Principles of

Design
DESIGN
Indicates both the process of
organizing elements and the
product of that process
It is the result of our basic need
for meaningful order.
Large Plane Trees
by Vincent Van
Gogh
SIX Principles of Design
Unity and Variety
Balance
Emphasis and subordination
Contrast
Repetition and Rhythm
Scale and Proportion
Unity and Variety
Unity
Refers to the appearance or condition
of oneness of an artwork. All the
elements such as line, color, texture
and others belong together that result
in having a coherent and harmonious
whole.
Unity and Variety
Variety
Provides diversity yet is it acts
as counterbalance to extreme
unity.
Going Home The Immigration Series
by Jacob Lawrence by Jacob Lawrence
Balance
Balance
It is the condition in which acting
influences are held in check by
opposing forces or what is in the left
side should appear on the right
side also in order to achieve
equilibrium.
Balance
Symmetrical Balance
It is when the near or exact matching of
left or right sides of a three-dimensional
form or two-dimensional composition

Asymmetrical Balance
It is when the two sides are not the same.
Chariot The Evening Glow of the Ando
by Alberto Giacometti by Suzuki Haranobu
Emphasis and subordination
Emphasis
Artists use this to draw our attention; uses
position, contrast, color intensity, and size.

Subordination
Neutral areas of lesser interests created by
the artists to keep us from being distracted
from the areas of emphasis.
Yacht Approaching
the Coast
by Joseph Mallord
William Turner
Contrast
Contrast
This is the juxtaposition of strongly dissimilar
elements.
dark set against light; large against small; bright
colors against dull; can also be seen in the thick
and thin areas of a single brushstroke
No contrast = monotonous visual experience
Repetition and Rhythm
Repetition
It gives a composition of unity, continuity,
flow, and emphasis.

Rhythm
In visual arts, it is created through the
regular recurrence of the elements with
related variations.
The Maestà or The Maestà
of Duccio
by Duccio di Buoninsegna
Scale and Proportion
Scale
It is the relation of one thing to another;
one of the first decisions an artist make
when planning a work of art.
Proportion
It is the relationship of the parts to a
whole.
Zapatistas
by Jose Clemente
Orozco
Elements of
Arts
SEVEN Elements of Arts
Line Color
Shape Texture
Space Perspective
Value
 Line Variations
Actual line Implied line and implied curved line

Actual straight line and implied curved

Line created by an edge
line

Vertical line(attitude of alert attention);

Diagonal lines (slow action, fast action)
Horizontal line( attitude of rest)

Sharp jagged line Dance of curving lines

Hard line; Soft line Ragged, irregular line

SHAPE
the expanse within the
outline of a two-dimensional
or within the outer
boundaries of a three-
dimensional object;
 SHAPE
may be
geometric -
precise or
regular
*most common shapes
in human-made world
 SHAPE
may be organic
-irregular;
-often curving or
rounded;
-seem relaxed;
-more informal
*most shapes in nature
Mass

physical bulk of a solid body

material
has a three-dimensional area
 Mass in two-dimension
Mass in three-dimension

Recumbent Figure Head of a Young Man

by Henry Moore by Pablo Picasso
SPACE
indefinable
continuous, infinite, and ever
present
SPACE
(Visual arts) Spatial arts-
most of its art forms are
organized in space.
SPACE
In three-
dimensional objects
(architecture &
sculpture), one has
to move around to
get a full
experiences of the
three dimensional
space.
SPACE
In two-dimensional
works (drawing, prints,
photographs, &
paintings), the actual
space is defined by its
edges (height and
width)
Head of a Young Man
by Pablo Picasso
SPACE
Diagrams of clues to Spatial Depth in two-
dimensional surface. (Preble, 1999)
VALUE
It refers to the lightness and darkness
of surfaces.
It ranges from white to various grays to
black
 VALUE
Chiaroscuro- the
use of gradations
of light and
shade, in which
the forms are
revealed by
subtle shifting
from light to dark
areas.
COLOR
It is a component of light.
Affects us directly by modifying our
thoughts, moods, actions, and even
our health.
exists only in light
Properties of a COLOR
Hue
Value
Intensity
Properties of a COLOR
Hue
-particular wavelength of spectral
color to which we give name.
-Sir Isaac Newton discovered that
when the light of the sun passes
through a glass prism, it is separated
into bands of colors that make up the
visible spectrum.
Primary Hues:
Red, Yellow, Blue
Secondary Hues:
Orange, Green, &
Violet; produced
by the mixture of
primary hues
Intermediate Hues: red-orange, blue green, &
red-violet; located between the primary and
secondary hues
 Colors affect temperatures
Pole dividing the color wheel
Warm
colors

Cool
colors
Properties of a COLOR
Black objects absorbs all the color
White objects reflect all the colors of
the spectrum
Black and white are not true colors.
Gray (combination of Black and
white) is achromatic; often referred to
as neutrals.
Properties of a COLOR
Value
-refers to the relative lightness and
darkness
from white
to grays
and black
Properties of a COLOR
Intensity
-also called saturation
-refers to the purity of a hue or color
-The pure hue is the most intense form of a
given color; the hue at is highest saturation;
and the hue in its brightest form
TEXTURE
It is the textile qualities of surfaces or to
the visual representation of those
qualities.
Actual textures are those that we can feel;
made used by sculptors and architects
Simulated textures are those created to
look like something other than pain on a
flat surface; made used by painters
PERSPECTIVE
It is a point of view.
Any means of representing three-
dimensional objects in a space on a
two-dimensional surface (in visual arts)
a system designed to depict the way
objects in space appear to the eye
 PERSPECTIVE
Linear perspective
-objects appear smaller
at a distance, because
parallel lines appear to
converge as they recede
into the distance, and
the last meeting of the lines on the horizon is called
vanishing point.
PERSPECTIVE
Time and Motion
Time- nonspatial in
which events occur
in succession.
A sense of motion
can be created by
actual change is
position
 PERSPECTIVE
Light
-Its source, color,
intensity and direction
greatly affects the
ways things appear;
-As light changes,
surfaces illuminated
by it also appear to
change.