abstraction
A term for the visual effects derived by the simplification and/or rearrangement of the appearance of natural objects, or nonrepresentational work arranged simply to satisfy artists' needs for organization or expression. Abstraction is present in varying degrees in all works of art, from full representation to complete nonobjectivity.
academic
Art that conforms to established traditions and approved conventions as practiced in art academies. Academic art stresses standards and set procedures and rules.
achromatic (value) (color)
Relating to differences of light and dark; the absense of hue and its intensity.
actual shape
Clearly defined or positive areas (as opposed to an implied shape).
amorphous shape
A shape without clarity or definition: formless, indistinct, and of uncertain dimension.
approximate symmetry
The use of similar imagery on either side of a central axis. The visual material on one side may resemble that on the other but is varied to prevent visual monotony.
assemblage
A technique that brings together individual items of rather bulky three-dimensional nature that are displayed (in situ) in their original position rather than being limited to a wall.
asymmetry
Having unlike or noncorresponding, appearances--"without symmetry." An example: a two-dimensional artwork that, without any necessarily visible or implied axis, displays an uneven distribution of parts throughout.
atmospheric (ariel) perspective
The illusion of deep space produced in graphic works by lightening values, softening details and textures, reducing value contrasts, and neutralizing colors in objects as they recede.
balance
A sense of equilibrium achieved through implied weight, attention, or attraction, by manipulating the visual elements within an artwork to achieve unity.
biomorphic shape
Irregular shape that resembles the freely developed curves found in live organisms.
calligraphy
Elegant decorative writing. Lines used in artworks that possess the qualities found in this kind of writing may be called "calligraphic" and are generally flowing and rhythmical.
cast shadow
The dark area that occurs on a surface as a result of something being placed between that surface and a light source.
chiaroscuro
- Distribution of light and dark in a picture.
- A technique of representation that blends light and shade gradually to create the illusion of three-dimensional objects in space or atmosphere
chromatic
Pertaining to the presence of color.
chromatic (value)
The value (relative degree of lightness or darkness) demonstrated by a given color.
closure
A concept from Gestalt psychology in which the development of groupings or patterned relationships occurs when incomplete information is seen as a complete, unified whole; the artist provides minimum visual clues, and the observer brings them to final recognition.
collage
A pictorial technique whereby the artist creates the image, or a portion of it, by adhering real materials that possess actual textures to the picture plane surface often combining them with painted or drawn passages.
complementary colors
Two colors directly opposite each other on the color wheel. A primary color is complementary to a secondary color, which is a mixture of the two remaining primaries.
composition
An arrangement and/or structure of all the art elements, according to the principles of organization, that achieves a unified whole. Often used interchangeably with the term 'design'.
concept
- A comprehensive idea or generalization.
- An idea that brings diverse elements into a basic relationship.
content
The expression, essential meaning, significance, or aesthetic value of a work of art. Content refers to the sensory, subjective, psychological, or emotional properties we feel in a work of art, as opposed to our perception of its descriptive aspects alone.
contour
In art, the line that defines the outermost limits of an object or a drawn or painted shape. It is sometimes considered to be synonymous with "outline"; as such, it indicates an edge that also may be defined by the extremities of darks, lights textures, or colors.
cool colors
Color "temperature" may be considered as another way to organize color. Any colors containing blue, such as green, violet, or blue-green, are associated with air, sky, earth and water; these are called cool. (See warm colors.)
cross-contour
A line that crosses and defines the surface undulations between, or up to, the outermost edges of shapes or objects.
