VISUAL ARTS

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Visual Arts

Module 11 Elements and Principles of Different

Arts

Welcome to the eleven module on the Art Appreciation

It is believed that life is how you make it and that the quality of one’s life can
be developed, enriched, and made productive through finer things in life’s is
limitless and that we only have to exert time and effort for the arts to work
for us.
At the end of this module you are expected to:

At the end of this module you are expected to:

1. Enumerate the Elements of the Visual Arts
2. Enumerate the Properties and Classification of Colors
3. How Light determines color
4. Value the mystery of color perception and uses of the Art Elements
Elements of Visual Arts
The materials the artist uses in creating a work of art are the medium and the elements
put together. An element of art can only be seen in some medium. This element is
independent of the medium for instance a pencil line or an ink line. The medium is the
physical means through which we can come into contact with a work
Line- as an element it is the simplest, most ancient and most universal means for
creating visual art. A line is a prolongation of a point. As a prolongation it may be
straight or curved according to its direction. Line may be broad thin or fine or ragged.
Value (Light and Dark)- Value is the relative degree of lightness and darkness in a
graphic work of art or painting. It indicates the degree of luminosity that is the presence
or absence of light. In a value scale, white is considered as the highest value, and black,
the lowest a point halfway between them is called the medium. The point halfway
between medium and black is classified as dark. It is the transition between lightness
and darkness in an object. It is value which gives the impression of solidity
Light and Shadow- Light and shadow, known as chiaroscuro, from the Italian word for
light and dark is different from value. Light and shadow is a means of modeling a figure
in depth, a means of articulating the form.

