Lesson video

Hello, everyone.

How are you today? I hope you're feeling really good.

My name is Ms. Afzal and I'll be your art teacher for this lesson.

I'm pretty excited about this lesson because we're gonna be looking at something quite interesting called composition.

Our lesson is called "The elements of art: composition" and it comes from the unit of work "The elements of art." So this is really something quite elemental to understand composition, it's gonna have a big impact on your artwork.

So let's get into it if you're ready, got some focus, curiosity, let's begin.

The outcome for today's lesson is I can identify and assemble composition techniques.

Yes, we are gonna be finding out all about composition techniques.

We have some keywords in our lesson today, let's go through them one at a time.

Balance, composition, and arrangement.

What do they mean? Well, balance is a more even distribution of visual elements.

A composition is how elements are positioned, aligned and arranged.

An arrangement is the organisation and ordering of visual elements.

These are our keywords, balance, composition, and arrangement.

Let's look out for them, let's listen out for them.

They'll be coming up in our lesson today.

Our lesson is called "The elements of art: composition" and it consists of two learning cycles, "Identifying different types of compositions" and "Make a collaborative zine." Oh, I'm really looking forward to that.

But let's begin with "Identifying different types of compositions." Aisha, Sam, and Alex are experimenting with composition.

What do you think composition means? Pause the video and share with someone.

Thanks for sharing your ideas.

Composition is the way visual elements are arranged in an artwork.

Composition affects the way we view and interact with the artwork.

It can affect the focus or the balance of the artwork.

Pause the video and share with someone, which of these two compositions are you most drawn to and why? Thanks for sharing your ideas as we begin to explore composition.

Composition can be used to encourage the viewer's eye to wander around the artwork or to be drawn into specific parts of the art piece.

Which part of this artwork does your eye settle on? Pause the video and share with someone.

Thanks for sharing your ideas.

My eye is drawn all the way into the centre of the spiral.

Check for understanding.

What is composition in art? Is it A, a way to make your artwork look good; B, the way visual elements are arranged in an artwork; C, a process and way of making art; or D, a way to draw the viewer to specific parts of an image? Pause the video while you decide.

Well done if you selected answers B and D.

Composition is the way visual elements are arranged in an artwork, and it's a way to draw the viewer to specific parts of an image.

There are different styles of composition, including the rule of thirds, golden spiral, diagonal, focal point, L-shape, and S-shape.

Pause the video and share with someone if you have heard of any of these styles of composition before and what you know about that style of composition.

Thanks for sharing your ideas.

We are going to be exploring each of these styles of composition a little more.

First of all, the rule of thirds.

The rule of thirds splits an image into thirds, vertically and horizontally.

Artists sometimes position items so they lie on either the horizontal or vertical lines.

The overlapping areas indicated by the circles are known as the focal points.

Visual features placed on these points can draw the viewer's attention.

Generally, it's best to not fill all four of the focal points, emphasising only some of them.

So we can see in this image we have got three of the focal points are filled, we've got the tree and the two focal points on the left, and the bottom right is quite close to the building whereas the upper right focal point has been left clear.

The golden ratio, or Fibonacci sequence, is a spiral-shaped composition that occurs in nature.

It reflects the rate and pattern in which many things grow.

Shells, ferns, and even galaxies.

Pause the video and share with someone anytime you have seen this shape in nature.

Thanks for sharing your ideas.

We're used to seeing the golden ratio in the world around us, so using it to compose art and design can make a work look natural and calming.

Katsushika Hokusai's painting "The Great Wave" is a notable example of this composition.

Have a look at that painting once again with the golden ratio in mind.

Can you see how the golden ratio spiral-shaped composition applies to this image? Pause the video and share with someone if you can spot that.

And here it is.

There's that spiral going all the way around the top and then finishing with the image of the house at the centre of the spiral.

L-shaped compositions can include a large vertical form, usually placed 1/3 of the way from the side of an artwork; a horizontal line roughly 1/3 from the bottom; and then a small focal point placed on the opposite side to the tall vertical to balance the composition.

So this is called an L-shaped composition.

An example of an L-shaped composition is Vincent van Gogh's "Wheat Field with Cypresses" from 1889.

