An introduction to the elements and principles of art, specifically line, shape, contrast, form, mass, volume, and texture. Includes examples by Andre Masson, Otto Dix, Kara Walker, Meret Oppenheim, M.C. Escher, and more! Based on "Gateways to Art" (2012) by DeWitte, Larmann, and Shields.

1. Art Appreciation, Day 2:
Line, Shape, Contrast, etc.
Professor Paige Prater
T, R, 9:30-10:50AM

2. 10 ELEMENTS of Art:
1. Color
2. Form
3. Line
4. Mass
5. Shape
6. Space
7. Texture
8. Time/Motion
9. Value
10. Volume

3. 10 PRINCIPLES of Art:
1. Unity
2. Variety
3. Balance
4. Emphasis
5. Focal Point
6. Pattern
7. Proportion
8. Rhythm
9. Scale
10. Contrast

4. Two-dimensional art:
• Line
• Shape
• Contrast

5. Mel Bochner, Vertigo, 1982. Charcoal, conte’ crayon, and pastel on canvas,
9’x6’2”. Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY.

6. • Regular/irregular
• Actual/implied
• Vertical/Horizontal/Diagonal

7. Regular/Irregular Line
Andre Masson, Automatic Drawing, 1925-6. Ink on
paper, 12 x91/2”. Muse’e National d’Art Moderne.
Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France.

8. Actual/Implied LINE

9. Vertical/Horizontal/Diagonal LINE

10. SHAPE
• A 2D area with boundaries (line, value, color)
Rectilinear vs. curvilinear

11. Implied SHAPE

12. Example:

13. Positive/Negative SHAPE

14. Positive/Negative SHAPE
• Contrast!
– M.C. Escher
Sky and Water
I, 1938,
woodcut, 17
1/8 x 17 3/8.
The M. C.
Escher
Company,
Netherlands

15. Kara Walker, artist
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o
6t-S_DFxCI
Biographical analysis: what experiences/opinions
does she share that influence her subject matter?

16. Other types of analysis:
• Formal: elements and principles of art
• Psychological: interprets artist’s mental state
• Contextual: historical, religious, political
economic, social, etc.
• Feminist: role of women in the artwork as
subjects, creators, patrons, and viewers
• Iconographic: objects and figures as signs or
symbols (often religious or historical)

17. Three-dimensional art:
• Form (vs. SHAPE)
• Height, width, depth
– Volume – amount of space occupied
– Mass- solidity (small or massive)
• Texture – tangible (3D) or imaginary (2D)

18. Form Volume Mass
Great Pyramid of Kuhuf, c. 2560 BCE, Giza, Egypt

19. Texture
•
http://www.moma.org/collection/object.php?object_id=80997
Me’ret Oppenheim, Object, 1936. Fur-covered
cup, saucer, and spoon, 2 7/8” high, MOMA, New York.

20. Analyze
•
Otto Dix, Kriegeskrueppel (War Cripples), 1920. Drypoint, 12 ¾ x19
½”, MOMA, New York.

21. Group Work: Analyze
Shepard Fairey, Obey, 1996.
Georgia O’Keeffe, Music—Pink and
Blue II, 1919. Oil on canvas, 35x29
1/8”. Whitney Museum of American
Art, New York.