Reading Summary

Two Dimensional Design

Theory of human perception
-understanding how we perceive visual form by organizing its components into a meaningful whole

4 Apects of Gesalt

 1. closure

 2. continuance

 3. proximity

 4. similarity

Interactions of Forms
-position
-direction
-space

• figure
• ground

Elements of Compositional Interaction 

• Depth- create contrast
• Perspective- created through use of lines

Visual Height and Balance

• symmetry- same sides
• assymetry- different sides

Critique Handbook

Formal Matters 

How one form of work versus another.

Visual Elements  

line

shape

scale

size

composition 

color

Some good advice in the handbook was to look at the proportions of the figures.

It stated that it is when critiquing a work when formal elements support or undermine it, it could get tricky. 

   nonreferential

  self-referential

Formalism- an approach to art (formal matter is the most important aspect of work)

Modernism- looking beyond the actual art

The reading aslo went into detail about more ways to critique and how to keep your wyw out for certain things including the abstracton and ratio. 

Pier Mondrian- 'Dialogue on the New Plastic' 

This reading was pretty interesting. It describes the upcoming of Mondrian into abstract art. Mondrian depicts the reading as a dialoge between him and a critic. He refers to the critic as a singer and  he a musician in order to use music analogies as his defense. 

To sum it up, he writes how "new platic" is judged to easily and needs to be given a thorough critique. Abstraction is another form of art and should be taken that way.

Two Dimensional Drawings

Types of Forms

It states that there are two types of forms. Geometric(inorganic) and Organic.

Geometric is anything with angles, shapes and patterns. It may be a product of nature but still be geometric in that it consists of the above. 

Elements of Forms

• line
• dot 
• plane
• volume

 Designing Basic Visual Characteristics
*No matter what type of two dimensional form, it has visual characteristics. 

• size
• shape
• texture
• color 

This Chapter revisits on the class lecture from Friday August 30th. It defines composition and what it consists of. The similarities of composition and visual compositions are also mentioned. One of the common characteristics is that they both harmony. Harmony doesn't always have to be music, it also can be interpreted as a flow of continuity. 

-Simplicity
-Complexity
-Order
-Chaos
These are a few more of the characteristics. 

Proportions 
Helps the visual appearance of a work of art. Without it, the artwork could possible fall apart. It creates the harmony which makes the piece function. 

Ways of Directing and Understanding 

•  Attention and Hierarchy
• Contrast

Rhythm is a way to create flow to a composition. It allows movement and is nature inspired. 

Structure is the appearance creating the meaning and sense if continuity. Structure can give an artwork a different outlook.