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3 Principles of Design: From Balance to Proportion: GEC 006-CE22S5 - Art Appreciation

2.3 Principles of Design: From Balance

to Proportion

Apart from the elements of (visual) art, principles of design are used by artists to create artworks. So
let us learn more about these and hope you'll identify these principles of art at the end of the lesson.

1. Balance
It refers to physical equilibrium; it is the even distribution of weight on each side of a thing
(Menoy, 2014). Or this principle (Caslib et al., 2018) refers to the distribution of the visual
elements in view of their placement in relation to each other.
There are three forms of balance:

Symmetrical –The elements used on one side are reflected in the other. This offers the most
stable visual sense to any artwork.

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Asymmetrical – The elements are not the same (or of the same weight) on each side, putting
the heaviness on one side.

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Radial – There is a central point in the composition, around which elements and objects are
distributed.

2. Scale
It refers to the size in relation to what is normal for the figure or object in question.

3. Proportion
It pertains to the size of components, or of objects in relation to one another when taken as a
composition or a unit. This can also refer to the values such as amounts or number of elements
or objects in a composition. This principle can be natural, exaggerated, and idealized.
Natural refers to the realistic size of visual elements in the artwork.
Exaggerated relates to the unusual size relations of visual elements deliberately
exaggerating the largeness or smallness of things.
Idealized follows the canons of perfection which aims to achieve the most ideal size-relations.

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Again, proceed to the next page for the other principles of art or design.

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