The Principles

The ELEMENTS are the ingredients used to create design; the PRINCIPLES combine to create
your recipe for good design.
1. Balance- equal visual emphasis on different sides of the work. Balance can be symmetrical,
assymetrical, or radial.
2. Unity- the elements look like they belong together. The artist arranges separate elements to
create a whole.
3. Emphasis- the focal point is the center of interest or emphasis. Emphasis can be created by
using bright color, contrast, highlighting certain shapes and careful placement of an element.
4. Contrast- created by placing very different things next to one another. Contrast can define
the focal point. Create contrast by using light next to dark and muted, soft color next to bold
color.
5. Rhythm- created with repetition. The reuse of a design element can lead a viewer to a focal
point. Repetition can also control the direction and speed of a viewers attention.
6. Movement- How your eye moves or tracks through a piece of art and the way of combining
visual elements to produce a sense of action or implied motion.
7. Pattern- The use of repeated elements to create this.
General Art Terms:
Composition is how a work is designed. The overall arrangement/ organization of the
ELEMENTS and PRINCIPLES of Design. It may be orderly, disorderly, flat or showing depth,
symmetrical or asymmetrical, simple or complex, realistic or abstract.
Proportion is the relationship of size and scale.