Cubism
The name given to the painting style invented by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque between 1907 and 1912, which used multiple views of objects to create the effect of their three-dimensionality while acknowledging the two-dimensional surface of the picture plane. Signaling the beginning of abstract art, it is a semiabstract style that continued the strong trend away from representational art initiated by Cezanne in the late 1800's.
curvilinear
Stressing the use of curved lines, as opposed to rectilinear, which stresses straight lines.
decorative (shape)
Ornamenting or enriching but, more importantly in art, stressing the two dimensional nature of an artwork or any of it's elements. Decorative art emphasizes the essential flatness of a surface.
design
The underlying plan on which artists base their total work. In a broader sense, design may be considered synonymous with the term 'form'.
dominance
The principle of visual organization in which certain elements assume more importance than others in the same composition or design. Some features are emphasized, and others are subordinated.
economy
The distillation of the image to the basic essentials for clarity of presentation.
elements of art
Line, shape, value, texture, and color -- the basic ingredients the artist uses separately or in combination to produce artistic imagery. Their use produces the visual language of art.
expression
- The manifestation through artistic form of a thought, emotion, or quality of meaning.
- In art, expression is synonymous with the term content.
form
- The organization or inventive arrangement of all the visual elements according to the principles that will develop unity in the artwork.
- The total appearance or organization.
geometric shape
A shape that appears related to geometry; usually simple, such as a triangle, rectangle, or circle.
Gestalt (Gestalt Psychology)
A German word for "form"; an organized whole experience. Around 1912, the Gestalt psychologists promoted the theory that explains psychological phenomena by their relationships to total forms, or Gestalten, rather than by their parts.
golden mean, golden section
- Golden mean -- "perfect" harmonious proportions that avoid extremes; the moderation between extremes.
- Golden section -- a traditional proportional system for visual harmony expressed when a line or area is divided into two sections so that the smaller part is to the larger as the larger is to the whole. The ratio developed is 1:1.6180 ... or roughly 8:13.
harmony
The quality of relating the visual elements of a composition. Harmony is achieved by the repetition of characteristics that are the same or similar. These cohesive factors create pleasing interaction.
high-key value
A value that has a level of middle gray or lighter.
highlight
The portion of an object that, from the observer's position, receives the greatest amount of direct light.
hue
Designates the common name of a color and indicates its position in the spectrum or on the color wheel. Hue is determined by the specific wavelength of the color in a ray of light.
implied line
Implied lines (subjective lines) are those that dim, fade, stop, and/or disappear. The missing portion of the line is implied to continue and is visually completed by the observer as the line reappears.
implied shape
A shape suggested or created by the psychological connection of dots, lines, areas, or their edges, creating the visual appearance of a shape that does not physically exists. (See Gestalt)
interpenetration
The movement of planes, objects, or shapes through each other, locking them together within a specified area of space.
Kinetic art
From the Greek word kinesis, meaning "motion," art that involves an element of random or mechanical movement.
local value
The relative light and dark of a surface, seen in the objective world, that is independent of any effect created by the degree of light falling on it.
low-key value
Any value that has a level of middle gray or darker.
mass
- In graphic art, a shape that appears to stand out three-dimensionally from the space surrounding it or that appears to create the illusion of a solid body of material.
- In the plastic arts, the physical bulk of a solid body of material. (See plastic, three-dimensional, and volume
monochromatic
Having only one hue; the complete range of value of one color from white to black.
motif
A designed unit or pattern that is repeated often enough in the total composition to make it a significant or dominant feature. Motif is similar to theme or melody in a musical composition.
movement
Eye travel directed by visual pathways in a work of art.
naturalism
The approach to art that is essentially a description of things visually experienced. Pure naturalism would contain no personal interpretation introduced by the artist.
negative area(s)
The unoccupied or empty space left after the positive elements have been created by the artist. However, when these areas have boundaries, they also function as design shapes in the total structure. (See positive area.)
nonobjective, nonrepresentational (art)
A type of art that is entirely imaginative and not derived from anything visually perceived by the artist. The elements, their organization, and their treatment by the artist are entirely personalized and consequently, not associated by the observer with any previously experienced natural objects.
objective (art, shape)
A type of art that is based, as near as possible, on physical actuality or optical perception. Such art tends to appear natural or real.
pattern
- Any artisitic design (sometimes serving as a model for imitation).
- A repeated element and/or design that is usually varied and produces interconnections and obvious directional movements.
perspective
Any graphic system used to create the illusion of three-dimensional images and/or spatial relationships on a two-dimensional surface. There are several types of perspective: See atmospheric, linear and projection systems.
plane
- An area that is essentially two-dimensional, having height and width.