A diagonal composition arranges the visual elements along one or more diagonal lines.

These convey a sense of movement, energy, and intrigue, such as in artist Jeff Wall's photograph "Diagonal Composition" from 1993.

And there we can see a diagonal going all the way across the middle there.

Focal point composition includes one main dominating part of the artwork as a key focal point.

This can be achieved by making other elements more subdued by having them in the background, making them smaller, or by having one key focal point.

Lynette Yiadom-Boakye's painting "A Passion Like No Other" shows how to create focus on a central subject.

The S-curve composition guides the viewer's eye through the image, drawing attention to important elements.

It can lead the eye from the foreground to the background, creating a three-dimensional effect and sense of depth.

This can be seen in the curves of "Flaming June" by Lord Frederic Leighton.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Match these images to the composition types.

So we have focal point, golden spiral, S-shape, diagonal, and L-shape.

Pause the video while you match the images to the composition types.

Did you match them like this? Focal point is the portrait.

The golden spiral we can see with those shell-like images.

The S-shape is that path we can see in the photograph.

There's the L-shape, and here we have the diagonal.

Well done for matching the images and the composition types in this way.

It can be easier to identify the style of composition when an image is in black and white.

Why do you think this might be? Pause the video and share with someone.

Perhaps you said something like this.

It makes you see the structure more clearly and removes colour, which may distract.

Artists' use of composition is often influenced by their cultural heritage.

For example, traditional Asian scroll paintings emphasise vertical storytelling, while First Nations Australian art often uses aerial perspectives.

Western ideas of composition originated from the Renaissance era.

These principles have historically guided European art but are not universal across all artistic traditions.

Many modern and contemporary artists have challenged conventional composition ideas through abstract art, breaking away from structured formats.

Okay, it's time to get busy.

It's time for you to create your own collage composition.

You'll need the following pieces of equipment for this activity.

A pair of scissors, some collage papers, colours and black, and some PVA glue.

So pause here while you gather your material and equipment.

Okay, so you have what you need and now it's time to create your own collage composition.

I'd like you, using different papers, to cut out a range of shapes, geometric and organic.

Play around with how you arrange them on the page to explore different compositions.

Do not glue them down, though.

You're just exploring, placing them in different arrangements.

You could use organic, curved, natural shapes.

Cut out a range of sizes of shapes.

Layer pieces to add depth.

Use black paper in the background to help the arrangement stand out.

So pause here while you have a go at this part of your task.

Okay, how did you get on? Here's Lucas, "I tried three different arrangements.

It was interesting to see how different each composition could be and how that changed the way you looked at the image." Great observation.

And now for the next part of your task, I'd like you to write a reflection on the different arrangements you explored.

Which one was your favourite and why? You might like to discuss the balance of shapes, visual elements, focal points, leading lines.

Pause here while you have a go at reflecting on the different arrangements you explored.

Which one was your favourite and why? Great to be back with you, here's Lucas.

"I really liked the L-shape composition.

I felt it balanced out the image well to draw the viewer's eye to different parts of the image." Yeah, I can see that really working well for you.

And Izzy says, "I found Lucas' S-shape composition the most effective, as it gave lots of energy and drew the eye to the distance." Oh yeah, I like that sneaking path taking us all the way through the image.

And now it's time for our next learning cycle, "Make a collaborative zine." Compositions can be found in many places and creative industries, not just fine art.

What other types of art use composition? Pause the video and share with someone.

Thanks for sharing your ideas.

Composition is an important feature of visual art.

An example of this within graphic design is when determining magazine layouts.

Magazines use composition to help draw the viewer into a specific story.

This could be achieved through the size and position of images, shapes, and text.

A zine, this comes from the word magazine, is a self-published booklet that is often more experimental with designs and layouts.

Zines often include collaging, drawings, photocopies, and offer more creative freedom.

Zines are an inclusive art form as they don't rely on drawing, and can be created using a variety of media such as text, images, and illustrations, allowing makers to use their artistic skills and talents in a number of different ways.

Check for understanding, true or false? Zine is a word for magazine.

Pause the video and decide if this is true or false.

Well done if you selected false, and now I'd like you to say a little more about your answer.

