Chapter 2.1 Elements of Design

26/05/2019 Chapter 2.
1 Elements of Design – The Bright Continent: African Art History
Increase Font Size
Home Read Sign in
Search in book …
THE BRIGHT CONTINENT: AFRICAN ART HISTORY
CONTENTS
Chapter 2: Analyzing and Discussing African Art
Chapter 2.1 Elements of Design
Learning Objectives
Identify key elements of design in two- and three-dimensional works
Identify whether a traditional artwork conforms or departs from standard African

approaches to art
Analyze the stylistic traits of single and comparative artworks using art historical
vocabulary
Analyze the contextural traits of single and comparative artworks using art historical
vocabulary
Record key information about the context of an artwork in lectures and readings
Memorize the ethnic group/artist, name, country, and century that identify an
artwork.
Create a study plan and an effective test strategy

Previous: Chapter 1.5: Patronage in Contemporary African Art
Identify key sources and plan research
Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design
https://pressbooks.ulib.csuohio.edu/bright-continent/chapter/chapter-2-1-elements-of-style-and-design/ 1/16
26/05/2019 Chapter 2.1 Elements of Design – The Bright Continent: African Art History
Increase Font Size
The study of art history, whether that of Africa or any other part of the world, requires a
specific way of looking at objects and describing them through the use of a discipline-based
vocabulary. Stylistic analysis recognizes key visual aspects of two- and three-dimensional
objects, characterizing them by discussing the elements and principals of design. The
elements of design vary, depending on whether an object is flat (two dimensional; i.e., can be
measured only via length and width) or not (three dimensional; i.e., its length, width, and depth
can be mentioned. Although there is overlap, we will examine them separately.
Two-dimensional Objects
Drawings, paintings, prints, photographs, flat textiles, flat basketry (like mats), and collages are
all two dimensional. We can consider them in terms of their line, shape, tone, texture, depth
and (if the work is not black and white), color. In traditional African art, two-dimensional work
mostly consists of flat textiles and some flat beaded panels, as well as Ethiopian paintings and
Islamic illuminated manuscripts. Contemporary African art includes drawings, prints,
photographs, and collages throughout the continent. Though style, theme, and impulse may
vary considerably, the elements of design do not.
Line
Two-dimensional artworks may include actual,

contour, directional, and implied lines. Actual
lines are created by the artist’s hand movements,
and are the marks made by moving a tool from
one point to another. They may be curved or
straight. The latter can be horizontal (parallel to
the top and bottom of the surface), vertical
(parallel to the sides of the surface), or diagonal.
Lines have varying width and can be light or dark
depending on the pressure on the tool. Lines, like
all of the elements of designs, have their own
character and personality. A light, looping line
may have a carefree or sensual feel, while
verticals and horizontals create a sense of
stability. If an artist wants to insert a feeling of
motion or power, diagonals indicate
Previous: Chapter 1.5: Patronage in Contemporary AfricanFig.
Art94. Betty Manyolo, “African Fable.” Uganda,
action. While lines can simply indicate a mark, linocut. National Archive, Contemporary African Art
Select List number 128.
they can also describe an object–an outline. Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design
Placing them close together and crossing them may produce the effect of shade, or they
Increase Font may
Size
be rhythmically spaced to create a pattern.
Contours indicate an object’s edges, but they do not have to be actual lines where one object’s
edge is perceived against a background or against another object, that non-drawn edge is
considered a line, and can have a personality like a drawn line. Likewise, a limb or other
section of an object has contours, but the whole of the limb can also be considered a non-
drawn line describing a direction. Lastly, there are invisible lines that are psychological in
nature; when two figures in an artwork look at each other, or a figure looks at a thing, there is
an invisible sightline between the two.
Look at Fig. 94 and consider what kinds of lines dominate; they are illustrated by the red
overlay in Fig. 95.
Shapes
Shapes can be descriptive, identifying something

in the real world–a person, house, rock. When
the objects are natural, such as human beings,
animals or plants, the shapes are often described
as organic. Shapes can also be geometric,
describing squares, circles, ovals, rectangles, etc.
These do not necessarily have to be
mathematically precise. Sometimes shapes do not
result from the artist producing a shape, but from
thebackground spaces around, within, or between
created shapes; they are then the result of
negative space.
Tone
Tone has to do with lightness and darkness; in

a black and white work, tone refers to the
distribution of black, white, and a range of greys.
In a painted work, tones have to do with the Fig. 95. Curving lines dominate Manyolo’s print.
relative lightness or darkness of a color section–if
they were copied on a black and white photocopier, would two colored section be the same
grey or would they be clearly differentiated by tone?
Tone can affect our perceptions of depth. Next:

