Art Smart

On Who ARTed, every week, I discuss a different work of art with a guest. I have been asked how I make sense of so many different artworks. Honestly, analyzing art did not come easily to me, and for a long time I felt uncomfortable discussing a piece because I wasn't very confident in my interpretations. I found that it helps a lot to approach things systematically. I go through three basic steps to understand any artwork.

If you enjoy this show, and want to learn more about art history, check out my other podcast, Who ARTed. Please help others discover the show by leaving a rating or review on your favorite podcast app.

Art Smart is an Airwave Media Podcast.

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Art Smart explains art in terms anyone can understand because art is for everyone. Each episode is just a few minutes long to give you the information you need with nothing you don't. Season 1 covered the elements of art and the principles of design. Season 2 is going to give the broad strokes of art history. Each episode will cover a different movement or time period with a quick overview of the big ideas that shaped the art and a few examples of artists and artworks to look at as examples.

Every episode is clean and appropriate for listeners of all ages. New episodes are released on Wednesdays.

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This is the final episode in this series about the Elements of Art and Principles of Design. In this episode, I talked briefly about unity and making sure that all of the elements seem to fit together. Unity is what makes a work of art look and feel complete. The key to a unified design is making sure that every element, every technique is done for a purpose and that everything in the work of art is working toward the same goal. 

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This episode is about the design principles of scale and proportion. You can find more helpful resources at www.artsmartpodcast.com

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Much like scale and proportion, Rhythm and movement are related and I am going to lump them together for this episode. To start with, let’s define the terms. Movement is traveling from one location to another. Most works of art are not physically moving which can lead to confusion when people are told to consider movement in an artwork. While the artwork may not be moving, the viewer’s eye does move around the composition. That is the movement an artist must be mindful of. Line can be particularly helpful in controlling movement around a composition. The human eye naturally follows lines so artists will often create their work with leading lines that act as a pathway for the eye to follow around the work.

Rhythm is often discussed in music but visual artists are fond of appropriation and have thus coopted that term to describe a design principle that is felt but hard to express in words. This is a podcast dedicated to explaining these concepts though, so I will do my best to explain it. When we think of rhythm in music, we are talking about long and short notes and rests. In art, we might think of it as a combination of a couple of design principles affecting the way the eye moves around the composition. I have heard rhythm described as a repeated visual movement. While the central focus of rhythm is the experience of the movement, the pacing and all of that, I think it is important to be mindful that just as some notes move quickly and others are held, within our composition, some elements have greater weight and the eye will linger on those longer while others are not emphasized so much, and the eye will move more quickly past those. If we think of movement as the path the eye follows around the composition, rhythm is all about how the eye navigates that path. To labor this analogy, think of a road trip. The movement is the path marked on the map, but the rhythm is all about how fast you travel that path, and where you stop along the way. You might slow down briefly as you pass by the world’s largest ball of twine, but you would get out and take your time to explore a national park. So as you create those leading lines, think not only about where you are guiding the viewer’s eye to travel, but also how the eye will linger on pieces of different visual weight. You want to have some areas that are important where the eye can focus intensely and discover important details, but you also want to provide some rest areas to make it a more pleasant journey.

As always, you can find more at www.artsmartpodcast.com 

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This is part of my series of episodes on the Principles of Design. For this episode, we focused a bit on repetition and pattern. Repeating an element can help with balance and unity. Patterns generally incorporate both a bit of repetition and some variety. Patterns can add some excitement to a composition, but artists must be careful in using patterns so as not to make something that becomes cluttered and overwhelming.

To learn more about the Elements of Art and Principles of Design, check out the website www.artsmartpodcast.com

If you enjoyed Art Smart, check out my other podcast. Who ARTed focuses on a different artist every week telling the stories that make up art history in a way that is accessible and appropriate for listeners of all ages.

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Emphasis is drawing attention and making something stand out. A lot of the elements and principles are somewhat related. Contrast can be a great means of creating emphasis. Making the focal point stand out from its surroundings using color, texture, value, and so on can help to emphasize that piece. Similarly, scale and proportion can help with emphasis. Making something larger, giving it more visual weight will emphasize it.

You can find more including tons of resources for my fellow art teachers at www.artsmartpodcast.com

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Contrast is one of the Principles of Design. Basically contrast is a difference between things. Artists will manipulate different elements to create contrast which makes their artwork easier for a viewer to process. 

If you would like to find more information and resources, check out the website www.artsmartpodcast.com 

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This episode is a part of my series on the Principles of Design. Specifically, I focused on balance in this episode. Balance is the distribution of elements with visual weight. Generally, the weight might be thought of as the degree to which something pulls in the viewer's attention. Heavier items such as thicker lines or bigger shapes will be more noticeable and have more visual weight. An artist might distribute the items evenly for symmetrical balance, or an artist may choose asymmetrical balance to have things seem a little more active and unsettled. 

As always, I hope you find this podcast and this information helpful. If so, please help me out by following and rating the show on your favorite podcast app. 

You can find more art education resources all available for free at my website www.artsmartpodcast.com 

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This episode is a quick overview of the Principles of Design. While not everyone is in agreement about what they are or even how many there are, I covered a little bit about how they have been developed, why the Principles of Design matter and briefly defined some of the most commonly agreed upon principles. 

As always, if you enjoyed the show, please follow and rate it on your favorite podcast app. This is a new show, so please help me find an audience and tell your friends if you think they might be interested in knowing a little bit more about art and design. 

You can find all the episodes of Art Smart and Who ARTed on the website www.whoartedpodcast.com

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