Design Vocabulary

Aesthetic

A set of principles or ideas that determine the way content appears.  The style of artwork. IE: Cubist aesthetic.

Composition

Composition is the placement or arrangement of visual elements or ingredients in a work of art, as distinct from the subject of a work. It can also be thought of as the organization of the elements of art according to the principles of art. The term composition means ‘putting together,’ … with conscious thought.

Craftsmanship

Skillfulness, technique, handiwork, neatness. Good craftsmanship in this class means your work should be neat, smudge free, debris free and created in the format required for the assignment.

Form

The items that make up compositions: lines, shapes, textures, words and pictures.

Space

The area where elements of a composition exist or “picture place”.

Format

The shape of the space. i.e. a piece of paper or a computer screen

Abstract 

When a work of art or design is distorted to look less realistic. Non figurative, nonrepresentational.

Literal/Representational

When a work of art or design closely resembles something from real life. Avoiding exaggeration, metaphor, or embellishment.

Positve Space

A solid form or element on a picture plane.

Negative Space

The background or picture plane where the form sits. The space that surrounds the form or positive space.