A flat circle 2.2
Chapter suddenly looks
Principles like a sphere when
and Considerations tone
of Design
is added–shadows makes things appear to recede, while highlights make them seem
Increase closer.
Font Size
When you watch the video below, notice how the artist makes the face look three-dimensional
through his manipulation of tone.
Fig. 96. Detail of Chris Ofili’s “Princess

of the Posse” (1999), showing the actual
raised texture of paint and other
materials. Photo Rocor, cropped.
Creative Commons CC BY-NC 2.0.
Fig. 97a. These details of Nigerian artist Jimoh Buraimoh’s “Masks,” at the African Union Conference
Centre, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, has an actual texture produced by the beads he used. Photo Andrew Moore,
2015. Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0, smaller detail cropped.
Texture
Texture relates to the way things actually feel

(thick paint strokes, for example, that are raised
from the background) (Figs. 96; 97), or to the
illusion of known textures (a surface that is
made of paint, but looks exactly like fur or metal
because the artist understands how these materials
Fig. 97b. reflect light and is able to mimic that). The video
of African
Previous: Chapter 1.5: Patronage in Contemporary one ofArt
Kelvin Okafor’s pencil drawings below
demonstrate that–even without color–illusionistic textures can be produced Increase

by considering how
Font Size
different materials absorb and reflect light.
Aisha II Drawing
Depth
By definition, two-dimensional art cannot have actual depth. However, artists often try to
create the illusion of depth through a variety of techniques. One of the simplest is
overlapping. When we see one shape clearly, and it partially hides another shape, we perceive
the complete shape as being in front of the blocked shape.
The position of two equally-sized shapes on a flat

surface can also suggest a distance relationship–
things at the bottom seem closer to the viewer
than things at the top do. Fig. 98 includes a dark
cow at the top that no other cows overlap.
Nonetheless, because it is at the top of the
composition, we read it as being farther away.
This something operates with size–if two objects
Fig. 98. These cows overlap each other, and our eye
interprets their relative positions–the cow that is are the same size in the real world, and one is
blocked by another is “in front of it,” even though all
are on a flat surface. Rock painting, Tassili, Algeria, larger in a painting, our real-world cues can
5000-3000 BCE. Photo Patric Gruban, 2006, suggest the larger one is closer to us, depending on
cropped. Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0. Click to
ENLARGE. what other cues are present.
When an artist is painting a landscape vista, several factors can suggest a deep space: objects in
the foreground are crisp, while those in theNext: Chapter
distance are2.2less
Principles and objects
focused; Considerations
in the of Design
foreground
have more distinct colors, while those in the Increase Font Size
distance tend toward grey; objects in the
foreground are dark, while those in the distance
become paler. This combination of traits in
landscape depictions of deep space is known as
atmospheric perspective (Fig. 99). It mimics
actual traits that can be observed in nature, when
our perception of color shifts depending on
Fig. 99. Allerley Glossop’s (South Africa, 1870-
distance, as does our perception of sharp focus 1955) “Riders in Lesotho” illustrates the traits of
atmospheric perspective and how it indicates deep
and fuzziness. space in a landscape. Public domain.
Scientific perspective is a systematic,

mathematical effort to reproduce–on a flat
surface–the way objects are perceived by our eyes
in reality: standing in the middle of railroad tracks,
the parallel rails appear to converge at the horizon,
even though we know they don’t. Those who are
accustomed to the realism of photographs and film
find scientific perspective to be the most realistic
way to show depth, because we are trained to read
Fig. 100. This detail of a cityscape by Malodi, an
academically-trained artist from Kinshasa, DRC, those flat images as representations of three
demonstrates a loose but confident adaptation of
one-point perspective while deviating from its dimensions. Artists trained in this system refer to
scientific precision. Photo Fred R, 2010. Creative one-point perspective, two-point perspective, and
Commons CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
so on–each of these posits a shift in the viewer’s
position. Some artists do not know the technical rules of scientific perspective, but are able to
observe some of its characteristics, such as the apparent diminishing of structures as they
recede towards the horizon. They may employ these observations to create an imperfect
perspective effect that nonetheless indicates depth. Other trained artists are comfortable with
scientific perspective, but bend its rules in places for a looser effect (Fig. 100).
Color
Not all two-dimensional work uses color, although tone is a constant element even in color
work. In two-dimensional art, color is created
Next: via the application
Chapter 2.2 Principlesof pigments,
and or coloring
Considerations of Design
agents. These may be combined with a binder Increase Font Size

