Lesson 2.

3: ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES OF VISUAL ARTS

Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of this lesson you are expected to:
 Identify the Elements and Principles of Visual Arts
 Establish the importance of elements and principle of visual arts in
learning
The visual elements
 A basic understanding of the visual elements is essential to purposeful teaching
in the visual arts. Line, shape, form, colour and tone, pattern and rhythm, texture
and spatial organisation are the basics of two-dimensional and three-dimensional
composition.
 The teacher should be aware of the visual elements and informally draw attention
to them as they arise in the children’s work, in the work of artists and in the
observed environment.
 Awareness of the elements and their interplay is essential to quality design in
both two and three- dimensional work, including craft.
 A developing visual vocabulary and a growing ability to think visually and
spatially help to focus children as they strive for visual expression.
Line
 Line is the basic element in children’s early drawings. In art work, line can create
shape, pattern, movement and unity in a composition.
 Line can be thick, thin, textured, delicate, bold, curved, straight, continuous or
broken.
 Children soon discover that lines can make shapes and they use them to invent
their symbols.
Shape
 Shape is created by merging, touching and intersecting lines. It can also be
defined by colour and tone and by texture.
 Everything has a silhouette shape as well as other internal shapes.
 The shapes that emerge between shapes are called negative shapes.
 Shapes can be regular or irregular, closed or open.
Form
 Form is the name given to three- dimensional shape.
 It is solid. Form can be modelled in clay, Plasticine or papier mâché.
 Ways of suggesting three-dimensional form on a flat plane (surface) are explored
through drawing and painting.
Colour and tone
 Colour in art is referred to in terms of hue, tone, intensity and temperature.
 The basic characteristic of pure colour is called hue, for example yellow, red,
blue.
 Tone is the lightness or darkness of a hue.
 Intensity refers to the relative strength or weakness of a hue.
 Temperature in art terms (but not in precise scientific terms) refers to the warm
and cool halves of the colour spectrum. Developing awareness of colour and its

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 impact on everyday life is vital to developing children’s visual awareness and
awareness of the effects they can create with colour in their own work.
Pattern and rhythm
 Pattern is the constant repetition, with variation, found in everything from the
pattern of sea shells to the forms of hills and clouds.
 The teacher draws attention to pattern and rhythm in nature, in art and in the
children’s work as it arises.
 Children can use pattern and rhythm as a design element in two or three-
dimensional compositions to achieve unity, variety, movement and directional
force.
Texture
 Texture is the roughness or smoothness of a surface.
 Everything has texture. Surfaces may be silky, shiny, hairy or bumpy, for
example. Texture is an important aspect of the visual and not just the tactile
world.
 Children need opportunities to work on variously textured surfaces and to
discover their own ways of suggesting textures seen in nature.
Spatial organisation
 Spatial organisation in two-dimensional work is concerned with creating an
illusion of space and depth on a flat surface and also with organising the flat
picture plane.
 Three-dimensional work (construction, for example) involves finding ways of
working with various closed or open spaces or compartments to create
structures: this applies to non-representational as well as to representational or
imaginative structures.
The visual elements in context Learning in art is activity-based and developmental
and it builds on children’s previous experience in different media. Children develop
awareness of the visual elements and their interplay through making art and through
looking at and responding to art works. While they have relevance for all six strands,
attention should be drawn to them informally, in context and without undue emphasis at
primary level.
Principle of Visual Arts
The “principles of design” are mechanisms of arrangement and organization for the
various elements of design in artwork. Please note that different sources might list
slightly different versions of the “Principles of Design,” but the core fundamentals are
essentially the same.
Harmony
 in art and design is the visually satisfying effect of combining similar, related
elements. For instance: adjacent colors on the color wheel, similar shapes etc.
Balance
 A feeling of equality in weight, attention, or attraction of the various visual
elements within the pictorial field as a means of accomplishing organic unity.
Proportion
 Proportion is the comparison of dimensions or distribution of forms. It is the
relationship in scale between one element and another, or between a whole