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Form- This is the external appearance of a clearly defined area. It is the visual shape
of an object or thing found in nature. Forms are used to describe simple objects and
determine the structure of these objects. Some forms are natural, abstract, non-
objective or geometric. Natural Forms are those we see in nature shapes of leaves,
animals, trees and mountains. Some buildings look like geometric solids. Some
examples are the pyramids the cylindrical towers and box like edifices. Geometric
shapes are evident in these buildings.
Color- is the quality of an object or substance with respect to light reflected by it,
and usually determined visually by measurement of hue, saturation and brightness
of the reflected light. It is a series of wave lengths which strike out retina. Every ray
of light coming from the sun is composed of different waves which vibrate at
different speeds.
Texture- is the surface treatment of an artistic work in order to give variety and
beauty to any work of art. The sense of sight and the sense of touch are involved.
They are the smooth and the rough. Variations in texture of objects, buildings and
structures help avoid a monotonous effect.
Space- is an art element which is concerned with making all parts functional so that
all parts of the work of art will contribute to make the whole a complete work of art.
Space exists as “illusion” in the graphic presentation.
Properties of Color
Hue- This is the particular identity of a color. The principal hues are red, yellow and
blue. This is classified into warm and cool. Color is said to be warm when red or
yellow is dominant and cool when blue is the dominant color.
Value- This term is applied to denote the lightness and darkness of a color. Colors
can be made darker by making the pigments thicker, adding black, or adding a little
of its complement. Colors can be made lighter by adding water or oil or white.
Intensity- This is the term to denote the brightness and dullness of a color. Colors
differ in intensity or vividness. Two colors may both be violet, one just as dark as the
other, but one may be more intense than the other. Powder blue is a dulled blue, old
rose is a dulled red. When a hue is found in its most vivid form, it is said to be in full
intensity. A hue completely neutralized loses its color and becomes gray.
Classification of Colors
The primary colors are red, yellow and blue. These are called primary colors
because all other colors are produced by combining any of the two colors.
The secondary colors are green, violet, and orange. These colors can be produced
by mixing any two of the primary colors.
The intermediate colors can be produced by mixing in equal amounts primary and
secondary colors. These colors are yellow orange, red orange, red violet, blue violet,
blue green and yellow green.
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The tertiary colors can be produced by combining in equal mixture any two
secondary such as orange yellow, violet green, and orange green.
Black is the darkest and the dullest of the deep. It is only considered a color when
mixed with other colors. It is only considered a color when mixed with other colors.
It suggests despair, gloom, death and, mourning.
Blue is the color of the sky and of the deep. It gives the impression of vastness and
infinity. It is a symbol of tranquility, calmness and peace.
Gray is the combination of black and white or the three primary colors. It gives the
impression of weight, solidity and neutrality.
Green is the color of still water and vegetation. It is a symbol of growth, freshness
and hope.
Orange is a combination of red and yellow. This color symbolizes deliciousness and
sweetness.
Pink is a combination of red and white symbolizes love
Red is a basic color. It typifies fire, blood, danger, festivity, bravery, war, passion,
energy, and warmth.
Violet is a mixture of red and blue. It suggests shadows, mourning, penance, rovalty
and power.
White when taken independently is not considered a color. It is the lightest of all
colors. It symbolizes simplicity, clarity, purity, and peace.
Yellow is the color of light. This is the color which is often mistaken as a color of
jealousy. It symbolizes life, joy, sunshine, cheerfulness, warmth, splendor and
hospitality.
Yellow green is the kind of color which is hurting to the eyes and which is hurting to
the eyes and which makes one appear darker. It is a color appropriate for those with
fair complexions.
Brown is a mixture red and a little green. It is said to the safest color for all. It
suggests humility and confidence.
Warm colors seem to advance while cool one seems to recede. The warm colors
give the illusion, under certain conditions, that they are closer to us than the cool
colors, and some artists have exploited this quality to deepen or flatten space in
their works.
Color harmony is the correct combination and arrangement of colors so that they
will appear pleasing to the eyes.
Monochromatic harmony employs only one color with its tints and shades. An
example is red. Harmonizing with it are red, medium red, and dark red
Analogous harmony is the use of colors which possess one common color in all
their mixture. These colors are found near each other in the color chart. An example
is orange, red- orange and yellow orange.
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How Light Determines Color
With good reason, a woman buying a dress will often take it out into daylight to see
the true colors. She usually finds that any re in the fabric is far more pronounced in
sunlight than under the fluorescent lamps which concentrate much of their energy
in the blue wavelengths of the spectrum, while the energy of sunlight is distributed
evenly through the spectrum, thus giving the fabric sufficient red light to reflect.
A more exaggerated color change occurs on a highway lit by sodium vapor lamps.
These lamps emit nearly all the energy at two wavelengths of the spectrum while
the energy at two wave lengths of the spectrum.
The Mystery of Color Perception
Isaac Newton first speculated on how colors are perceived and yet the phenomenon
of seeing in color which man shares with a number of other animals, including apes,
goldfish and bees is only now beginning to be clearly understood.
It has been a major problem that color vision involves a physiological process,
whereby light energy is transformed into color signals to the brain, and
physiological process, by which the brain interprets the signals. An early theorist,
Thomas Young could present a satisfactory explanation of color vision as purely
physiological action, in which a combination of three primary colors is sufficient to
create any hue.
Uses of the Art Elements
Symbols- These are made up of different shapes used to depict or symbolize
objects. Objects are simplified so that only the prominent part is represented.

Pictures- The use of the art elements gives the difference of how pictures are being
represented. The conservative artists represent things. Exactly as he sees them in
nature while a modernists tries to interpret nature as he feels it.

Emotion- are expressed by the different elements which symbolize or suggest

feelings i.e. despair, mourning, hope, love, passion, hate, anger, fear, and actions like
conflict, struggle, crying, violence, kissing and laughing.
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References and Supplementary Materials

Books and Journals
1. Fernandez, Steven Patrick (2010) Making Theatre; The Craft of the Stage. Iligan City:
MSU – Iligan City: MSU Iligan Institute of Technology, Mindanao State University

.Online Supplementary Reading Materials

1. http://www.saylor.org/courses/arth101b
2. http://www.sbctc.edu
3. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/sac-artappreciation/part/context-and-
perspectives/

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