Embedded Files
Emphasis refers to the area of an artwork that dominates attention or draws interest.
- It is often the place a viewer looks first.
- Artists create emphasis by contrasting the elements of art, such as color or shape
- Emphasis is about getting the viewer to look where you want them to look
- Emphasis is the principle of art that helps the audience put the story of a painting or artwork together in their own minds.
- Any object or area of emphasis is called a focal point.
- The focal point is meant to be the part of an artwork to which the viewer’s eyes are first attracted. Artworks can have multiple focal points. The degree to which the focal points stand out determines the order in which the viewer notices them.
WAYS TO CREATE EMPHASIS
WAYS TO CREATE EMPHASIS
COLOR
COLOR
COLOR: Bright color is usually attractive. Road signs and traffic lights are brightly colored for a reason – to get our attention. Below are three specific ways you can use contrast to add emphasize in your own art.
- Complementary Colors
- Isolated Color
- Absent Color
1. Complementary colors are arranged across from one another on the color wheel. They are far apart. Compliments are as different in hue as possible. Examples include red/green, blue/orange, and yellow/violet
- Often complementary colors are used to organize an entire composition. They can also attract the viewer’s eyes to a focal point when place alongside one other. Complementary color relationships are visually, the loudest color relationship.
2. Isolated color is a color found in only one spot in a composition. An object with isolated color stands out because it does not harmonize with the rest of the color palette. Since this color is only found in one location, it draws our eyes to it.
3. Absent Color similar to isolated color but more severe, a single-color note in an otherwise colorless artwork draws our eyes to it. There will be no doubt in the audiences’ mind what the artist means to emphasize if only one object is in color.
ISOLATION
ISOLATION
Isolation is a straight-forward way to ensure the “main character” of a picture is noticed.
- Place an object of emphasis outside of a grouping and you will force your audience to take notice of it.
LOCATION
LOCATION
The location of a compositional element contributes to our feelings about emphasis as well. The bulls-eye on a dart board is in the center for good reason. All things being equal, a viewer will look at the center of a composition first. Placing important objects or people near the center of a canvas will add to their emphasis.
A word of caution – Important objects should be placed near, but not directly in the center. If your focal point is in the exact center of a composition you will greatly de-emphasis everything else in the composition such that the viewer may not consider the entirety of the image.
Convergence
Convergence
Convergence is when lines and edges work like arrows to indicate a focal point. Not only obvious lines work but implied lines (invisible lines) as well. For example, the direction of a person’s gaze can indicate to the audience where to look next.
The unusual
The unusual
A fun way to create emphasis in a composition is to have one element stand-out because it is so different – a round object among angular shapes, a line of people with one facing the wrong way. Think of it as the “twist” at the end of a movie. If you are changing what the audience expects to something unexpected, then you will create a striking point of emphasis.
DETAIL
DETAIL
In reality, any one thing is as undeniably real as any other thing. People, trees, cars and buildings all share the same level of “existence”, the same “completeness”. In a painting or drawing however, the artist decides the degree to which various pictorial elements are rendered. Think of it as finished vs. unfinished or tight vs. loose. A sharp/clear area in an otherwise loose composition acts as a focal point.
what should i emphasize?
what should i emphasize?
Before you try to use emphasis in your art, you need to ask yourself what am I going to emphasize?
- It would be counter-productive to draw attention to unimportant areas in your painting.
- Consider what your focal point is and what you are trying to communicate through your painting.
- What is your big idea?
examples
examples
John Singer Sargent, A Parisian Begger Girl, 1877
The focus of the painting is clearly the Parisian beggar girl. Notice how Sargent used emphasis for the girl's extended hand; hard edges and that burst of red around her forearm draw your attention towards this area. Her face, on the other hand, is left vague and ambiguous. This works in favor of Sargent's big idea for the painting—her begging hand is more important than her identity.
Claude Monet, Impression Sunrise, 1872
Your attention is drawn towards the vivid orange sunset, which stands out from the weak blues, greens, and grays in the background. Monet used color saturation in this case to emphasize the sunset.
Joaquin Sorolla, The Research, 1897
In Research by Joaquín Sorolla, the area on the table is emphasized by several elements:
- The light which is illuminating the desk and research area;
- The implied lines created by the men looking down at the table (we want to look where they are looking);
- The relatively bright colors used for whatever is in the bottles; and
- The lightest light, being the white shirt of the researcher sitting down.
Valentin Serov, Iphigenia in Tauris, 1893
In Valentin Serov's painting, the woman looking out over the ocean breaks up the tapered line created by the crashing shore. This interruption of the line makes a powerful statement and emphasizes the position of the woman.
Francisco Goya, The Third of May 1808, 1814
In this example of emphasis in art, Goya highlights the man in white through putting him in a spotlight, having the man wear bright clothes, having many lines throughout the composition pointing to the man, and having his emotional face be one of the only faces shown.
Page updated
Report abuse