Basic Elements Of Expression

BASIC ELEMENTS OF BASIC ELEMENTS OF EXPRESSIONEXPRESSION

Arts and Crafts 1º E.S.O.

César Fernández Álvarez

“Several Circles”. Vasili Kandinsky

19/11/2008 1

BASIC ELEMENTS

POINT

PLANE

LINE TEXTURE

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WHICH ELEMENTS CAN YOU IDENTIFY?

� Points?

� Lines?� Lines?

� Planes?

� Textures?

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POINT

� The point is the smallest expression element.

� It is usually rounded, but can also be square, triangular, starred,

irregular, etc...

� The point can present different sizes. If the size is too big, the

point will be considered as a plane.

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� Changing the shapes, colours and sizes of points, we can create a

sensation of depth.

THE EXPRESSIVE POWER OF POINTSTHE EXPRESSIVE POWER OF POINTS

� Using the technique of pointillism, you can create a painting by

using only points.

“Composition number VIII”. Vasili Kandinsky

“Sunday afternnon on the island of Grand Jatte”.Seurat

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LINE� It can be defined as a point in movement.

� Every line has two dimensions: width and length. Lines are

always longer than wider.

“Starred night”. Van Gogh

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TYPES OF LINES ITYPES OF LINES I

� SIMPLE LINES: they are made by one trait.

STRAIGTH LINES CURVE LINES

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� COMPOUND LINES: they are made by two or more simple

lines in different directions.

TYPES OF LINES IITYPES OF LINES II

ZIG-ZAG LINES WAVY LINE

SPIRAL 8

THE EXPRESSIVE POWER OF LINESTHE EXPRESSIVE POWER OF LINES

� Horizontal lines: they transmit a feeling of

stability, balance, calm and lack of

movement.

� Vertical lines: they transmit a feeling of

� Curved lines: they create a sensation of

dynamism or movement.

� Vertical lines: they transmit a feeling of

stability too.

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� We can create sensation ofdepth by drawing vertical or

horizontal lines decreasing in

size.

� By crossing lines in different

directions we can create a

sensation of light andshadow.

shadows are made by concentrating lines

Brightness is made by dispersing lines or blanks.

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� It can be defined as a two dimensional surface, with width and

length. The plane can be represented by:

� an outline.

PLANE

� a coloured shape.

� a form or textured surface.

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� REGULAR: they are the simplest kind of planes. Their

sides have the same length and their angles are the same.

They transmit a sensation of stability.

TYPES OF PLANESTYPES OF PLANES

� IRREGULAR: their sides and angles have different length.

They create a sensation of instability or movement.

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� Superimposing forms we can create

sensation of proximity-remoteness.

� If the forms of a composition

decrease in size, it creates a

sensation of depth.

THE EXPRESSIVE POWER OF PLANESTHE EXPRESSIVE POWER OF PLANES

� If we superimpose one formover another, the effect will be

higher.

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� Lighting the colours of a composition produces a sensation of

remoteness.

� If we change the size and the colour of a composition and

superimpose the forms, the effect will be higher.

SUPERIMPOSING CHANGE OF SIZE, AND COLOUR

CHANGE OF SIZE AND COLOUR

LIGHTING COLOURS

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COMPOSITIONS WITH PLANES

“Talking in the Harvest”. Kasimir Malevich

“The green line”. Matisse

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� The word texture refers to what things are made of and

how they feel. Textures can be described as “rough”,

“smooth”, “hard”, “soft”, “liquid”, “solid”.

� There are two kinds of textures:

� Natural: we find them in nature.

TEXTURE

ROUGH

� Artificial: they are created by men, manually or mechanically.

ROUGHSOFT ROUGH

SMOOTH HARD16

� TACTILE TEXTURES: those textures that we can see and

touch.

Using the technique of collage, we can create tactile

textures. This technique consists on sticking differentmaterials over a surface.

TYPES OF TEXTURES ITYPES OF TEXTURES I

COLLAGE USING DIFFERENT MATERIALS

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� VISUAL TEXTURES: those textures that we can see but

not touch.

Using the technique of frottage, we can create visual

textures. This technique consists on rubbing a paper overa textured surface with a pencil.

TYPES OF TEXTURES IITYPES OF TEXTURES II

VISUAL TEXTURE FROM A

HANDKERCHIEF

VISUAL TEXTURE FROM A

DECORATIVE TABLE CLOTH

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“A Glimpse of Notre Dame in the Late Afternoon”. Matisse

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