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 object and one of its parts. Differing proportions within a composition can relate
to different kinds of balance or symmetry, and can help establish visual weight
and depth.
Dominance/Emphasis
 The principle of visual organization that suggests that certain elements should
assume more importance than others in the same composition. It contributes to
organic unity by emphasizing the fact that there is one main feature and that
other elements are subordinate to it.
Variety
 is the complement to unity and harmony, and is needed to create visual interest.
Without unity and harmony, an image is chaotic and “unreadable;” without variety
it is dull and uninteresting. Good design is achieved through the balance of unity
and variety; the elements need to be alike enough so we perceive them as
belonging together and different enough to be interesting.
Movement
 Movement is the path our eyes follow when we look at a work of art, and it is
generally very important to keep a viewer’s eyes engaged in the work rhythm

Self- Check Elements and Principle of Visual Arts

Direction: Write True if the statement is correct, write False if it is wrong.

________1. Harmony in art and design is the visually satisfying effect of combining
similar, related elements. For instance: adjacent colors on the color wheel, similar
shapes etc
________2. The “principles of design” are mechanisms of arrangement and
organization for the various elements of design in artwork.
________3. Variety is the path our eyes follow when we look at a work of art
________4. Balance is a feeling of equality in weight, attention, or attraction of the
various visual elements within the pictorial field as a means of accomplishing organic
unity
________5. Texture is the name given to three- dimensional shape.
________6. Colour in art is referred to in terms of hue, tone, intensity and temperature.
________7. Line can be thick, thin, textured, delicate, bold, curved, straight, continuous
or broken.
________8. Form is created by merging, touching and intersecting lines
________9. Spatial organisation in two-dimensional work is concerned with creating an
illusion of space and depth
________10. Proportion is the comparison of dimensions or distribution of forms.

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Lesson: 2.4: LEARNING DOMAIN
Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of this lesson you are expected to:
 Identify the different learning domain in visual arts
 Establish the importance of learning domain of visual arts

The study of Visual Arts includes three learning domains: visual arts knowledge,
visual arts appreciation and criticism, and visual arts making. The integration of these
domains is much preferred over their separation in curriculum design. The three visual
arts learning domains provide the key learning content and activities of the Visual Arts
curriculum. Each domain can bear different weighting and become a focus of study in a
particular learning topic. However, encompassing all three learning domains to provide
a more balanced and comprehensive Visual Arts curriculum is recommended.

Visual arts knowledge

Visual arts knowledge involves the study of visual language, knowledge related
to visual arts forms, media, skills and materials, and contextual knowledge of the arts
and aesthetics. Visual arts knowledge helps students observe and appreciate the
natural and man-made environments, as well as artworks of the past and present.
Students can also apply visual arts knowledge to art making activities in order to
enhance the expressiveness of their visual arts works.
 Visual language Visual language refers to visual elements and principles of
organization found in visual arts works or visual phenomena.

 Knowledge about visual arts forms, media, skills and materials- visual arts
incorporate a variety of visual arts forms and media such as drawing, painting,
design, craft, sculpture, or mixed media works. New visual arts forms and media
such as video, digital art and web art have merged as a result of the introduction
of new materials, techniques and concepts for aesthetic presentation.

 Arts in context- students study the visual arts in social, cultural and historical
contexts. They seek to explore various socio-cultural factors that influence the
appreciation and making of the visual arts as well as the relationship among
those factors.

 Aesthetics- is a branch of philosophy. It helps students inquire into issues

related to the characteristics, meanings and values of the arts.

Visual arts appreciation and criticism

Through observation and direct experience, students describe, feel, analyse,
interpret and judge the value of visual arts works, thus developing their personal
aesthetic values. In the course of appreciating and criticizing artwork, students study the
visual arts in social, cultural and historical contexts. They pursue understandings of the
relationship among the visual arts, societies and cultures. As students are exposed to a
wide range of visual arts works, they also become familiar with the characteristics, ways
of communication and making processes of different media.

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 Appreciation and criticism approaches
There are various approaches to visual arts appreciation and criticism each
having its particular focus, theoretical base and activities. Teachers can adopt any
approach deemed suitable for their learning and teaching context or modify and enrich
the suggested stages/process in accordance with individual situations.
The stages of art appreciation and criticism are discussed separately in the
following, they actually interweave with one another and overlap among themselves.
Stages/process of art appreciation and criticism can include:

Literal description – Description is a process in which relevant data are

identified and gathered from a piece of artwork. Students are encouraged to observe
and describe carefully the features of the artwork. In the process of description,
students’ capabilities of concentration and focused observation can be strengthened.