that makes them usable (rather than dry powder)
before they are (usually) and allows them to bond
with a surface. The pigment and binder may need
a diluent that allows them to be more liquid
during application. The binder and diluent together
are sometimes referred to as the vehicle. In oil
paint, the pigment is combined with the binder of
oil and the diluent is usually turpentine. Acrylic
paint combines the binder with acrylic and uses
water as the most common diluent; when dry, the
liquid acrylic turns to plastic. Watercolor uses gum Fig. 101. This pigment color wheel includes primary,
arabic as the binder for pigment, and water is its secondary, and tertiary colors, with complements
directly opposite each other. Image Sakurambo.
diluent. Creative Commons CC BY-SA 3.0.
Th
ere
are
thr
ee
pri
ma
ry
col
ors
or
hu
es
of
pig
me
Fig. 102. This Johannesburg mural is nearly monochromatic, full of browns. Even the red and green are of very nt
low saturation. Photo Pascal Parent, 2012. Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
tha
t, mixed with each other or with the addition of black or white, produce all other colors. These
are red, yellow, and blue. Secondary colors result from mixing any two of these (yellow plus
blue=green; yellow plus red=orange; red plus blue=violet). There are six tertiary colors
resulting from a combination of primary and secondary colors (yellow-green, yellow-orange,
blue-green, blue-violet, red-orange, red-violet). Primary, secondary, and tertiary colors can be
arranged on a color wheel (Fig. 101) that Next:
cyclesChapter
from2.2 Principles
yellow and Considerations
to orange of Design
to red to violet to blue
to green and back to yellow. When colors are opposite one another on the color wheel,
Increase Fontthey
Size
are known as complementary colors. When placed next to each other at full strength, they
show the greatest contrast and almost vibrate. When mixed together, they become brown. We
refer to hues in their purest, brightest form as fully saturated, and the addition of a
complement reduces their saturation. When white is added to a color, it becomes lighter, also
known as a tint of the color. If black is added, it becomes darker, or a color’s shade. These
terms (together referred to as values of a color) apply to pigment only, and are theoretical.
That is, different pigments produce varying kinds of blue–there is not one blue alone.
Likewise, colors used in lighting operate with completely different primaries.
The effects of color vary considerably. Artists can use them to replicate colors in the real world
or apply them abstractly according to whim. When their works are basically variations on one
hue, the word monochromatic describes the artwork (Fig. 102). Other paintings may favor
warm colors (yellow-orange-red) or cool colors (violet-blue-green). Colors can have
symbolic meanings that vary according to culture, with associations to power, purity,
melancholy and other characteristics or moods.
Three-dimensional Objects
Sculpture, ceramic objects (other than tilework), and architecture all are three-dimensional. We
can consider them in terms of their line, form, light and shadow, texture, color, and mass. Most
traditional African art is three-dimensional and includes carvings, castings, pottery, basketry,
jewelry, clothing that is not merely flat, and buildings. Contemporary African three-dimensional
art includes sculptures, ceramics, jewelry, much clothing, basketry, and buildings.
Line
Increase Font Size
Fig. 103. The diagram of this Attie sculpture demonstrates how certain contour lines shift their domination, depending
on the viewer’s position: red represents curves, thin green lines represent verticals and horizontals, blue represents
diagonals, and thick yellow lines represent the basic verticality of the figure’s posture. Attie figure from Cote d’Ivoire.
In three-dimensional work, we aren’t actually referring to the mark a theoretical point makes as
it moves, but typically discussing the lines produced by the edges of forms, or invisible
directional lines made by forms (a sculpted figure’s outstretched arm, for instance, might create
a horizontal “line”) (Fig. 103).
When considering buildings and some sculpture, lines can be created not only by the edges of
the structure, but by the decoration of its surface. In Fig. 104, the Hausa building is a basic
rectangle with some vertical extensions along the roofline. The area around the door is built up,
however, creating
Previous: Chaptertwo more verticals,
1.5: Patronage and the individual
in Contemporary African Art rectangles that decorate the upper
surface of the house are arranged in a thick horizontal band. That “line” is parallel to the
horizontal edges of the building’s roof andIncrease

foundation,
Font as
Size
well as the top of the door frame. The reinforced verticals
compete with the horizontals–does one actually dominate, or
do they balance each other out? Often the answer is clearer
than it is in this example.
Form
Form is the three-dimensional equivalent of the 2-D term

