Citizendia

For other uses, see Composition (disambiguation). Composition can refer to Composition (logical fallacy, a fallacy of ambiguation in which one assumes that a whole has a property solely because its various parts

In the visual arts, in particular painting, graphic design, photography and sculpture composition is the plan, placement or arrangement of elements or ingredients in an art work. Painting (pān'tīng in Art, is the practice of applying Color to a Surface (support base such as e The term graphic design can refer to a number of artistic and professional disciplines which focus on visual communication and presentation Photography (fә'tɒgrәfi or fә'tɑːgrәfi (from Greek φωτο and γραφία is the process and Art of recording pictures by means of capturing The selection and placement of the elements of design according to the principles of design within the work. It contributes to a response from the viewer; the work of art is said to be aesthetically pleasing to the eye if the elements within the work are arranged in a balanced compositional way¹ (Dunstan, 1979). However there are artists whose sole aim is to disrupt traditional composition and challenge the viewer to rethink balance and design elements within art works, for instance artists like Salvador Dali. Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech 1st Marquis of Púbol (May 11 1904 &ndash January 23 1989 was a Spanish Catalan Surrealist

Basically the term composition means 'putting together', any work of art from music to writing is arranged or put together using conscious thought. The various elements in the overall design usually relate to each other and to the whole art work (Dunstan, p. 7, 1979). There are fundamentally two types of composition: informal, and the less frequently found formal or symmetrical. Composition is also related to artistic canon, for example, the draughting of a pleasing face. In graphic design and desktop publishing, composition is commonly referred to as page layout. The term graphic design can refer to a number of artistic and professional disciplines which focus on visual communication and presentation Desktop publishing (also known as DTP) combines a Personal computer and WYSIWYG page layout Software to create Publication Documents Page layout is the part of Graphic design that deals in the arrangement and style treatment of elements (content on a page

Contents

Artistic elements in composition

Main article: Elements of art

The visual elements (the vocabulary with which the visual artist composes) are:

Composition theory

The artist determines what the centre of interest (focus in photography) of the art work will be, and composes the elements accordingly. The elements of art are a set of techniques that describe ways of presenting artwork. The shape ( OE sceap Eng created thing) of an object located in some space refers to the part of space occupied by the object as determined Texture refers to the properties held and sensations caused by the external surface of objects received through the sense of touch. Direction is the information contained in the relative position of one point with respect to another point without the Distance information Photography (fә'tɒgrәfi or fә'tɑːgrәfi (from Greek φωτο and γραφία is the process and Art of recording pictures by means of capturing The gaze of the viewer will then tend to linger over these points of interest. Elements are arranged with consideration of several factors into a harmonious whole (usually) which works together to produce the frequently desired statement.

Some factors affecting the composition of a picture are:

Such factors in composition should not be confused with the elements of art (or elements of design) themselves. In Mathematics and the Arts two quantities are in the Golden ratio if the Ratio between the sum of those quantities and the larger one is the Lighting includes both artificial Light sources such as lamps and natural illumination of interiors from Daylight. Perspective (from Latin perspicere to see through in the graphic arts such as drawing is an approximate representation on a flat surface (such as paper of an image as it is perceived Design is used both as a Noun and a Verb. The term is often tied to the various Applied arts and Engineering (See design disciplines For example, shape is an element; the usage of shape is compositional.

Viewpoint

The position of the viewer can strongly influence the aesthetics of an image, even if the subject is entirely imaginary and viewed "within the mind's eye". Not only does it influence the elements within the picture, but it also influences the viewer's interpretation of the subject.

For example, if a boy is photographed from above, perhaps from the eye level of an adult, he is diminished in stature. A photograph taken at the child's level would treat him as an equal, and one taken from below could result in an impression of dominance. Therefore, the photographer is choosing the viewer's positioning.

A subject can be rendered more dramatic when it fills the frame. There exists a tendency to perceive things as larger than they actually are, and filling the frame fulfills this psychological mechanism. This can be used to eliminate distractions from the background.

In photography, altering the position of the camera can change the background so that the subject has fewer distractions to with which to compete. This may be achieved by getting closer, moving laterally, or moving the camera vertically.

Rules or principles

Conventional composition can be achieved by utilizing a number of principles:

Rule of thirds

Main article: Rule of thirds

The rule of thirds is a guideline commonly followed by visual artists. The rule of thirds is a compositional Rule of thumb in Photography and other visual arts such as Painting and Design. The rule of thirds is a compositional Rule of thumb in Photography and other visual arts such as Painting and Design. The objective is to stop the subject(s) and areas of interest (such as the horizon) from bisecting the image, by placing them near one of the lines that would divide the image into three equal columns and rows, ideally near the intersection of those lines.

