ELEMENTS OF VISUAL ARTS

LINE

- Line is an important element at the disposal of every artist.

- Lines always have direction.

LINE suggest

- Man usually lies prone when asleep or when at rest and stands erect when in
action.
- Man has learned that certain emotional states find expression in definite
positions.

TWO CLASSIFICATIONS OF LINE

STRAIGHT LINE

- HORIZONTAL
- VERTICAL
- DIAGONAL

CURVED LINE

- CROOKED OR JAGGED

Straight LINE

- A straight line is the basic framework of many forms, but it lacks softness and
flexibility.

HORIZONTAL LINES

- are lines of repose and serenity.

- Horizontal lines are found in reclining persons, in landscape, calm bodies of
water and in the distant meeting of the earth and sky which is called horizon.

VERTICAL LINES

- are lines that denote action.

- They suggest poise, balance, force, aspiration, exaltation, and dynamism.
- Vertical lines also tend to express as well as arouse emotions of exaltation
and inquietude.
- The Gothic Cathedrals express the aforementioned sentiments that
possessed the soul of northern Europe- Middle Ages.
DIAGONAL LINES

- suggest action, life, and movement.

- Almost every object in action assumes a diagonal line
- As masters in any art try to perfect their technique, they are able to work more
or less instinctively, and they begin to express themselves more and more
through the freedom, buoyancy, and grace of curved lines.

CROOKED OR JAGGED LINES

- express energy, violence, conflict, and struggle.

CURVED LINES

- suggest grace, subtleness, direction, instability, movement, flexibility,

joyousness, and grace.
- The restrained curved lines exemplified in the woman’s body and the bamboo
stem where according to Philippine legend, man and woman sprang by
Carlos “Botong” Francisco

COLOR
- Has the most aesthetic appeal of all the elements of visual arts
- Delight in color is a universal human characteristics
- Is a property of light
- The light of the sun contains all the colors of the spectrum: violet, indigo, blue,
green, yellow, orange and red
- Is the element of art that is produced when light, striking an object, is reflected
back to the eye
- Color is the property of light which means that when the light goes out, color
goes with it

3 DIMENSIONS OF COLOR

A. HUE
- Is the dimension of color that gives its name
- Color names such as red, blue, green, violet, and yellow indicate hue
- Primary Hues - blue, red, and yellow
- Secondary hues - orange, green, and violet
B. VALUE
- Sometimes called chiaroscuro
- Refers to the lightness or darkness of a color
 - It is a quality which depends on the amount of light and dark in color
- They give the expression of depth and solidity and lend form to paintings
- TINTS - are values above the normal
- SHADES - are values below the normal
- The value of a hue can be changed
- We raise hue by adding more light so that it reflects more light and lower it by
reducing the light it can reflect
C. INTENSITY
- Refers to the brightness or darkness
- It gives color strength
- Differences in intensity may be
- described as full intensity, two-thirds intensity, and two-thirds neutral

COLOR HARMONIES

Two kinds:

• Related color harmonies

• Contrasted color harmonies

RELATED COLOR HARMONIES

• May either be monochromatic or adjacent

a. Monochromatic harmony

o is made up of several tones of one hue, like for instance orange, tan, brown, and
other tones from the orange family.

o Simplest and easiest to use

b. Adjacent or neighboring harmony

o Two or three neighboring hues on the color circle are used together

o Example: tones of green, yellow, and orange can produce a delightful harmony

o They have something in common because there is yellow in green and in orange

o Good adjacent harmonies can be produced by using other groups of neighboring

colors like yellow, orange, and red or orange, red, and violet

CONTRASTED COLOR HARMONIES

TYPES:
 1. COMPLEMENTARY HARMONY

2. DOUBLE COMPLEMENTARY

3. SPLIT COMPLEMENTARY

4. TRIAD

5. TETRAD

TEXTURE
- is an element that deals more directly with the sense of touch. Also, it is best
appreciated when an object is touched with our hands.
- It is the perceived surface quality of a work of art.
- It is an element of two-dimensional and three-dimensional designs and is
distinguished by its perceived visual and physical properties.
- Use of texture, along with other elements of design, can convey a variety of
messages and emotions.

PERSPECTIVE

- from the Latin: “perspicere” means to see through, deals with the effect of
distance upon the appearance of objects, by means of which the EYE judges
spatial relationships. It is important in painting because volume is to be
presented on a two dimensional surface

TWO KINDS OF PERSPECTIVE

Linear Perspective

• is the representation of an appearance of distance by means of converging lines.

Aerial Perspective

• is the representation of relative distances of objects by gradations of tone and

color.

SPACE

- refers to distances or areas around, between or within components of a piece.

- Space can be positive (white or light) or negative (black or dark),
open or closed, shallow or deep and two-dimensional or three-dimensional.
- Sometimes space isn't actually within a piece, but the illusion of it is.

FORM
 - Applies to the overall design of a work of art.
- Form consists of size and volume.
- Includes height, width and depth.
- Form generally refers to sculpture, 3D design and architecture but may also
relate to the illusion of 3D on a 2D surface
- Good architecture allows outward forms to be governed by what goes on
inside them.

VOLUME

- Refers to the amount of space occupied in three dimensions.

- We perceive volume in two ways: by contour lines, outlines, or shapes of
objects, and by surface lights and shadows.
- Volume is the primary concern of architects because a building always
encloses a space.
- The viewer, therefore, may obtain not one but many different impressions
from a single work.
- The sculptor is also concerned with the volume.
- In painting, volume is an illusion because the surface of the canvas is flat.