The Elements of Art
4th Grade
The elements of art are the "building blocks" of art. This is the vocabulary we use to describe works of art.
LIne
There are many ways to describe lines like thick, thin, wavy, curly, and straight. In art, lines are named according to their direction
Horizontal lines go side to side.
Vertical lines go up and down.
Diagonal lines are slanted like they are falling over.
Curvy lines twist and turn in many directions.
Zig-Zags are a pointy combination of horizontal, vertical, and diagonal lines.
Shape
Shapes are made by connecting lines.
Geometric shapes are shapes that have been given a name.
Organic shapes don't have a name and are often seen in nature.
Form
Forms are three-dimensional objects. In art, a painting or a drawing is two-dimensional and a sculpture or statue is three-dimensional. You can create the illusion of 3D by adding shadows or value to a drawing.
Color
Color adds interest and mood to a work of art. It is also referred to as "Hue". The primary colors are red, yellow and blue. The secondary colors are created by mixing the primary colors. They are purple (violet), orange and green.
Value
Value is the lightness or darkness of a color. In this project you will need to be able to create three values on some forms and two values on another. One way to do that is to use two versions of the same hue.
Space
The element of art that refers to the emptiness or area around or within objects. Positive space refers to the part of the artwork that takes up space. Negative space is the area around that object. This element of art also refers to the "parts" of the picture... Foreground, Middleground and Background!
Texture
How something feels or looks like it would feel if you could touch it. There are two kinds of texture: Real (how something actually feels, such as a sculpture) and Implied (when an artist paints or draws a texture but it is artificial).