Elements of Design

The Elements of Design One easy way to remember the Elements of Design is to remember this phrase: “T.V. Shows C.F.L. Season” for… Texture Value Shape Colour Form Line Space

TEXTURE Texture refers to the surface quality or “feel” of an object; its smoothness, roughness or softness. Textures can be real or simulated.

TASK: Look around the classroom and create two simulated textures with rubbings. Place a piece of paper over something that has texture. Apply pressure on the paper using the side of your 8B pencil. See what happens.

VALUE Value is the lightless and darkness of an object. Value helps to create realism. You can create value with shading, hatching, cross-hatching and pointillism.

TASK: Remember those beautiful spheres you created with value? Change this circle into a sphere by adding a range of light and dark values.

SHAPE Shape is an enclosed space defined and determined by other elements. There are two types of shapes: geometric and organic. Geometric - are precise mathematical shapes (such as circles, rectangles, squares, triangles…) Organic – curved or soft edges often things found in nature like flowers, leaves etc..

TASK: Draw a cat with geometric shapes. Draw another cat again using only organic shapes.

COLOUR Colour has three properties: Hue: the name of the colour Intensity: the brightness of darkness of a colour Value: light and darkness of a colour

Match the colour schemes with the correct colour combinations. __Analogous Colours __Monochormatic __Complementary Colours __Split Complementary Colours __Warm Colours __Cool Colours a) mostly blues, greens, violet colours b) mostly red, orange and yellow colours c) colours beside each other on the colour wheel d) One colour + black and white e) Colours opposite each other on the colour wheel f) A colour plus the two neighbours of its complementary colour.

TASK: List eight colours. Think of an emotion for each colour. Example: Red – love, pain, hatred

FORM Form is the same as the element of shape except that it is always 3-dimensional therefore it shows a sense of depth Form can also be geometric or organic.

LINE Lines are everywhere, in nature architecture, people. Lines can be thick or thin, continuous or interrupted. They can be created with pen, paint, wire etc... Contour Lines – describes the shape of an object, and include interior detail. Gesture Lines - are looping, twisting and changing directions. They capture movement.

TRY THIS. TASK: Create a contour line of something found outside. (tree, flower, leaf, pumpkin) Redraw the same object using gesture lines.

SPACE Space refers to the distance or area between, around, above or below objects. It can be described as: (2D space) Positive / Negative space or (3D space) Depth or Distance

Creating the Illusion of Space Six ways to create the illusion of depth: 1. Size (larger in foreground, smaller in the background) 2. Detail (high in the foreground, low in the background) 3. Overlapping (closer objects cover objects further in space) 4. Colour Temperature (warm advance and cool recede) 5. Placement (concerns with the arrangement of objects on your picture plane) 6. Perspective (1,2 or 3 point perspective or aerial perspective)

TASK: 1. Let’s try using SIZE, DETAIL and OVERLAPPING tricks to create the illusion of space (depth). Using a blank piece of paper draw: 1 house in the foreground (this will need to be big) 1 puppy in the middleground & (medium) 1 tree in the background (small)

TASK: Go back to your drawing and let’s try using DETAIL and OVERLAPPING tricks to create the illusion of space (depth). Add some more details to the house (like someone looking out the window). Draw (at least 5) more trees and overlapped.

TASK: Let’s use COLOUR next. Go back to your drawing and Try adding colour to your drawing by colour objects in the front (foreground) with bright / intense colours and as objects get farther away make the colours less intense. intense less intense