Unit 2: Visual Elements

Visual elements are used to create and unify a composition. Some visual elements that I believe are acknowledged immensely in art but overlooked in society are texture, lines, and shapes. These elements surround us and are disregarded. Texture can be defined as how something feels. The texture of something can be smooth, rough, hard, jagged, fluffy, etc. Any adjective that describes how something feels describes its texture. For example, tile is hard and carpet is soft. A line can be defined as points connected together. A line can be horizontal, vertical, diagonal, straight, curved, implied, and actual. Certain lines can be used to represent different things. For example, horizontal lines suggest stability while diagonal lines suggest movement and directionality. Lines are used to create shapes, which are all around us. For example, the television in your room is shaped like a rectangle. Although the television is in 3-dimensional form, the basic structure of it is a rectangle. A rectangle is composed of two horizontal lines and two vertical lines. Shapes create everything that we view in the world. A basketball is circular in shape, a door is rectangular in shape, a stop sign takes on the shape of an octagon, and yield signs are triangular in shape. Can we escape them? No because they are the basis for everything that is created. It's best to think of the world as a piece of art flooded with visual elements that defines it and gives it meaning and uniqueness. 

Unit 2: Unity

The most important principle of design a piece of artwork should possess is unity. Unity is how every aspect within the artwork complements each other. It is how everything comes together as a whole. To have unity, the elements within the artwork must be harmonious and equal. Unity can be achieved in a plethora of ways. The use of a specific color throughout a portrait could be used to unify the artwork. The use of the same kinds of lines, either curvilinear (curvy lines) or rectilinear (straight lines) could be used to unify the artwork. There are two types of unity when dealing with art: visual and conceptual. Visual unity is unity that is created by use of visual elements. Conceptual unity is artwork that has a common theme or concept throughout it. For example, the picture below achieves both visual and conceptual unity. It achieves visual unity by using rectilinear lines and squares throughout the composition. It achieves conceptual unity by displaying different parts of the human body within the squares throughout the composition. Also, the use of the colors gray, white, and black tie the image together. Unity is essential to ensuring that the composition can be viewed and understood in the way the artist wants the viewer to see and understand it. 

Unit 2: Focal Point

Focal point is a design principle that an artist can use to highlight the most important aspect of their artwork. Focal point is the specific part of a work that grabs the viewer's interest. It is the portion of the piece of art that great value is given to. If a piece of art was a story, the focal point would be the main idea. The focal point of an art piece can be anywhere within the painting, not necessarily in the middle. For example, when viewing the picture above, my eyes are immediately drawn to the brown object that the individual is holding. My vision then shifts to the view of the train tracks shown from the middle portion of the brown object. The brown object would be the focal point, which is placing emphasis on the view of the train tracks within it. The brown object is the main point of the picture and the artist wants to gain your attention there. Focal points are extremely important when dealing with art. Although all aspects of a piece of artwork is important, the focal point determines what the artist wants you to focus on and how it tells the story of the art piece.

Unit 2: The Importance of Color

Color is immensely important in not only art, but also in the society. Color visually defines something, distinguishing between different hues and shades of objects. For example, the sky can be a light blue while the clouds can either be white or different shades of gray. Sand is light brown and the ocean is a darker shade of blue. The variety of colors that we view around the world is large and each unique. Color is also defined differently depending on the person. Two individuals can view the same color and feel that they viewed two separate colors. The determination of the color viewed is in the eye of the beholder. Color also evokes emotion, which is a characteristic emphasized in art but unnoticed in daily life interactions. Color sets a tone or specific mood. For example, the color red evokes anger in some people. The color blue can evoke either calmness or gloominess in a person. Mark Rothko's art pieces Number 22 and Black on Grey emphasized how colors can evoke emotion. In Number 22, the colors suggest happiness and calmness. Black on Grey suggests emptiness, sadness, or even death. Colors are extremely important for setting the mood of art. Color is also culturally defined. One culture may use a color in a certain way, while other cultures may use it in a different way. In the United States, it is common to wear black to funerals and white to weddings. In China, it is common to wear white to funerals and red to weddings. The meaning behind a color is highly dependent upon the culture and how it impacts their values and beliefs. Despite the many meanings a color may have, it should be recognized and accepted that the world is a canvas, and the color is the paint that brings it alive. 

