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What Are The Principles Of Art (Or

The Principles Of Design)?
March 30, 2018 by Dan Scott 9 Comments
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The principles of art (or the principles of design) are essentially
a set of criteria which are used to explain how the visual
elements are arranged in a work of art. These principles are
possibly the closest thing we have to a set of objective criteria
for analyzing and judging art.

Art is a notoriously gray area when it comes objectively defining

what is great and what is not. An artist of one era may be
mocked during his lifetime, yet revered after his passing (such
as Vincent van Gogh). The principles of art help combat this
gray area to some extent. They allow us to communicate what
makes a great painting great with an element of objectivity and
consistency.

The following is an explanation of what the principles of art are

and how you can use them to benefit your own artworks.

Pattern
Pattern is a very important design concept which refers to the
visual arrangement of elements with a repetitive form or
intelligible sequence.

Pattern is not always obvious. It could be a simple

underlying notan design which dances between light and dark in
some kind of sequence. Or it could be the use of similar color
patterns throughout your painting.

In the painting below, notice how the top arm of the subject
almost blends into the background, and how the legs blend into
the cloth, and the cloth blends into the rest of the foreground.
This interlinking pattern drags you through the painting and
creates a very interesting design.
 Joaquin Sorolla, Bacchante, 1886

Balance

Balance is concerned with the visual distribution or weight of

the elements in a work of art. A painting could be balanced if
one half is of the same visual weight as the other half. Or, you
could have a small area of heightened significance which is
balanced against a much larger area of less significance, like in
the painting below. In the painting below, notice how the dark
areas used for the boat and foreground appear balanced
against the much larger area of soft, tinted colors.

Efim Volkov, Seascape, 1895

Emphasis

Emphasis is a way of using elements to stress a certain area in

an artwork. Emphasis is really just another way to describe a
focal point in your artwork. In the painting below, there is
strong emphasis on the moon through the use of color contrast.
 George Henry, River Landscape By Moonlight, 1887

Contrast

Contrast is everything in art. Without it, an artwork would be

nothing but a blank surface. Contrast can come in many forms:

Texture contrast: A contrast between smooth and textured.

Many of Vincent van Gogh's paintings are great examples of
texture contrast in action.

[Bonus Cheatsheet]Download the Color Theory Cheatsheet to help

bring your colors to life.
Color contrast: A contrast between light and dark, saturated
and dull or complementary colors (hue contrast). For example,
in the painting below, the highly saturated red contrasts against
the relatively dull colors in the rest of the painting.
 Joaquin Sorolla, Father Jofre Protecting A Madman, 1887

Detail contrast: A contrast between areas of detail and more

bland areas, like in the painting below.
 Rudolf von Alt, View Of Ragusa, 1841

Shape contrast: A contrast between different shapes

(rectangles and circles). For example, in the painting there are
the curving shapes created by the winding paths, water and
trees contrast against the rectangular shapes of the buildings.
 Willart Metcalf, Early Spring Afternoon, Central Park, 1911

Interval contrast: A contrast between long and short intervals.

In the painting below, notice the variation in the lengths of the
intervals between the trees. The interval contrast can be used
to create a sense of rhythm in your artwork.
 Isaac Levitan, Oak Grove, Autumn, 1880

Read more about using contrast.

Harmony And Unity

Harmony is a bit vague compared to some of the other

principles. Generally speaking, it refers to how well all the
visual elements work together in a work of art. Elements which
are in harmony should have some kind of logical progression or
relationship. If there is an element which is not in harmony with
the rest of an artwork, it should stick-out and be jarring to look
at. Kind of like an off-note in a song.

You will usually be able to tell just from judgment if all the
elements are in harmony. It will just look right. However, if the
painting looks off, then it can be difficult to tell if that is
because there is no harmony between the elements or if there
is some other issue.
When I think of harmony, I think of the peaceful arrangements
of color in Monet's series of water lilies.

Claude Monet, Water Lilies, 1908

Unity refers to some kind of connection between all the visual
elements in a work of art. Like harmony, this is a bit of a vague
term which is difficult to objectively use to analyze art. The
painting below demonstrates a strong sense of unity through
the use of a similar hues used throughout the painting. Even
though there is a strong contrast between the light and dark
areas, there is a sense of unity created through the use of
similar hues (dark yellows, oranges and greens are used in the
foreground and light yellows, oranges and greens are used in
the background).

George Henry, Noon, 1885

Variety

Variety refers to the use of differing qualities or instances of the

visual elements. Variety can be used to break up monotonous
or repetitive areas.

Below is a painting with lots of variation in color, shape and

texture, yet not so much that it loses any sense of harmony.

Tom Thomson, Maple Saplings, 1917

Below is a painting with comparatively less variance. The result
is a much calmer painting.

Lake Keitele, Akseli Gallen-Kallela, 1905

Movement

Your paints cannot physically move, but you can arrange the
paints in a way which gives the illusion or suggestion of
movement.

