defines them as balance, emphasis, movement, pattern, repetition, proportion, rhythm, variety, and unity. It's not that big of a deal for us in this class - but it's good to know the vocabulary and think about these principles as we design images, compose photos, create graphics, or make documents.
The elements of design and art we are learning about are the tools. They are the "how we do this" part of the process. For example, "How can we use a line to create movement?" We use line, space, form, color, value, texture, and shape to do things.
The principles are more the "why do I do this?" - the design thinking. For example, we use the principle of balance to balance the visual weights of objects in an image to create a pleasing arrangement, and the things we might be balancing are line, space, forms, colors, values, textures, and shapes. These principles work in concert together. As with the elements of design, you'll find several, if not all, principles used in a piece of artwork. For our class, we'll use the Getty museum's list of principles...
(Most images below were found on Pinterest - click on any image to enlarge it.)
Unity: Unity is the feeling of harmony between all parts of the work of art, which creates a sense of completeness. Unity is achieved by harmonious use of the elements of art - lines, shapes, colors, form, texture, space, and value, as well as principles of composition, such as balance, repetition, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, proportion, and variety. If you've achieved unity in a design - it feels right - it clicks.
Painting; James Christensen
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Watercolor: John Pike
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In James Christensen's painting above, unity is achieved in a number of ways. First of all the colors are warm - even the blues and purples. Did you notice the sky was pink? The colors harmonize well together. There is a repetition of line in the standing figures, the arches, and the castle. There is a balance between cool and warm colors, and light and dark values. In John Pike's painting, harmony is achieved through the repetition of colors - see those blues and oranges repeated throughout? The shapes of the waterfall repeat in the cliff sides, and in the sitting man. Dark is balanced against light. What has brought unity to the images below?
Painting by Paul Jackson
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Photo: Corps De Ballet on Getty Images
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Watercolor by Roland Lee
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