The Formal Elements

Line

Line is a documentation of vision and feeling. It is a human invention which allows the ability to portray and communicate what we see to the viewer.

The tattoist Mo Coppoletta is here exploring line in his inking onto the body. He is creating something beautiful on the surface of the skin by cautious, contolled, precise and fluid use of line.

The use of line in this particular piece of work is extemely complex and detailed; and appears to be almost growing out of the skin as a result of this skillfull use of line on the human body. This creates the impression that the flower itself is almost alive.

Colour

Colour grabs us, captures our attention and adds emotion, intensity and interest to a piece. It influences directly our moods, actions and emotions.

Colour is the result of light being reflected from a surface.
It is one of the most potent of the elements. It has tremendous expressive qualities; for example the dark blue tones in picasso's "La Celestina" would perhaps draw feelings of sadness and mystery, whereas the bright and vibrant yellow-orange tones of Vincent van Gogh's "Sunflowers" emit an optimistic and blissful vibe. Understanding the uses of color is crucial both in creating and appreciating artworks.

My own watercolour painting here explores very vivid, exaggeratedly fleshy colours to try to express a rawness and add a viviacious quality to the skin- making it appear like the live insides of the body. The blue tint to the background and the purplish tint to the face on the other hand adds an air of mystery, loneliness and darkness to the work.

Texture

When creating texture in two-dimensional artworks, an artist can choose to produce a smooth or a rough surface in the application of the medium. The artist Tony Bevan has here experimented with using texture in his work "self portrait".

The fleshy tones used in the painting are accentuated by a grit-like substance on the surface of the subject's skin; making the flesh appear raw. The abraisive surface layer on the face of the work makes the paint stand out from the canvas. The high viscosity of the work and subsequent 3D quality to the image is what makes it so striking.

Space

Space can be described as the distance or area around, between, above, below or within places. In art, space can be described as either two-dimensional or three dimensional, and is vital in creating an aesthetically pleasing artwork.

This photographic self portrait by Chinese artist Zhang Huan really demonstrates a sophisticated spacial usage.

The artist has enclosed himself in a "cage" of ribs- there is the idea of a barrier or protection from the rest of the world inside this personal space.

The blueish tint to the background is also here helping to create the illusion of atmospheric perspecive; space between the background, artist, and viewer, as seen in other famed historical works such as 'The Mona Lisa".

Light

Artists often want to create the illusion of 3D substance on a two dimensional surface. One of the ways this can be done is by rendering the effects of light and shadow as they fall on solid forms.

In this photographic self-portrait by Cuban artist Ana Mendieta however, the element of light is the crucial factor in the creation of the piece.
The whole technique of projecting onto the body that the artist is here using is in fact manipulating the element of light- outlining the shape of a skeleton onto her body in an extreme dark tone against the light, white tone of her skin. The effect is one of mystery, darkness, and perhaps emptiness in the photograph.

Shape

We are born into the world of shapes. As we develop we learn how to read them, and how to translate visual images into the information we need.

Shape can be defined as the outlines of objects, or can exist as gaps, or negative space between the objects. A successful use of shape helps to acheive order, variety, and harmony a composition. It helps us to dissect and analyse the things we see in the world around us.

My own ink study shows strong cutout shapes drawn in dark, expressive lines against a bright white background- thus creating a clear edge and a stronger shape for the eye to follow.

The arching, negative space is extremely visually powerful against the detailed drawing and adds interest to the page.

Form

Similar to shape, form defines objects in space. Form and shape imply space; indeed they cannot exist to the eye without space.
Two dimensional form has both width and height. Two dimensional artworks can also create the illusion of the objects within them being three dimensional. Three dimensional shape has depth as well as width and height, it also has substance (i.e a sculpture).

The Australian artist Emma Hack has in this work created a sculpture of a dead tree entirely out of living people.

I thought that this really demonstrated an interesting use of form in that it is a three-dimensional sculpture constructed however out of completely seperate lviving entities.