Principles of Art
Careful placement of repeated elements to establish a visual tempo
What is rhythm?
Elements that move in the same direction are perceive as more related than elements move in different directions
What is common fate (synchrony)?
The line between two focal points
What is an axis?
Elements tend to be perceived according to an observer's background, culture, and history
What is past experience?
A pattern commonly observed in free-flowing rivers
What are meanders?
A principle used to establish a sense of action and to guide a viewer's eye
Elements are perceived as part of a group if they are located the same enclosed area or space
What is common region?
A line, plane, or volume that with its continuity and regularity, serves to gather, measure,and organize a pattern of forms and spaces
What is a datum?
Refers to the relationship between positive elements and negative space
What is figure/ground?
The never-ending pattern
What is a fractal?
An example is a series of shapes organized from largest to smallest
What is gradation?
Bar graphs that arrange data from lowest value to highest value use this principle to improve legibility.
What is good continuation?
An example of this principle is Jay Griffith's design for Brad Pitts' residence
What is transformation?
An example of this is the World Wildlife Fund panda
What is closure?
Spontaneous appearance of order out of apparent chaos
A principle that refers to the relationship of certain elements to the whole and to each other
What is proportion?
What is symmetry (and order)?
Principle that reflects a values system that may have functional, formal, and/or symbolic roles
What is hierarchy?
The principles that are used to create unity with variety in plant matrix design (think Piet Oudolf)
What are proximity and similiarity?
Type of order that results from process over time
What is emergent order?
Major types are symmetrical and asymmetrical
What is balance?
The principle that helps us create abstractions
What is simplicity (pragnanz)?
The historic architectural element along the edge of the Chicago riverwalk that Sasaki's contemporary design responds to spatially and through materials
What is the (Beaux-Arts Wacker) viaduct?
The three principles that help us understand written language
What are proximity, uniform connectedness, and good continuation?
This theory emphasized the use of radial organization for the ideal city, and was used in the planning of Canberra
What is the Garden City?