One of the most effective techniques for creating movement in

your painting is to use bold and directional brushwork. By doing
this, you can suggestively push your viewer around the painting
as you please. You could also suggest movement through
repetition or pattern.

Below are two examples of paintings which demonstrate a great

sense of movement.

Joaquín Sorolla, Sea And Rocks - Javea, 1900

 Frederick Judd Waugh, Breaking Surf

Also, I could not talk about using movement in art without

some mention of Vincent van Gogh.
 Vincent van Gogh, Starry Night Over The Rhone, 1888

Proportion

Proportion concerns the relationship between the sizes of

different parts in an artwork. For example, the width compared
to the length, the area of the sky compared to the land or the
area of foreground compared to the background.

Some proportions are considered to be visually pleasing, such

as the rule of thirds and the golden ratio.

In the painting below by Giovanni Boldini, notice how the

proportions of the female subject's hands, face, feet and torso
are all accurate. If Boldini painted the hand too large compared
to the rest of the subject's body, there would be an issue of
proportion.
 Giovanni Boldini, A Guitar Player, 1873

Scale
Scale refers to the size of an object compared to the rest of the
surroundings. For example, the size of a man compared to the
tree he is sitting under or the size of a mountain compared to
the clouds. Scale is different to proportion in that scale refers to
the size of an entire object whereas proportion refers to the
relative size of parts of an object. For example, the scale of a
man relative to the rest of the painting may be correct, but the
proportion might be wrong because his hands are too large.

Summary Of The Principles Of Art

I hope this post clarifies to you what the principles of art are
and how you can use them to help understand and
communicate your thoughts about art.
It is also important to understand that a great painting does not
have to tick all the boxes in terms of the principles of art. In
fact, most of the great paintings will only demonstrate a few of
the principles.

So do not think of the principles of art as a set of overarching

rules which you must comply with. They are merely a way to
help us understand and communicate our thoughts about art.

The principles of art allow us to place some kind of objective

reasoning behind why a great painting is great. This is
important as it keeps us from falling into a vague space where
art is no longer able to be defined or critiqued (much like what
has happened with modern art).

Thanks for Reading!

Thanks for taking the time to read this post and I hope you
learned something new! If you found the post useful, please
share. Also, don't forget to subscribe and get my free Painting
For Beginners Guide and read my about page if you want to
learn more about my story.

Want more painting tips? Come join me in the Painting

Academy.

Happy painting!

Dan Scott
Draw Paint Academy

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Filed Under: Art Fundamentals, Featured Posts Tagged
With: Composition
Comments

1. Norm Fraser says

March 30, 2018 at 7:45 am

I love art! There is no beginning and no end in sight. Just when you see light
at the end of the tunnel someone will throw more bricks on the road to
satisfaction! It is the ultimate challenge for people looking for a stimulating
hobby.

Reply

2. dennis francz says

April 1, 2018 at 4:57 pm

somewhere, somehow, someone has managed to define and critique modern

art and it has become very popular with many people. how did this come
about, as it seems to have no relation to classic style or any logic
whatsoever?
 Reply

o Dan Scott says

April 1, 2018 at 8:41 pm

Modern art has gone to great lengths to throw any sense of logical critique and
definition out the window so that they can sell confusion and mystery. That is
what I think anyway.

Dan

Reply

 valery konevin says

March 21, 2019 at 7:12 pm

Modern art appeared with Design at the same moment when the Classical art was
revised conceptually under pressure of mass production which demand public
education. There are much more higher orders of logic in modern art which is
development of classical art. Design has no logic being parasite of technology-you
can draw any nonsense possible to produce which attracts crowds more than
beauty . Actually all modern art is design which is based on rejecting any CRAFT.
Few samples of modern art could be considered as art…Francis Bacon playing
with the concept of space made with amazing craft. Duchamp is the father of
design and Kandinsky is the father of modern art-both stated their principles very
clear at the same time.

Reply

3. Jola Kedra says

April 1, 2018 at 8:56 pm

Great post Dan, thank you! Your last sentence should be another principle of
art. So often traditional art is compared side by side with modern, non-
representational abstracts and so often traditional art is poo pooed by the
critiques as non creative and kitsch whereas anything enigmatic and open to
interpretations, or even better shocking or ugly, gets the glory and acclaim.

Reply

4. Viveca Dahlen says

April 2, 2018 at 12:24 pm

Very Valuble! Viveca

 Reply

5. Jeannette says

April 13, 2018 at 4:02 pm

I found this very informative. I am new to the painting scene and there is so
smuch information out there that I find it confusing at times. Are your
frees painting classes watercolour, or acrylic, I dable in both.
Thank you.

Reply

6. Leonie Walton says

September 9, 2018 at 8:03 pm

Fantastic article Dan. You have given us many more things to consider when
creating a painting. Great examples of other artists to explain the different
elements. Thanks for all your help
 Reply

o Dan Scott says

September 9, 2018 at 8:42 pm

Thanks Leonie glad to help! Dan

Reply

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Hi there and welcome! I’m Dan Scott, the creator of Draw Paint
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