SHAPES

In visual arts, a shape is formed

when two ends of a line meet to
enclose an area.
The area may stand out from the
surface because of a difference
in color, value or texture.
Three Musician by They may also present
Pablo Picasso
themselves as flat or two-
dimensional and solid or three-
dimensional on a picture plane.
Picture plane - any flat surface onto
which the artwork is created. Such as
paper, canvas, or wood.
Negative shapes - these are between
the shapes that are not occupied by any
form.
In painting, these spaces can be as
important as the shapes themselves.
In sculpture and architecture, the
shape of the artwork can be determined
by viewing the work against its
background (Marquardt & Eskilson,
2005).
Classification of Shapes
● Natural or organic
shapes - those are seen in
nature

● Abstract shapes - those that

have little or no resemblance to
natural objects.
The Harlequin’s Carnival, Joan Miro

● Geometric shapes
- these are triangles,
rectangles, squares,
cylinders, cubes.

Sculpture and architecture are three-

● Non-objective or
biomorphic shapes - seldom
have reference to recognizable
objects, but most often show a
similarity to some organic
forms.
dimensional forms, which are identified
either by mass or volume.
When mass is structured or has a
definite shape, it is said to have
volume.
The sculptor is concerned with volume
because sculpture occupies space.
Single volume is the fundamental unit
in sculpture.