“shape.” Some African sculptures are based on geometric
solids (Fig. 105), while others employ organic shapes,
whether they are sculpture or architecture. Certain forms are
Fig. 104. Hausa home in Zinder, Niger.
Photo Roland, 2007, duplicated with common in human representations and specific terms
diagram. Creative Commons CC BY-SA
2.0. describe them. One is the “heart-shaped face” (Fig. 106).
This convention, often seen in Central African traditional art,
confines the facial features to

a sunken area, the browline
forming a heart-like double
arch, with the mouth often
positioned where the point of
a heart might be.
Sometimes individual facial Fig. 105. This Ijo mask from Nigeria can be described in terms of geometric
shapes and solid forms. It has cylindrical eyes, a nose that is a triangular solid,
features are stylized in ways a circular face with a forehead that is a semi-circular solid. Yale Art Gallery,
2006.51.323. Gift of Charles B. Benenson, B.A. 1933. Photo Tony De Camillo.
that resemble other objects, Public domain.
and their names are used as
descriptors, such as the “coffee-bean eye” or “almond eye” (Fig. 107).
Light and Shadow
Increase Font Size
Fig. 107. The almond and coffee-bean eye conventions. Clockwise from top left: detail of a Baule heddle
pulley, Brooklyn Museum, Museum Expedition 1922, Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund, 22.814. Creative Commons-
BY; S N Barid, Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0; Paul, 2009, Creative Commons CC BY-NC 2.0, cropped; Detail Akan
terracotta figure, Ghana. Yale Art Gallery, 2006.51.422. Gift of Charles B. Benenson; B.A. 1933. Public domain.
Fig. 106. Fang, Gabon. Marionette Head?;

19th century. 12 5/16″ x 6 9/16′ x 5 15/16″.
Brooklyn Museum; Gift of Corice and
Armand P. Arman; 1991.169.3. Creative
Commons-BY
Previous: 3.0.
Chapter 1.5: Patronage in Contemporary African Art
Increase Font Size
Fig. 108. The exterior of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art, Washington, DC was
designed by David Adjaye (Britain/Ghana) and includes metal screening. When sunlight passes through
it, interesting shadows are cast on the interior, a planned effect. Photo Tim Smith, 2017. Creative
Commons CC BY-NC 2.0.
Light and shadow are not consistently discussed when considering 3-D objects and structures,
since they are often out of the artist’s control.
Sculptors and architects do, however, sometimes consciously incorporate light and shadow as a
design feature. This can be done through the use of materials that actually illuminate, such as
neon, LED lights or glow sticks (see video below), or may result from planned interaction with
natural sunlight’s refractions or broken shadows (Fig. 108).
Into the Light - Marcus Neustetter
Texture Increase Font Size
Three-dimensional texture always refers to actual

rather than illusionistic texture. It is produced both
by the material and the artist’s working of that
material. Some artists create works with all-over
textures, while others contrast smooth expanses
with areas of submerged or raised surfaces.
In African traditional art, texture also frequently

result from the use of multiple mediums in one
piece. A wooden sculpture, for example, might
have a feathered headdress, be dressed in actual
cloth, and wear a beaded necklace with metal
earrings. These all provide varied tactile sensations
for those allowed to touch the artworks. Even
without actual touch, viewers are experienced in
the sensations produced by those materials, and
Fig. 109. This Kongo sculpture from the Democratic
can conceptualize what the surfaces feel like (Fig. Republic of Congo is wooden, but feathers, nails and
other metal bits, cloth, a mirror, resin, a horn, shell,
109). and seeds add to the work’s complex textures.
Courtesy Quai Branly, 73.1968.7.2.
Color
Color can be painted onto a surface or the material used may have a color. Like two-
dimensional usage of color, it can mimic observed colors in the real world or be simply the
choice of the artist (Fig. 110). Its use can be symbolic or selected for its visual effect alone.
Concepts relating to primary, secondary, tertiary, and complementary colors are identical to
those of two-dimensional work, as are the definitions of tints and shades.
Mass
In three-dimensional art, mass refers to the apparent “weight” of the object, not to its size. A
solid block of stone, for example, is equally massive whether 3″ square or 3′ square. If an artist
wanted to lighten the mass, he or she would remove segments of the material so that parts of
the original block are gone; these could be on the surface or could cut right through the block.
How massive is a work? It’s often a term used comparatively, in order to state that Work A is
more massive than Work B. Envision yourself as an employee of a packing company trying to
crate an artwork in the smallest possible box.
Next:Any remaining
Chapter spaceand
2.2 Principles must be filled with
Considerations small
of Design
Increase Font styrof

