Conceptual unity artwork that has a common theme or

•
Conceptual Unity - artwork that has a
common theme or concept throughout
it.

EMMA AMOS. Measuring Measuring (1995). Acrylic on linen canvas, African fabric, laser-transfer photographs.
84” x 70”.
Conceptual Unity

Unity
Unity is the underlying
structure that makes the art or
object seem complete or
whole.
Almost all artwork or design
has unity because the artist
instinctively seeks it.
This Islamic art tile shows
unity through the repetition
of color ( blue, green, yellow,
and white) and shape
( flowers of different sizes that
are repeated in a pattern).
Pattern ( which contains
rhythm ) generally unifies a
work, as seen here.

Unity
This is a painting by American artist, Edward Hopper , Nighthawks , from
1942. Unifying characteristics, here, are the rectangles of the windows,
both the large ones of the diner, and the smaller ones of the buildings
behind it. The use of the colors red and green, on the buildings as well as
in the diner itself, also unifies the work.
It could also be argued that the frame of any painting unifies it by
describing the image’s borders.

Unity
The image on the left is by
artist Donald Judd, made in the
1970s. This type of art was
called minimalism.
The repetition of one shape or
object can create unity
Note Andy Warhol’s painting
One Hundred Soup Cans form
the 1960s. This was called Pop
Art ( art that used imagery
from popular culture including
advertising). The repeated
forms can be the can shapes,
the gold logo, the white and
red of the labels- there is a lot
of repetition.

Emphasis on Variety
•
When artists emphasize variety, they
are usually exaggerating differences
rather than similarities.

BALANCE
•
Balance refers to the distribution of
weight in art
•
The actual or apparent weight in the
elements of a composition
•
Balancing the formal elements of art

BALANCE
The equalization of weight, attention, and the
various art elements in an image or design
Artists achieve visual balance by one of three
means:
1
. Symmetrical Balance
2. Asymmetrical Balance
3. Radial Balance

Fig. 3.7, p.73 POLYKLEITOS. Doryphoros (c. 450–440 BCE). Roman copy after bronze Greek original. Marble.
6’6”.

Actual Balance and Pictorial
Balance
1. Actual Balance - means that the
piece of art is literally balanced. It
can stand upright on its own.
2. Pictorial Balance - refers to the
distribution of the apparent or
visual weight of the elements in
works that are basically 2D.

ISAMU NOGUCHI
"Red Cube"
1968
painted steel

Symmetrical Balance
•
Symmetry -
refers to a similarity of form or
arrangement on either side of a dividing line or plane.
•
Symmetrical Balance -
the whole of the work has
a symmetrical feeling.
•
Asymmetrical balance -
when the variations to
the right and left side of the composition are more
then slight, yet there remains an overall sense of
balance.