Which principle refers to the repetition of elements to direct the eye of the viewer through the design?

  • Elements of Design Vocabulary

    What makes Art, Art (Line, shape, form, color, value, space, texture, time)

    Line—a mark drawn with a pointed, moving tool. A line is also considered the path of a dot through space and is used by an artist to control the viewer’s eye movement. There are five kinds of lines:  Vertical, horizontal, diagonal, curved, and zigzag.

    Shape—A two-dimensional area that is defined in some way. A shape has only height and width. There are two kinds of shapes; geometric, and free-form.

    Form—objects having three dimensions. Like a shape, a form has height and width, but also has depth. Forms are also either geometric or free-form.

    Color—an element of art that is derived from reflected light. The sensation of color is aroused in the brain by response of the eyes to different wave lengths of light. Color has three properties: hue, value, and intensity.

    Value—art element that describes the darkness or lightless of an object.  Value depends on how much light an object reflects. Value is also one of the three properties of color.

    Space—element of design that refers to the emptiness or area between, around, above, below, or within objects. Shapes and forms are defined by space around or within them.

    Texture—the element of design that refers to how things feel, or look as if they might feel if touched. Texture is perceived by touch and sight.

    Time—the element of design that deals with the passage of time, how materials change over time, or an action that occurs over time. 

    Principles of Design

    Adj. (Pattern, Contrast, Unity, Rhythm, Movement, balance, emphasis, Proportion)

    Pattern—principle of design that uses the art elements in planned or random repetitions. Patterns often occur in nature and artists develop pattern through the use of similar repeated motifs.

    Contrast—principle of design that refers to differences in values, colors, textures, shapes and other elements. Contrast creates visual excitement and adds interest to work.

    Unity—the principle of design that provides a cohesive quality that makes a work of art appear whole or complete. Unity can be achieved through the use of the elements of design in repetition.

    Rhythm—the principle of design that indicates movement by the repetition of elements. Visual rhythm is rhythm you perceive through your eyes rather than your ears. Types of rhythm are random, regular, flowing, progressive, and alternating.

    Movement—principle of design that deals with creating the illusion of action or physical change in position to guide the viewer’s eye throughout the work of art.

    Balance—principle of design concerned with equalizing visual forces, or elements in a work of art. If a work has visual balance, the viewer feels the elements have been arranged in a satisfying way. The two types of balance are formal (symmetrical) and informal (asymmetrical).

    Emphasis—principle of design that makes one part of a work dominant over the other parts. The element first noticed is called dominant, the elements noticed later are called subordinate.

    Proportion—Principle of design that deals with design elements size relative to each other. Proportion can be affected by shape, color, value and texture. 

Understanding art can appear intimidating to the untrained eye. However, there are several simple key principles of art, and once you understand these, the vast pleasure of art-viewing art, understanding the functions of art and correlating the purpose and definition of art begins to open up before you.

Which principle refers to the repetition of elements to direct the eye of the viewer through the design?

Principals of Art Infographics

1) Balance

Balance refers to the weight of objects and their placement in relation to each other.

It’s a sense of stability you might feel from elements in alignment. This can take three forms: symmetrical, asymmetrical, and radial.

Symmetrical balance refers to the exact mirroring of objects across an axis (i.e. an invisible line on the page).

Asymmetrical balance is the opposite of this – when objects do not mirror each other perfectly, shifting the balance to one side or the other of the axis.

This is often done to highlight an object in relation to another. Radial balance is when objects are distributed all around a central point.

2) Proportion

Proportion is the size of objects in relation to each other, or within a larger whole.

This could be natural (e.g. a nose which fits onto a face the way you would expect it), exaggerated (e.g. a nose that is vastly over or undersized), and idealized, in which parts have the kind of perfect proportion that you just don’t see occurring naturally.

One of the key characteristics of Renaissance Art that changed the world forever is the invention of linear perspective, and proportion is one of the inherent behaviors towards achieving perspective

3) Emphasis

Emphasis is an extension of these first two principles: it is when contrast, placement, size, color, or other features are used to highlight one object, area, or other elements of the artwork.

This is used to draw attention – a focal point – or accentuate a feature.

4) Variety

Variety is a sense of the difference between elements of an artwork – the opposite of unity, or harmony.

Variety adds a sense of chaos to a work, and this is often used to highlight certain powerful emotions. Salvador Dali is one of the artists who have experimented with chaos and variety in his paintings, yet achieved a great sense of perfection.

Who is Salvador Dali? and Which are the top paintings of Salvador Dali?

When unity is used instead, it immediately calms – though this can also lead to being boring!

5) Harmony

In follow on from variety, harmony is the use of related elements.

This might be similar colors, shapes, sizes of objects, etc. It’s about repetition and a relationship between elements. This creates a sense of connection between the objects, creating a sense of flow.

One of the great examples is Titian, the iconic artist often remembered as the Venetian Master of Colour. Titian Paintings Are Truly Stunning, Brings Brightness, and Lustre To His Works Through Brilliant Colors. And, if you look at it, he used the color as a tool to bring harmony to the subject

Harmony is one of the most important aspects when it comes to principles of art

6) Movement

This indicates the direction your eye takes as you view the work – in what order does your eye travel? If the emphasis is used, this often means you start with this element first and travel away from it.

The movement inherent in the image is important, as it tells you a story through the use of lines (whether they are literal or implied).

7) Rhythm

This can also be thought of as a kind of relationship between patterned objects.

Rhythm is often the use of regular, evenly distributed elements – they could occur in slow, fast, smooth or jerky intervals, and this tells you something about the feelings invoked.

Like listening to an upbeat pop song versus a slow ballad, the arrangement of notes creates a kind of pattern you naturally respond to. The important part is recognizing the relationship between the objects.

8) Scale

It might sound similar to proportion, but they differ slightly: scale is about the size of objects but in relation to what you’d expect them to be in reality.

If an object occurs in a natural scale, then the object is the size we would expect to find it.

Diminutive refers to an object being smaller than expected, and monumental is when the object is much larger.

9) Unity

Not to be confused with harmony, unity is the overall cohesion of the work.

You might achieve this through any kind of grouping of objects.

Any kind of similarity will help to strengthen the sense of unity you feel when looking at a series of objects.

10) Repetition

This is the pattern itself.

A combination of shapes, colors, or other elements recurring across the composition.

Objects might be repeated such that they slowly get smaller, or slowly change color – where the pattern starts and stops is important! Patterns usually evoke feelings of security and calm.

In all, these ten principles of art combine and contrast to create the effects we respond to visually. By breaking down the elements, we begin to understand more about the intention or meaning of art.

Which principle of art refers to how art elements help direct a viewer's eyes through a work of art?

Movement is caused by using elements under the rules of the principles in picture to give the feeling of motion and to guide the viewer's eyes throughout the artwork. In movement an art should flow, because the artist has the ability to control the viewer's eye.

What is the repetition of elements in art called?

Rhythm is the visual tempo set by repeating elements in a work of art or architecture.

What are the principles of design and elements of design?

The elements, or principles, of visual design include Contrast, Balance, Emphasis, Movement, White Space, Proportion, Hierarchy, Repetition, Rhythm, Pattern, Unity, and Variety. These principles of design work together to create something that is aesthetically pleasing and optimizes the user experience.

Which element of art moves the viewer's eye across the page and could define shape?

Movement is the path the viewer's eye takes through the work of art, often to focal areas. Such movement can be directed along lines, edges, shape, and color within the work of art. Artists use movement to direct the viewer's eye through a work of art.