A basics introduction into the principals of design

The principles of design bring together all the elements of art to product a drawing that is well designed, the composition’s design elements are all in unity and the drawing looks correct and complete.

The principals of design, which we will discuss basically in this article, are:

Composition; unity; balance; visual weight; proportion; rhythm; contrast and emphasis.

Composition: The visual organization of a design is its composition or arrangement. In other words, composition is the conscious arrangement of parts of design into a unified whole. Designers organize all the elements of the design into what they call a compositional plan; the compositional plan is usually circular, square, triangular or rectangular. Hereby, the principals of design form the strategy used by designers to create an overall sense of compositional unity.

Unity: Unity refers to the organization of the elements of a design in such a manner that they combine to produce a whole, the different parts combine so that they appear to be united in spirit, sentiment, and purpose.

Balance: It is the distribution of apparent weights so that they offset one another. When a composition is balanced, the visual weights seem balanced and create a sense of what we call visual equilibrium.

Visual weight: When we speak about visual weight we are referring to the visual weight that each of the elements in an image or design has. Visual weight includes size, colour tonal value, shape, location, and contrast.

Proportion: When we say that the elements in our design are in proportion, we usually mean that the whole design seems to fit together in the correct relationship. The individual elements, their sizes and shapes, are harmonious. The foundation of a proportion is a ratio; a ratio suggests a measurable comparison between two things.

Rhythm: Rhythm occurs when a single element is repeated in a design, for example, kinds of lines, shapes, forms, textures or colours. The rhythm helps to move the viewer’s eye throughout the picture. As the viewer’s eye travels from one part to the other, it sees the similarities.

Contrast: When a person wants to draw attention to a design, or even only a certain area in a picture, he, or she can use the design principal of contrast. Contrast creates interest in a design by placing two different elements of art next to one another. It is used to emphasise our appreciation of both things, which are compared. Contrast can also create tension in a composition.

Emphasis: Emphasis is the principal that occurs when a certain letter, shape, colour or area of a composition gets attention, it is emphasised. Emphasis refers to a dominance of one area or element in a design. In other words, the principle of emphasis refers to an area that becomes a focal point in a picture or becomes an area of importance.

This was just a basic introduction into the principals of design. It is good to get to know what the principals are, when one wants to study art or design. Thank you for reading this article.

published 2 years ago

Elouise

373 points