- A flat or level surface
- A two-dimensional surface having a positive extension and spatial direction or position.
plastic (shape)
- The use of the elements of shape to create the illusion of the third dimension on a two-dimensional surface.
- Three-dimensional art forms, such as architecture, sculpture, and ceramics.
positive area(s)
The state in the artwork in which the art elements (shape, line, etc.), or their combination, produce the subject-- nonrepresentational or recognizable images. (See negative area.)
principles of organization
Seven principles that guide the use of the elements of art in achieving unity: harmony, variety, balance, proportion, dominance, movement, and economy.
proportion
The comparative relationships between the parts of a whole or units as to size. For example, the size of the Statue of Liberty's hand relates to the size of her head. (See scale.)
radial
Emanating from a central location.
rectilinear shape
A shape whose boundaries usually consist entirely of straight lines.
repetition
The use of the same visual effect a number of times in the same composition. Repetition may produce the dominance of one visual idea, a feeling of harmonious relationships, an obviously planned pattern, or a rhythmic movement.
representation(al) art
A type of art in which the subject is presented through the visual art elements so that the observer is reminded of actual objects. (See naturalism and realism)
rhythm
A continuance, a flow, or a sense of movement achieved by the repetition of regulated visual units; the use of measured accents.
scale
The association of size relative to a constant standard or specific unit of measure related to human dimensions. For example, the Statue of Liberty's scale is apparent when she is seen next to an automobile. (See proportion.)
shadow, shade, shading
The darker value on the surface of an object that gives the illusion that a portion of it is turned away from or obscured by the source of the light.
shallow space
The illusion of limited depth. With shallow space, the imagery moves only a slight distance back from the picture plane.
simultaneous contrast
When two different colors come into direct contact, the contrast intensifies the difference between them.
subject
- In a descriptive approach to art, subject refers to the persons or things represented, as well as the artists' experiences, that serve as inspiration.
- In abstract or nonobjective forms of art, subject refers merely to the visual signs used by the artist. In this case, the subject has little to do with anything experienced in the natural environment.
subjective (art, shape, color, etc.)
That which is derived from the mind reflecting a personal viewpoint, bias, or emotion.
symmetry
The exact duplication of appearance in mirrorlike repetition on either side of a (usually imaginary) straight-lined central axis.
Surrealism
A style of artistic expression, influenced by Freudian psychology, that emphasizes fantasy and whose subjects are usually experiences revealed by the subconscious mind through the use of automatic techniques (rubbings, doodles, blots, cloud patterns, and the like). Originally a literary movement and an outgrowth of Dadism, Surrealism was established by a literary manifesto written in 1924.
three-dimensional (shape)
Possessing, or creating the illusion of possessing, the dimension of depth, as well as the dimensions of height and width.
transparency
A visual quality in which a distant image or element can be seen through a nearer one.
trompe l'oeil
Literally, "deceives the eye"; a technique that copies nature with such exactitude that the subject depicted can be mistaken for natural forms.
two-dimensional (shape)
Possessing the dimensions of height and width, especially when considering the flat surface or picture plane.
volume
A measurable area of defined or occupied space. (See mass, plastic and three-dimensional.)
unity
The result of bringing the elements of art into the appropriate ratio between harmony and variety to achieve a sense of oneness.
value (color)
- The relative degree of light or dark.
- The characteristics of color determined by light or dark or the quantity of light reflected by the color.
variety
Differences achieved by opposing, contrasting, changing, elaborating, or diversifying elements in a composition to add individualism and interest; the counterweight of 'harmony' in art.
warm colors
Color "temperature" may be considered as another way to organize color. Red, orange, and yellow are associated with the sun or fire and thus are considered warm. (See cool colors.)
Glossary compiled from the following source:
Ocvirk, Otto G. et al. Art Fundamentals with Core Concepts.
McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages, 2001.
ISBN: 0072483512