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Scale refers to the size of an object (a whole) in relationship to another object (another whole). In art the size relationship between an object and the human body is significant. In experiencing the scale of an artwork we tend to compare its size to the size of our own bodies.

Group of four Scottish artists, who were among the first to introduce the intense colour of the French fauve movement into Britain in the 1920s.

A three-dimensional work of art made by a variety of means, including carving wood, chiselling stone, casting or welding metal, molding clay or wax, or assembling materials.

A colour made by mixing at least two primary colours.

Shape is one of the seven elements of art. Shape is a flat area surrounded by edges or an outline. Artists use all kinds of shapes. Geometric shapes are precise and regular, like squares, rectangles, and triangles. They are often found in human-made things, like building and machines while organic shapes are found in nature.

In painting, shade is any colour plus black.

One of the principal genres (subject types) of Western art – essentially, the subject matter of a still life painting or sculpture is anything that does not move or is dead. Still life includes all kinds of man-made or natural objects, cut flowers, fruit, vegetables, fish, game, wine and so on.

Style is basically the manner in which the artist portrays his or her subject matter and how the artist expresses his or her vision. Style is determined by the characteristics that describe the artwork, such as the way the artist employs form, colour, and composition, to name just a few.

The term subjects in art refers to the main idea that is represented in the artwork. The subject in art is basically the essence of the piece. To determine subject matter in a particular piece of art, ask yourself: What is actually depicted in this artwork?

A twentieth-century literary, philosophical and artistic movement that explored the workings of the mind, championing the irrational, the poetic and the revolutionary. Surrealism aimed to revolutionise human experience, rejecting a rational vision of life in favour of one that asserted the value of the unconscious and dreams.

A form, sign, or emblem that represents something else, often something immaterial, such as an idea or emotion. Symbolism was also a late nineteenth-century movement that advocated the expression of an idea over the realistic description of the natural world.