Unit 1: Influences on Art

Many factors play a role in how art is defined and how it is interpreted. An individual’s culture is extremely important in how they acknowledge art. Every culture is different and takes pride in different things. For example, in the African American culture, we enjoy viewing art pieces that strongly represents family and our elders.  African American abstract paintings have many bright colors incorporated into them. Also, African American portraits may have a musical aspect to them such as a gentleman playing the saxophone. The African American paintings focus on emphasizing factors that we believe are in important in our culture, which are things such as family, independence, harmony, faith, religion and happiness. An individual’s childhood experiences also influences how they view art. Items that they find familiar to them may be what they choose to incorporate into their art. For example, if a person visited the beach frequently as a child, they may incorporate the beach into many of their art pieces. Another major influence on art is religion. A person’s religion can determine how they view art and what they believe art should be about. There are a plethora of influences on art, each contributing to how a person views and determines art. 

Unit 1: Who Defines Art?

Who defines art? The artist defines art. The viewer defines art. Society can define art. Art is defined by many different people in many different ways. The way in which a person defines art depends on aspects such as their culture, their childhood, their lifestyle, and their values and beliefs. The person who defines art incorporates everything that makes them unique into interpreting what an art piece may mean to them. For example, a painting can be three shades of blue. One individual may believe that the artist was gloomy and was expressing sadness. Another individual may believe that the artist was calm and felt a sense of freedom. The definition of art is highly dependent on the person. What is considered as art is also highly dependent on the person. For example, Bruce Nauman created a stairway and stated that the stairway was art because he said it was. There are no limitations or boundaries on what can be defined as art because there are no limitations or boundaries on what a person can imagine. Who defines art? Everyone in the world defines art and for this very reason, art can have over a million definitions because every single person in the world can view the same art piece and have over a million different perspectives. 

Unit 1: The Role of Art in Society

Art is extremely important in today’s society. It is a major way for individuals to express themselves and their cultural background. Every culture has their own values and beliefs about what art is and how it should be expressed. For example, in the United States, tattoos and piercings are used by many individuals as a way to express their feelings. In Africa, marking or burning the skin into intricate designs is a way to express cultural values. Art is also used in society to send messages. For example, a mural in a community can promote helping others or a sculpture can represent peace and harmony. Art can send messages through the forms of writings, murals, drawings, paintings, sculptures, etc. There is no limit to the many forms that art can take. Art can also tell stories. For example, religious pieces of artwork can highlight a specific time in the bible. Art can also take us back to historical times by focusing on aspects that were important in different time periods. Art is all around us and it continues to assist us with understanding many different things in the world. The role of art in society is extremely complex, and the power of art tends to be underestimated. 

Unit 1: What is Art?

A question that constantly plaques the mind of many individuals is what is art or what defines it? The meaning of art differs for each individual. Art, to me, is an umbrella term that is used to represent many creative skills that individuals can possess. Art evokes emotion and delivers a message. Art is a way for an individual to express their feelings, their imagination and how they view the world. Art is completely dependent upon the artist and what they want to display to the world. So what exactly is art? Art is whatever the artist wants it to be. Art is extremely broad and can be depicted using things such as sculptures, drawings, paintings, writing, and many more forms of media. Art can be simplistic or complex. Art can be beautiful or ugly. Art can even be pleasing to the eye or extremely disturbing. The acceptance of different forms of art is in the eye of the beholder. The person viewing the diverse forms of art may have different beliefs than the artist and they may interpret the message in a different way. The true meaning of art is determined by the individual who is viewing or creating the art.