ILOCOS SUR POLYTECHNIC STATE COLLEGE

CANDON CAMPUS
Darapidap, Candon City, Ilocos Sur
________________________________________________________________________

LECTURE NOTE 2
Course Code: GenEd 108 Topic: Elements of Art
Descriptive Title: Art Appreciation Prepared by: Ralph Nicole A. Sevilla

Objectives

1. Identify the elements of art.

2. Apply the elements of art in a creative artform.

Art is a powerful language. Through it, artist communicate thoughts, ideas, and feelings.
Like most languages, the language of art has its own special vocabulary. Unlike other
vocabularies, however, the vocabulary of art is not made up of words. Rather, it is made up of
visual elements. The visual elements include color, line, shape, form, space, and texture.

A. Color
• It is what the eyes see when light is reflected off an object. The three properties of color
are hue, value, and intensity.

1. Hue
o It is name of a color, such as red, blue, or yellow. Hues are arranged in a circular
format on a color wheel. Red, yellow, and blue are the primary colors. They are
equally spaced on the color wheel.

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 ILOCOS SUR POLYTECHNIC STATE COLLEGE
CANDON CAMPUS
Darapidap, Candon City, Ilocos Sur
________________________________________________________________________

2. Value
o It is the lightness or darkness of a hue. The value of a hue can be changed by
adding white or black.

3. Intensity
o It is the brightness or dullness of a hue. Pure hues are high intensity colors. Dull
hues are low intensity colors.

4. Color Scheme
o It is combining colors to produce many interesting and striking results.
a. Monochromatic
▪ This scheme uses different values of a single hue. For example, dark
green, medium green, and light green.
b. Analogous
▪ This scheme uses colors that are side by side on the color wheel and
share a hue.
c. Warm or Cool
▪ Warm color schemes with red, yellow and orange remind us of sun and
warmth. Blue, green and violet are cool color schemes to make use think
of cool items such as ice or grass.
B. Line
• It is the path of a moving point through space. There are five main kinds of lines:

1. Horizontal
o Run parallel to the ground, appear to be at rest.

2. Vertical
o Line that run up and down see to show dignity, formality, and strength

3. Diagonal
o Line that signal action and excitement

4. Zigzag
o Made from combined diagonal lines can create a feeling of confusion or suggest
action

5. Curved
o Express movement in a graceful, flowing way

C. Shape and Form

• Shape is an element of art that refers to an are clearly set off by one or more of the
other elements of art. Shapes are limited to two dimensions – length and width. All
shapes belong to one of two classes:

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 ILOCOS SUR POLYTECHNIC STATE COLLEGE
CANDON CAMPUS
Darapidap, Candon City, Ilocos Sur
________________________________________________________________________

1. Geometric Shapes
o They look as though they were made with ruler or drawing tool. The square,
circle, triangle, rectangle, and oval are the five basic geometric shapes.

2. Organic Shapes
o Also called the free-form, organic shapes are not regular or even. Their outlines
may be curved or angular, or they may be combination of both, to make free-
forms. Organic shapes like cloud and pebbles are usually found in nature.

• Forms have length, width, and depth. Form is an element of art that refers to an object
with three dimensions such as sculpture and architecture.

D. Space
• It refers to the distance between, around, above, below, and within things. The
relationship between the positive and negative spaces will affect how the art is
interpreted.

1. Positive Area
o Refers to both two- and three-dimensional works of art.

2. Negative Area
o Refers to the empty spaces between shapes and forms.

E. Texture
• It refers to the way things feel, or look as though they might feel, if touched.

Reference

Ragans, M. (1992). Understanding art. Macmillan & McGraw-Hill

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 ILOCOS SUR POLYTECHNIC STATE COLLEGE
CANDON CAMPUS
Darapidap, Candon City, Ilocos Sur
________________________________________________________________________

Art Works that Show the Elements of Art

1. William Michael Harnett. Munich Still Life. 1882. Oil on canvas. 62.5 x 76.8 cm. Dallas
Museum of Art, Dallas, Texas.

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 ILOCOS SUR POLYTECHNIC STATE COLLEGE
CANDON CAMPUS
Darapidap, Candon City, Ilocos Sur
________________________________________________________________________

2. Marc Chagall. Green Violinist. 1923-1924. Oil on canvas. 198 x 108.6 cm. Solomon R.
Guggenheim Museum, New York, New York. Gift of Solomon R. Guggenheim.

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 ILOCOS SUR POLYTECHNIC STATE COLLEGE
CANDON CAMPUS
Darapidap, Candon City, Ilocos Sur
________________________________________________________________________

3. Grace Hartigan. The Faraway Places. 1974. Oil on canvas. 228.6 x 166.4 cm. McNay Art
Museum, San Antonio, Texas.

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