Principles Of Design

Below is a free term papers summary of the paper "Principles Of Design." If you sign up, you can be reading the rest of this term papers in under two minutes. Registered users should login to view this term paper.

Term Paper Title	Principles Of Design
# of Words	799
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	3.2

Principles of Design

     In regards to any piece of art, composition can be referred to as the combined visual
elements which comprise the piece as a whole.  There are distinguished, separate elements to
composition however, each one adding something different to the final product.  Although there is
not a concrete formula in which one can produce a composition, there is such a thing as an
effective composition.  The paining entitled Tar Beach, by Faith Ringgold is a perfect example of
a piece that demonstrates an effective composition.
     Unity and variety are two major components of composition.  When unity is present in a
piece, all the images seem to fit together and belong.  Variety on the other hand protects against
too much unity which may produce a boring piece.  In Tar Beach unity is used by the grouping
together of similar figures, in this case the people eating at the table.  Variety is added as well in
the color choice, which is not what we would consider normal conventional colors.  Also, there
are a few images that appear to be out of place, particularly the girl and boy laying on the mattress
and the figure floating in mid-air.
     Balance is another key element needed to produce an effective composition.  Balance is
the condition in which acting influences are held in check by opposing forces.  There are two
major types of balance, symmetrical and asymmetrical.  Symmetrical is the near matching of
opposite sides of a piece, while asymmetrical refers to the offsetting of objects in order to balance
out others.  In Tar Beach, symmetrical balance is used on the borders of the piece which gives it
the look of being in a picture frame.  Asymmetrical balance is also used because the four people
sitting at the table are offset by the two people laying on the mattress.  If it wasn’t for these two
figures the focus would all be on the people at the table.  Also ,the dark blue sky is balanced out
by the thin orange lines at the bottom of the piece.
     Emphasis is used to focus our attention at a specific area or object in the piece, also
known as a focal point.  Subordination simply works with emphasis making sure that attention is
not drawn away from the focal point.  In the painting by Ringgold, the focal point is in the center
of the piece, where the figures sitting at the table are surrounded by a mixture of warm and cool
colors, which attracts the eye of the viewer.  Subordi...

This is not the end of the termpaper! Register below to see the complete version of this term paper.

Membership Plans	Credit Card	Check

1 month membership

3 month membership (You Save 50%)

6 month membership (You Save 67%)

Copyright © 2002-2007 Mid Term Papers. All rights reserved. This term papers website is used for research purposes only.
If you have forgotten your username or password, please click here.
If you like to cancel your account, please click here.

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13 - 14 - 15 - 16 - 17 - 18 - 19 - 20 - 21 - 22