“The best designers will use many design patterns that dovetail and intertwine to produce a greater whole.”
— Erich Gamma
The previous tutorial covered a general overview of the Negative Positive Composition and eight variations. This art design tutorial describes the Movement Device plus all the variations.
Movement Composition
In two-dimensional art, Movement is a design element that grabs attention by directing the eyes across the canvas. It works like a visual roadmap, using curves, lines, and shifts in color to lead the gaze to different parts of the artwork. Movement and all it’s variation help make the image feel alive and engaging.
Movement can also set the mood. Crisp, curvy shapes can make a piece feel energetic while smooth-flowing lines evoke calm or dreaminess. In short, movement turns an artwork into an engaging experience, drawing in the eyes and helping create a deeper connection with the art.
Movement One Dominant
In this example, two ideas are present, and both incorporate rendering with a sense of movement.
Movement is the primary device, and the One Dominant heart is subordinate.
The design flows to the edges of the paper making it easy to distinguish between the One Dominant Movement, which never touches the edges.
The heart shape stands out but it compliments the artwork by helping to focus the eye before the flowing leaves and patterned dots capture the gaze.
Movement Two Dominant
The same holds true in this example. The sea horses capture the eye, and the viewer can imagine they are flowing along a fluid current.
This design variation lends well to graphics that also use a logo with typography.
The movement in the background describes the compositional device, and the Two Dominant elements might create a purposeful focal point.
Movement Two Dominant is a very popular two-dimensional design style.
Movement Pattern
The third device in this series is Pattern. When it becomes subordinate to movement, this combination in an artwork can become very energetic and animated.
Both elements engage the eye in different ways. This combination can be quite interesting.
Movement needs to remain primary, while pattern can be secondary.
Take a look at a lot of Van Gogh’s art! Entire artworks embrace this style while using color as a tool also to move the eyes.
Movement Negative Positive
Movement Negative Positive is quite often a striking compositional arrangement.
The eye flows through the contrasting shapes and in this case the artwork feels like an adventure walking through a maze.
Optical illusion artwork will often fit into this category dazzling the brain and capturing our attention.
Victor Vasarely Zebra, created in 1937 is a highly contrasting somewhat-abstracted work that set the course for Optical Art in the 20th century.
Movement Structure
In this example of Movement Structure, the eye flows through the background pattern and jumps to the foreground’s structured appearance.
The round ball shapes appear to be moving along a rail-like system.
Their highlight and shadows also suggest depth and a moving composition.
The imagination is limitless when movement is dominant, and structure is subordinate.
This compositional device creates a fun and exciting interplay of elements.
Movement Movement
When any composition has the same primary and secondary design devices, one might ask, should the description not be reduced to a singular descriptive term? The answer is simply, no!
Removing the linear, rising leaves from the background allows the subordinate design to be changed to another variation.
The background is a secondary design container. The flowing leaves in the foreground are primary. Both appear like layers rendered in a flowing and moving style.
Graphic design theory suggests there are 64 Compositional Devices in total! Eight can be simple and singular, but when combined, the total is sixty-four.
Movement Frame
Movement is primary, and Frame is secondary in this example.
The framing function is easily seen, as the wavy green and white tonal line sets the boundary from the subtle starburst in the center.
There is nothing static in this example. Even the Frame feature contains movement.
A more subtle design might be to use an offset color to define the secondary Frame element to define the boundary.
Be sure to spend some time with each of the variations until you are skilled at distinguishing the primary device from the secondary one.
Movement Perspective
This combination’s versatility can be very playful. Animation occurs when movement takes center stage, and perspective shapes the landscape.
Yet, Movement is always primary. It’s what is noticed first. Perspective builds on the movement theme and, in this case, creates a dreamy landscape where little trees lay on a curved horizon.
The eye is drawn into the circle, and then the dance moves around the various curvy shapes.
Color variations also add to build on the layered effect implying a visual perspective device as the subordinate feature.
Art Play
Repetition is a key part of learning. It helps us retain information and develop skills. It’s been called “the mother of learning.”
This is why grabbing your art journal after each design tutorial is a valuable practice. While the lesson is fresh in your mind, it’s time to explore your creativity.
Be sure to download the free tutorial guide, too. You can thumb through printed materials or even look at art online. Using the reference sheet identify compositional device variations. Then, recreate the arework until you’ve created at least one example of each of these eight possibilities.
Downloadable Reference Guide
The next tutorial covers variations for the next set of eight devices, and how the Structure Compositional Device is expressed in each one.
To find links to every lesson, click > Art & Design Tutorial Table of Contents
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