What exactly does "Principles and Elements of Design" mean?Principles of design are the laws of designing anything! In other words, to have a good design, you should consider these principles for the best design possible.
Elements of design on the other hand are things that are involved within making a design. The major difference between principles and elements is that principles are rules you have to follow and elements are things that will help you complete those rules for the best project outcome.
Principles of Design, as said before, are the laws of designing anything! When making a design the seven principles are contrast, emphasis, balance, unity, pattern, movement, and rhythm. Consider each of these carefully for any design and you'll be a guaranteed a great project!
Contrast means showing differences in two different sections of the design or showing somehow that the design being created is very different from other designs because of its contrast. Contrast can also be used to show emphasis in any part of the design. Contrast is the extreme changes between value.
Emphasis is given to an area within the design because that area is meant to be seen or is more important to be noticed when compared to other places of the design. For example, your design might be to have white parallel lines going up and down. In the center of this design, you could have a circle. This circle would be a part on the design that is emphasized. It is the part of the design that catches the viewers attention.
Balance is the distribution of the visual weight of objects, colors, textures and space. If the design was a scale, these elements should be balanced to make a design feel stable. In symmetrical balance, the elements used on one side of the design are similar to those on the other side; in asymmetrical balance, the sides are different but still look balanced. In radial
balance the elements are arranged around a central point and may be similar.
Unity means keeping your design in a sort of harmony in which all sections of the design make other sections feel complete. Unity helps the design to be seen as one design instead of randomness all around your design.
Pattern is simply keeping your design in a certain format. For example, you could plan to have
wavy lines all around your design as a pattern, but then you must continue those
wavy lines throughout the design for good patterns. It is the repeating of an object or symbol all over the artwork.
Movement is the suggestion or illusion of motion in a painting, sculpture, or design. For example, circles going diagonally up and down from right to left could show that the design moves up and to the right or down and to the left. It is the path the viewer's eye takes through the artwork.
Rhythm is the movement or variation characterized by the regular recurrence or alternation of different quantities or conditions. In simpler words, it's just like pattern and shows that the
design has a 'beat' or 'flow' going with it. Rhythm is created
when one or more elements of design are used repeatedly to create a feeling of organized movement. Variety is essential to keep rhythm exciting and active and moving the viewer around the artwork.
Repetition works with pattern to make artwork seems active. The repetition of the elements of design creates unity within the artwork.Proportion is the feeling of unity created when all parts (size, amounts, or number) relate well with each other. When drawing the human figure, proportion can refer to the size of the head compared to the rest of the body. Variety is the use of several elements of design to hold the viewer's attention and to guide the viewer's eye through the artwork.
Elements of Design, as said before, are things that are involved within making a design. The seven elements of design are color, value, texture, shape, form, space, and line. Elements of design will help your design look a lot more unique from other designs, and can help make the design symbolize anything!
Color has three main characteristics: Hue, color's name (red, blue, green, etc.), Value (how light or dark it is), and intensity (how bright or dull it is). Make sure your
designs color is right for the mood! Also make sure that each section's color matches another section's color. Colors is probably the biggest element to pay attention to.
Value is the relative darkness or lightness of a color. Value is also called tone. Value is the contrast between black and white and all the tones in between. Value can be used with color as well as black and white. Make sure the colors you put on your design are dark or light enough for the proper mood. If you want to show a sad figure in your design, most people would give the design a darker value. On the other hand to show happy children playing around most people would recommend lighter colors.
Texture is the
surface quality that can be seen and felt. Textures can be rough, smooth, soft or hard. Textures do not always feel the way they look; for example, you can draw a picture of a porcupine that looks prickly but the prickly feeling is an illusion, if you touch the drawing, the paper still feels smooth. Texture helps your design to be distinctive or have identifying character and characteristics.
Shape is something distinguished from its surroundings by its outline within your design. You can make your whole work a certain shape besides the common square, and then have shapes within the design shape. This makes the design more complex. Shapes can be geometric, like squares and circles; or organic, like free formed shapes or natural shapes.
Form is similar to the idea of shape. Form is the structure of your design and how everything in the design looks like it's meant to go together. Forms can be three-
dimensional shapes, expressing length, width, and depth. Spheres, cylinders, boxes and triangles are forms.
Space is the area between and around objects. The space around objects is often called negative space; negative space has shape. Space can also refer to the feeling of depth. Real space is three-dimensional; in visual art when we create the feeling or illusion of depth we call it space.
Line A line is a mark with a greater length than width. Lines can be horizontal, vertical, diagonal, straight, curved, thick or thin. Line defines the position and direction of the design.
Information from: http://www.jiskha.com/art/visual_arts/ped.html
