Art Terminology

Post date: Aug 27, 2015 5:36:2 PM

Great website with list of words to describe colour, lighting, composition etc.

https://www.liveabout.com/art-words-list-2577414

Drawing

PROPORTION: To put in proper relation with something else.

LINE: A mark with length and direction, created by a point that moves across a surface.

SHAPE: 2-Dimensional objects (circle, square, triangle)

FORM: 3-Dimensional objects ( cone, cube, cylinder, sphere)

THUMBNAIL SKETCH: a small, quick drawing used to get your ideas on paper

CONSTRUCTION LINES: rough line drawings used to give an object mass and volume

LINE-OF-ACTION: designates the movement or action of a character in a drawing

VALUE: lightness or darkness of an color

HATCHING/CROSSHATCH: multiple lines that add value to a drawing

STIPPLING: multiple dots that add value to a drawing

SMUDGING: using a blending tool to blend values (not your finger!)

CONTOUR: a style of drawing that uses outline only, to define an object on the page

GESTURAL: a style of expressive mark-making that emphasises an energetic and tactile approach to form. Gestural drawings are usually done quickly, to capture the shape and movement of a person - often as short as 30 seconds, or as long as 2 minutes.

OBSERVATIONAL DRAWING:

Color Theory

HUE: common name of a color ( i.e. blue, green, etc)

PIGMENT: gives paint its color.

SPECTRUM: all the colors in the color wheel

PRIMARY: red, blue & yellow

SECONDARY: green, orange & violet ( mix primary colors)

TERTIARY (INTERMEDIATE): red-orange, yellow-orange, blue green, etc.

ADVANCING COLORS: colors that appear to come towards you (warm colors)

WARM COLORS: red, orange & yellow

COOL COLORS: blue, violet & green

RECEDING COLORS: colors that appear to be in the background

ANALOGOUS COLORS: colors that are next to each other on the color wheel

COMPLEMENTARY COLORS: colors that are directly across from each other on the color wheel

INTENSITY: brightness or dullness of a color

OPAQUE: colors that you can't see through

TRANSPARENT/TRANSLUCENT: colors that you can see through

VALUE: darkness or a lightness of a color

TINT: color + white

TONE: color + grey

SHADE: color + black

MONOCHROMATIC: a single color and its tints and shades

ACHROMATIC: without color (ie black and white and their tints and shades)

PALETTE : colors you paint with or the thing that you put the paint on.

Composition & Perspective

POSITIVE SPACE: area an object occupies.

NEGATIVE SPACE: area around an object.

COMPOSITION: way of arranging all the different elements in an artwork so it is interesting to look at and equally balanced.

GOLDEN RULE OF THIRDS: a way of breaking down a composition mathematically, focusing on thirds.

BACKGROUND: area within a composition that appears further away from the viewer. Objects appear smaller with less detail.

MIDDLE GROUND: part of a composition that appear between the foreground and back ground.

FOREGROUND: in a scene or artwork , the part that seems closest to you. Objects appear larger and more detailed.

SYMMETRY: both sides of a center line are exactly or nearly the same, like a mirror.

ASYMMETRY: two sides of a composition are different yet balanced

VERTICAL: top -to-bottom. This can refer to the placement of objects within a composition or the composition itself.

HORIZONTAL: left-to-right. This can refer to the placement of objects within a composition or the composition itself.

DIAGONAL: bottom left to top right. This refers to the placement of objects within a composition.

3D Art

MAQUETTE: smaller model of the artwork, used to try out ideas or experiment with media, composition etc.

ARMATURE: a wire skeleton used to strengthen clay sculptures

CONSTRUCTED SCULPTURE: built up from materials such as wood, wire, plastic etc.

ADDITIVE PROCESS: creating a sculpture by adding pieces (eg modeling clay)

SUBTRACTIVE PROCESS: creating a sculpture by removing or carving out pieces (eg carving wood or plaster)

KINETIC: sculpture that uses movement as an important element

CASTING: using the media in a liquid form (eg wax) and pouring it into a mold

FREESTANDING: not attached to a wall, so you can walk right around it.

REPURPOSING: using materials for a new purpose (eg plastic bottles, cut up and pieced together)

ASSEMBLAGE: sculpture made from found objects

READYMADE: making an existing object into an artwork by putting it in a new context

AMORPHOUS: no clear shape or form

BIOMORPHIC: in the form of a living organism

FIGURATIVE: in the form of a human being or animal

CONCEPTUAL: art in which the idea presented by the artist is considered more important than the finished product, if there is one

EPHEMERAL: lasting a very short time (eg one day)

TIME-BASED: artworks which use the passage of and the manipulation of time as the essential element

SITE-SPECIFIC: Refers to a work of art designed specifically for a particular location and that has an interrelationship with the location

INSTALLATION: art that is created, constructed, or installed on the site where it is exhibited, often incorporating materials or physical features of the site

SITE: The place/area where the artwork is created, installed or performed. It can be indoors or outdoors, and any size.