Introduction


Harmony

Have you ever heard a choir singing? When a choir sings together, their voices join to make a nice, pleasing sound. This is called harmony. Artists also use harmony. They join together similar elements, much like a musician uses music to create a pleasing composition.

students singing


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Emphasis

What do you do when you want to call attention to an important word when you are writing? You want to make it stand out or emphasize it, don’t you? You might make it bold, underlined, italicized, or even a different color or design. Artists want to do this with their artwork. They change things or create contrast so they can control what the viewer looks at first.

People pointing to words such as school, learn, teach, and goal.


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Variety

Have you ever heard the expression “Variety is the spice of life?” Humans want variety. Can you imagine eating the exact same food every day all the time? That would get boring, wouldn’t it? You need a change in routine to keep from getting bored. Artists depend on variety as well. If not their artwork would be boring and no one would want to look at it. Artists create variety by using different elements in a variety of ways.

Learning about harmony, emphasis, and variety will help you see how artists heighten the visual appeal of their artwork.

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Lesson Objectives

Following successful completion of this lesson, students will be able to...

  • Identify harmony, emphasis, and variety
  • Describe how artists use harmony, emphasis, and variety in a work of art

Enduring Understandings

  • The forming, integration, and refinement of aesthetic components, principles, and processes create purpose, meaning, and artistic quality in the arts.
  • People create and interact with objects, places, and design that define, shape, enhance, and empower their lives.
  • Artists and designers experiment with forms, structures, materials, concepts, media, and art-making approaches.
  • Visual Imagery influences understanding of and responses to the world.

The above objectives correspond with the Alabama Course of Study: Elements of Arts Literacy standards: 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8.

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