Size
oam
particl
es. A
truly
massi
ve
work
would
fill the
box
Fig. 111. This Mambila sculpture from witho
the Nigeria-Cameroon border is quite ut
massive, with minimal space flowing in
and around the figure–although the room
open mouth lightens its mass
somewhat. Quai Branly, 73-1986-1-88. for
Photo Siren-Com, 2008. Creative any
Commons CC BY-SA 3.0.
particl
es. The more imaginary particles the
packer needs, the less massive the work
Fig. 110. This wooden Yoruba mask from Nigeria (in Chicago’s
Field Museum) uses blue for the skin color, although a human is (Fig. 111).
being is being depicted–it’s the artist’s choice. Photo Mary
Harrsch, 2005. Creative Commons CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
Fig. 112. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, designed by
Ghanian-British architect1.5:
Previous: Chapter David Adjaye. Photo
Patronage Macfawlty, 2016.
in Contemporary Creative
African Art Commons CC BY-SA 4.0.
In architecture, a building’s mass can be lightened not only by changing its Increase
shape, but by Size
Font
making it transparent via a glass/plexiglass external surface. This kind of transparency has a
visual effect similar to that of carving away the surface, although the surface remains solid. It is
particularly apparent when illuminated from inside at night, which maximizes the transparent
effect (Fig. 112).
LICENSE
Chapter 2.1 Elements of Design by Kathy Curnow is licensed under a Creative

Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License,
except where otherwise noted.
Powered by Pressbooks
Open Source | Open Textbooks | Open Book Publishing | Learn More

Chapter 2.1 Elements of Design - The Bright Continent - African Art History

Enviado por

Dados do documento

Título original

Direitos autorais

Formatos disponíveis

Compartilhar este documento

Compartilhar ou incorporar documento

Opções de compartilhamento

Você considera este documento útil?

Este conteúdo é inapropriado?

Direitos autorais:

Formatos disponíveis

Chapter 2.1 Elements of Design - The Bright Continent - African Art History

Enviado por

Direitos autorais:

Formatos disponíveis

26/05/2019 Chapter 2.

1 Elements of Design – The Bright Continent: African Art History

Increase Font Size

Home Read Sign in

THE BRIGHT CONTINENT: AFRICAN ART HISTORY

Chapter 2: Analyzing and Discussing African Art

Identify key elements of design in two- and three-dimensional works

Identify whether a traditional artwork conforms or departs from standard African

Create a study plan and an effective test strategy

Increase Font Size

Two-dimensional artworks may include actual,

Shapes can be descriptive, identifying something

Tone has to do with lightness and darkness; in

Tone can affect our perceptions of depth. Next:

Fig. 96. Detail of Chris Ofili’s “Princess

Texture relates to the way things actually feel

Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design

demonstrate that–even without color–illusionistic textures can be produced Increase

The position of two equally-sized shapes on a flat

Scientific perspective is a systematic,

agents. These may be combined with a binder Increase Font Size

Previous: Chapter 1.5: Patronage in Contemporary African Art

Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design

Increase Font Size

horizontal edges of the building’s roof andIncrease

Form is the three-dimensional equivalent of the 2-D term

confines the facial features to

Light and Shadow

Previous: Chapter 1.5: Patronage in Contemporary African Art

Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design

Increase Font Size

Fig. 106. Fang, Gabon. Marionette Head?;

Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design

Increase Font Size

Into the Light - Marcus Neustetter

Previous: Chapter 1.5: Patronage in Contemporary African Art

Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design

Texture Increase Font Size

Three-dimensional texture always refers to actual

In African traditional art, texture also frequently

Increase Font styrof

Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design

Chapter 2.1 Elements of Design by Kathy Curnow is licensed under a Creative

Open Source | Open Textbooks | Open Book Publishing | Learn More

Previous: Chapter 1.5: Patronage in Contemporary African Art

Next: Chapter 2.2 Principles and Considerations of Design

Você também pode gostar