Rule of thirds: Note how the horizon falls close to the bottom grid line, and how the dark areas are in the left third, the overexposed in the right third.
Rule of thirds: Note how the horizon falls close to the bottom grid line, and how the dark areas are in the left third, the overexposed in the right third.

Simplification

Images with clutter can distract from the main elements within the picture and make it difficult to identify the subject. By decreasing the extraneous content, the viewer is more likely to focus on the primary objects. Clutter can also be reduced through the use of lighting, as the brighter areas of the image tend to draw the eye, as do lines, squares and colour. In painting, the artist may use less detailed and defined brushwork towards the edges of the picture.

Limiting focus

In photography, one approach to achieving simplification is to use a wide aperture when shooting to limit the depth of field. In Optics, particularly as it relates to Film and Photography, the depth of field (DOF is the portion of a scene that appears sharp in the image When used properly in the right setting, this technique can place everything that is not the subject of the photograph out of focus.

The blurred background focuses the eye on the flowers.
The blurred background focuses the eye on the flowers.

A similar approach, given the right equipment, is to take advantage of the Scheimpflug principle to change the plane of focus. The Scheimpflug principle is a geometric rule that describes the orientation of the plane of focus of an optical system (such as a camera when the lens plane is not parallel

Geometry and symmetry

A simple composition with cloud and rooftop that creates a symmetry.
A simple composition with cloud and rooftop that creates a symmetry.

The "rule of odds" suggests that an odd number of subjects in an image is more interesting than an even number. Thus if you have more than one subject in your picture, the suggestion is to choose an arrangement with at least three subjects. An even number of subjects produces symmetries in the image, which can appear less natural for a naturalistic, informal composition.

Related to the rule of odds is the observation that triangles are an aesthetically pleasing implied shape within an image. In a canonically attractive face, the mouth and eyes fall within the corners of the area of an equilateral triangle. Paul Cézanne successfully used triangles in his compositions of still-lives.

Line and shape

Literal lines do not exist in nature, but are the optical phenomena created when surfaces curve away from the viewer. Nonetheless, line-like shapes are for all intents considered line elements by the artist; for example, telephone and power cables or rigging on boats. Any such elements can be of dramatic use in the composition of the image. Additionally, less obvious lines can be created, intentionally or not, which influence the direction of the viewer's gaze. These could be the borders of areas of differing color or contrast, or sequences of discrete elements, or the artist may exaggerate or create lines perhaps as part of his style, for this purpose. Many lines without a clear subject point suggest chaos in the image and may conflict with the mood the artist is trying to evoke.

Movement is also a source of line, and blur can also create a reaction. Subject lines by means of illusion contribute to both mood and linear perspective, giving the illusion of depth. Perspective (from Latin perspicere to see through in the graphic arts such as drawing is an approximate representation on a flat surface (such as paper of an image as it is perceived Oblique lines convey a sense of movement and angular lines generally convey a sense of dynamism and possibly tension. Lines can also direct attention towards the main subject of picture, or contribute to organization by dividing it into compartments.

The brain often unconsciously reads near continuous lines between different elements and subjects at varying distances.

Straight lines

Horizontal, vertical, and angled lines all contribute to creating different moods of a picture. The angle and the relationship to the size of the frame both work to determine the influence the line has on the image. They are also strongly influenced by tone, color, and repetition in relation to the rest of the photograph. Horizontal lines, commonly found in landscape photography, gives the impression of calm, tranquility, and space. An image filled with strong vertical lines tends to have the impression of height, and grandeur. Tightly angled convergent lines give a dynamic, lively, and active effect to the image. Viewpoint is very important when dealing with lines particularly in photography, because every different perspective elicits a different response to the photograph.

Curved lines

Curved lines are generally used to create a sense of flow within an image. They are also generally more aesthetically pleasing, as we associate them with soft things. Compared to straight lines, curves provide a greater dynamic influence in a picture.

In photography, curved lines can give gradated shadows when paired with soft-directional lighting, which usually results in a very harmonious line structure within the image.

References

¹Dunstan, Bernard. (1979). Composing Your Paintings. London, Studio Vista.

See also

Further reading

External links

Goshen College, (also known as Goshen or GC) is a private Mennonite Liberal
© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
 Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic