There is a great deal of interplay between the seven basic components of art, which are line, colour, shape, form, value, space, and texture. All forms of visual art involve these factors being considered. Having a firm grasp of these seven visual aspects will make it much simpler to make your own works of art.

However, you don’t have to be an artist to appreciate and benefit from art theory. By expanding one’s understanding of these elements, every art fan will be able to take in works of art with greater depth and comprehension. Having a solid basis upon which to build your knowledge is essential for success in any endeavour. This involves knowing what the art elements are and how they function in visual arts.

Lines

Whether they’re straight or curved, the marks that connect two places are called lines. Lines can be created in visual art in a variety of ways beyond just using marks and outlines. Moreover, they may exist only in the implication or the abstract realm. They can be used to make things look three-dimensional and give the impression of structure.

Drawing is built on lines, which are both the building blocks of any drawing and a potent design element. Using a variety of line kinds (continuous, broken, vertical, jagged, and horizontal) in an artwork can have a profound effect on the viewer’s psyche.

If you really want some precision, then pigmented art alcohol markers are a fun alternative to a regular pencil for beginners who want to practise outlining fundamental shapes and forms. Alcohol markers, in contrast to solvent markers, don’t emit a foul odour (like thick Sharpies).

There is a slight rubbing alcohol smell in most alcohol markers. They are quick to dry, offer smooth, vibrant colours, and are great for blending. Many artists, including illustrators and graphic designers, prefer using alcohol markers since they last a long time.

For the most part, alcohol ink markers are not just used for outlining and creating art. They can also be used to add texture and colour to existing artwork or to create a finished piece of art from scratch. Furthermore, you can use a mix of drawing tools to draw with the markers, such as paintbrushes or sponges to achieve various effects.

The way the colour is deposited on the paper and how it is blended has a significant impact on how a work of art turns out. Markers are normally very user-friendly in this regard, given their ability to produce soft, gradient blends. Their inherent opacity makes them great for layering and blending – which is why they are widely used in creating depth, shadows, and textures.

Colour

Colour’s three components—hue, value, and intensity—allow painters to convey a wide range of feelings. Colour has a profound effect on the viewer’s reaction to a work of art. The great masters of art history, from Van Gogh to Picasso to Toulouse-Lautrec, were masters at using colour to evoke specific emotions in their viewers.

In addition to its literal meaning, colour also has the potential to be employed symbolically or as a design element. It’s a versatile tool for creating contrast or ambience.

An artist who has studied colour theory thoroughly can use the colours at their disposal more effectively. The contemporary colour wheel is a fantastic resource. The purpose of this diagram is to demonstrate the relationships between colours and how they work together.

The three primary colours sit in the middle of the colour wheel, while the secondary colours, created by combining two primary hues, occupy the outer ring. You can see tertiary colours, created by combining primary and secondary colours, along the circle’s outermost edge.

Shape

Forming from a network of closed lines, these geometric figures are essentially flat with no depth. Organic shapes, which draw their elements from nature, are more likely to be curvy and abstract than geometric shapes like circles and squares.

Henri Matisse’s collages make extensive incorporation organic shapes, while Piet Mondrian is well-known for his reliance on geometric forms. The way we interpret a piece of art can be manipulated through the use of shapes. For instance, triangles are useful for directing attention to a certain area, whereas circles signify a never-ending cycle.

Form

Form emerges when a two-dimensional shape takes on three-dimensional dimensions. Common shapes include cylinders, pyramids, and spheres; amorphous shapes are also possible. Although it is now fairly common to incorporate 3D art techniques into sketching and painting, sculpture depends mostly on form and it’s where we can clearly see it.

Bernini, a prominent figure in the Baroque era, was a sculptural master whose works could be appreciated from any angle. Renowned architects from ancient times to today all gave significant thought to form when creating their buildings.

Value

Colour’s value refers to how light or dark it is. White represents the lightest value and black represents the darkest, with the difference between the two being the contrast. Value alteration can not only alter shapes but also set the tone for the piece.

Italians placed such importance on the contrast between light and dark that they coined a new term, chiaroscuro, to describe this technique. The chiaroscuro technique was perfected by the Baroque painter Caravaggio, who used it to great effect in his dark oil paintings.

Other than art alcohol markers and pencils, watercolours and acrylics are great mediums to work with if you want to learn how to paint using your brushes and drawing boards while experimenting with getting the exact colour you want.

Space

Its aesthetic component is malleable because it depends on the placement of lines, shapes, forms, and colours by the artist. The strategic positioning of these auxiliary components generates an empty area. Positive and negative uses of space are also possible.

Space that is occupied by an object or shape is called “positive space,” whereas “negative space” refers to the empty space between, through, around, and inside those same objects. Many works of art are composed with careful consideration given to the placement of shapes and lines in the front, middle ground, and backdrop. Perspective, which can be accomplished using lines or colours, is commonly used to give the illusion of depth in two-dimensional works.

Texture

The artistic element of texture also engages the sensation of touch. It is described as a statement about how something appears to feel or how it could feel. Different textures, such as smooth, rough, hard, soft, furry, fluffy, and bumpy, each elicit a unique emotional reaction from the senses.

One artist may want their clouds to look fluffy for a hyperrealistic effect, while another may want to violate traditions by manipulating texture to create a strange experience for the spectator. Many great sculptors of the 19th century mastered this technique, which seems so real you would never guess it was made of marble.