composition (unfinished)
composition is the elements that make up a final piece of art, as a result of this it is an incredibly board subject but can be narrowed down in terms of definition to the arrangement of visual elements such as placing a subject in a way that would ensure it is most effective to create a greater overall piece while considering these things:
line and form
line simply refers to the path a medium has taken such as the stroke of a brush to the line of a pencil, there are many ways in line can be use to enhance a piece that can separated into three main categories:
- the medium that is used- for example a pencil will create a different line to a pen or brush as a pencil will create a solid grey/black line depending on the pencil used, a pen will create a jet black/other colour line and a brush will create a line that will become more dilute around the edges of the line depending on the paint used. when creating a piece it is important to select a medium/s that reflect on the desired aspect of the piece such as the theme used and what the mood of the piece is, an example of this is if a scene is meant to reflect moodiness then a wide brush might be used to demonstrate this with a combination of dark blues to demonstrate the mood, or if the theme is age a pencil can be used to best show the difference in appearance of an elderly person compared to a baby.
- the size/weight of the line- depending on the width of the line the artist can add or reduce the level of detail for effect as often different levels of detail attract an audience because of this.
- the way in which the line is drawn- the way in which the line is drawn often have connotations attached to the piece as the most common is that strong and angular lines best reflect masculinity and flowing curved lines best represent femininity. there are other ways to interpret the flow of a line for example
rule of thirds
the rule of thirds is a grid that allows the artist to visualise the areas that draw attention the most, the grid is comprised of nine squares/rectangles that in each corner that does not align with the edge of the canvas/paper/ETC is a focal point that is often used to place visual features of importance. though when using the rule of thirds one focal point can overshadow another if both are placed along the line intersections so care must be taken so that pieces are composed carefully.
negative and positive space
this refers to the area that is considered the focus (positive space) and the area considered to be the background (negative space), the best examples of nega-posi spaces are images that are black and white contrast that consist of a subject in one solid colour surrounded by a background of an opposite colour. when considering negative and positive space it is important that you have an idea of how much the positive space should stand against the negative, it is the safest to have a balanced amount of nega-posi space but an unbalanced amount can be more effective if used properly.
pattern and symmetry
when using pattern in a piece it is a common mistake for people to 'over clutter' works by adding excessive levels of pattern that clash, symmetry is also a tricky subject due to its tendency to look unprofessional if even the slightest thing is off especially in photography, though because of the difficulty involved with these, the results can be most rewarding as pattern and symmetry are essential parts of creating an effective piece.
texture
unlike pattern, texture is move useful for making a piece look realistic as texture is the link between the piece and the real world as all things have textures but very few of those have textures that are exactly the same, because of this artists can use texture to show what is being portrayed in the best way by using a combination of different techniques to create the desired effect, an example of creating texture is that short flicking strokes can be used to create a fur like appearance. texture can also involve using mediums that are not paints or pencils, mediums like fabric and foil that can be affixed on the artwork to give it texture .
depth
by using a greater contrast between light areas and shadowed areas the illusion of depth can be created, this increases the element of 3D in an image. depth can be created in many ways such as using strong pen lines against white paper to give a strong depth and soft fading can be used to create depth by gradually fading into a darker colour, of cause these work for the invers as on black paper the areas with the most depth would be left and the light coloured with a lighter coloured medium. depth is often used to define strong features such as wrinkles to create a sense of age or dark crevices in mountains and rocks.