Pause the video while you do this.

Maybe you said something like this.

A zine and a magazine are not the same.

Typically, large commercial corporations produce magazines, whereas zines are independent, often non-profit publications.

Zines are usually less widely circulated and more freely creative.

Jen White-Johnson's "Love to Gaza" zine uses a range of images, text, and graphics to campaign for political change.

Peony Gent is an illustrator who creates comics and zines, considering using borders and the composition of the page wisely and thoughtfully.

Discuss any examples of zines you have seen and how the visual elements are balanced and arranged on the pages.

Pause the video while you do this.

Check for understanding.

Composition can be effective in zines when, A, lots of images are put in to fill the page; B, borders are added throughout; C, the arrangement of images and text is carefully considered; D, a range of images, text, and shapes are balanced.

Pause the video while you decide when composition can be effective in zines.

Well done if you selected answers C and D.

Indeed, the arrangement of images and text is carefully considered, and a range of images, text, and shapes are balanced.

This can help composition to be effective in zines.

Zines can be made by individuals or collaboratively.

An example of this is Amy Leung's "Shared Fragments" zine where she worked with a group of children on a concertina-shaped zine filled with their experiences of their local area.

Zines can be made in a variety of formats, here is one example to how to fold a zine.

First of all, fold your paper in half.

Next, fold in half a second time.

Then, fold in half for a third time, and then unfold your paper so you now have eight sections to the piece of paper.

Then fold back in half and cut in the centre, but cut only up until the halfway point.

When you open it back out, it should look like what we can see in image six.

Next, fold in half along the fold with the cut and push both sides outwards.

Number your pages like this, paying attention to the rotation and order.

And then, when you fold the whole thing back together, you have your zine.

And now it's time for your task.

I would like you to make a collaborative zine exploring composition and arrangement.

You will need the following pieces of equipment for this activity.

Scissors, your collage from your last activity, A4 paper, and pens in different thicknesses and/or paint markers.

So pause the video while you gather these pieces of equipment.

So first of all, I'd like you to use A4 paper to create a zine using a simple folding technique.

Pause the video while you do this.

Well done, and now for three minutes look at the collage you made in Task A.

Notice the shapes and composition, and discuss, how could you recreate some of these shapes for your zine? And then cut out some shapes from coloured paper ready for your zine.

You could use previously painted paper or your shapes from Task A.

Pause the video while you do this.

Next, for five minutes add abstract shapes and drawings to one page of the zine inspired by your collage.

You could use small, medium, or large shapes.

Make some shapes balanced or symmetrical.

Overlap shapes and consider the arrangement of the pieces.

Add some mark-making into your zine.

Consider the direction of marks.

Add text such as a poem, a story about the marks you're making.

Pause the video while you do this.

And now pass the zine onto another person.

Take turns to each spend five minutes adding to the zine before passing it around again until all the pages of the zines are complete.

And then review all of the zines.

How does the composition change when you unfold them flat and when they're in the folded zine form? How did the composition change when you layered marks and shapes over one another? Pause the video while you have a go at these stages of your task.

So how did you get on with making your collaborative zine, exploring composition and arrangement? There are many possible outcomes but you might have produced something like this.

Co-created something like this, I should say.

And how did you get on with reviewing the zines? Here's Alex, "I found the composition became unbalanced in some areas.

My eye was drawn to the bolder large shapes through the use of mark-making." And Lucas, "I was pleased with the spiral composition on this double page.

I think the mark-making layered over the top really adds to the overall piece, it was too plain before." Great reflections and I hope you enjoyed reflecting on your co-created zines.

In our lesson "The elements of art: composition" we have covered the following.

Composition is the arrangement of visual elements in an art piece.

There are different types of composition, including rule of thirds, golden ratio/spiral, diagonal, focal point, L-shape, and S-shape.

Black and white images can make it easier to identify the composition.

When creating art, it's helpful to consider how to arrange all the elements and how this affects the balance and impact of the artwork.

Well done, everyone, for joining in with this lesson.

I love the exploration of composition, all these different types of composition, and then I loved you having a go at your own collages and absolutely loved you creating your zines.

I look forward to seeing you at another art lesson soon.

Until then, stay creative.