Tip: Elements of Art and Principles of Design

It is hard to describe and talk about things that we see. It is even more difficult to articulate how those things are combined to make art. Luckily, there is a set of terms that have been defined just for this purpose. They are called the elements of art and the principles of design.

The elements can be thought of as the attributes of those things that we see. The principles describe how the elements should be combined to be aesthetically pleasing. Together the elements and principles form a basic language that is used in the visual arts. The purpose of this post is to introduce these terms and to provide ready access to the definition for each term.

Here is the list of elements. As you can see, they are unique components which are used to define a work of art; the elements describe the basic structures of art.

• Line
• Shape (or form)
• Size (or scale and proportion)
• Texture
• Color
• Value

Here is the list of principles. As stated above, the principles are the laws or guidelines that govern how elements should be combined. In other words, to have a good composition artists must consider the principles as they combine and arrange the elements. An artist that applies the principles correctly will create more interesting and engaging art; how well the elements follow the principles of design determines how successful a works of art will be.

• Balance
• Gradation
• Repetition (or rhythm and pattern)
• Contrast
• Harmony
• Dominance (or emphasis and focus)
• Unity
• Direction (or movement)