Comprehensive feeling – Due to individual differences in experience and knowledge,

personal feelings about a piece of artwork, shaped by associations and imagination,
vary. In the process of visual arts appreciation, students are encouraged to express
their feelings and opinions towards the artwork freely so as to facilitate communication.

Formal analysis – Formal analysis is based on the literal descriptions of and

comprehensive feeling towards the artwork. In the process of formal analysis, students
analyse the skills of making, manipulation of materials, and composition and visual
effects of the artwork.

Interpretation of meanings – With reference to information acquired from literal

description, formal analysis and the factual and/or contextual knowledge of the artwork,
students interpret the embedded messages and ideas of the artwork in its particular
cultural context. Students realize that works of art reflect artists’ responses to their
surroundings. As such, students can also explore the socio-cultural context in which the
artwork was produced.

Value judgment – Through the processes of literal description, comprehensive feeling,

formal analysis, and interpretation of meanings, students can make rational, affective
and comprehensive judgments concerning the significance and value of the artwork.

Visual arts making

Students express their feelings and convey their ideas by manipulating visual
arts media to create visual images and objects. Students explore and develop ideas
through a variety of approaches, as well as select and handle visual arts forms, media
and forms of presentation appropriate for specific themes. They also learn to manipulate
the psychological effects or symbolic meanings derived from various visual elements
and principles of organization so as to transform a medium into a piece of aesthetically
appealing visual arts work.

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 Self- Check Learning Domain

Multiple Choice: Encircle the letter of the correct answer.

1. a branch of philosophy that students inquire into issues related to the
characteristics, meanings and values of the arts.
a. Value judgment c. Literal description
b. Aesthetics d. Visual language
2. students can make rational, affective and comprehensive judgments concerning
the significance and value of the artwork.
a. Value judgment c. Literal description
b. Aesthetics d. Visual language
3. refers to visual elements and principles of organization found in visual arts works
or visual phenomena.
a. Value judgment c. Literal description
b. Aesthetics d. Visual language
4. analysis is based on the literal descriptions of and comprehensive feeling
towards the artwork.
a. Formal analysis c. Art in context
b. Aesthetics d. Visual language
5. students study the visual arts in social, cultural and historical contexts.
a. Formal analysis c. Art in context
b. Aesthetics d. Visual language

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Lesson 2.5: LEARNING TARGETS OF VISUAL ARTS

Intended Learning Outcomes

At the end of this lesson you are expected to:
 Identify the different learning domain in visual arts
 Establish the importance of learning domain of visual arts

For Visual Arts curriculum design, appropriate and assessable learning

objectives and content, various curriculum organizations, diversified learning and
teaching strategies, and methods of assessment should be provided. Learning
activities should be designed in accordance with the Four Key Learning Targets,
i.e. developing creativity and imagination, developing skills and processes, cultivating
critical responses and understanding arts in context. Considerable efforts should be
made to integrate art appreciation and criticism with art making to achieve the aims of
Visual Arts curriculum.

Developing creativity and imagination

Through active participation in art appreciation, criticism and making, students will
develop new and different ways to enhance their power of imagination, creative
thinking and presentation skills. Students can use visual arts to express
themes and topics related to themselves, their surroundings and the works of other
artists.

Developing skills and processes

Students will learn to use visual language, different visual arts forms and a
variety of materials and techniques for visual arts making. They will develop their
skills in using verbal language to describe, analyse, communicate, and carry out
a dialogue as well as develop a positive attitude for continual exploration
and experimentation through the process of making, illustrating and presenting
their artistic ideas.

Cultivating critical responses

As students learn to understand works of visual arts, they acquire the abilities to
give critical, informed and intelligent responses based on a well-explored
background of information about the artwork, the artist, and just as importantly, with
reference to their own experience, training, culture and personal judgment.

Understanding arts in context

Students will learn to understand the meaning and value of works of visual arts in
their own and other contexts including the art historical, personal, social, c ultural,
ideological and political.

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Express It!

What do you think is the significant of having a learning target?

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What is your insight about the learning targets of visual arts?

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