Activity: Principles of Art - Balance (2024)

The Principles of Art (balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and unity/variety) represent how the Elements of Art (line, shape, color, value, form, texture, and space) are used by an artist to create a painting, drawing, or other work of art.

In this NEU To Do for Kids Activity Worksheet, learn more about BALANCE and how the elements in an artwork are arranged. Discover the three primary types of balance (symmetrical, asymmetrical, and radial symmetry), recreate each type with example images, and have fun practicing words and phrases that relate to balance when creating art.

The worksheet includes a hands-on art activity + word search, word scramble, and crossword puzzle.

Download the Activity Worksheet

Related Information

Check out these additional resources for more information about art and balance:

Credit

These activities were created in collaboration with the Neuberger Museum of Art Education Department and Diana Puglisi, Curator of Education, Youth & Adult Programs.

Activity: Principles of Art - Balance (2024)

FAQs

What is the principle of art of balance? ›

Balance refers to the way that visual aspects and elements are distributed within a piece. An artist or designer may use large, densely colored objects to create more gravity, or smaller, lighter-seeming objects to make a piece seem airier. Visual weight is how much attention an object demands.

How do you make balance art? ›

Symmetrical balance is achieved by giving equal weight to elements across the center-point of a composition. The center-point can be horizontal, vertical, or diagonal. The result is a repetitive or mirrored (referred to as perfectly symmetrical) image that appears to be completely equally balanced.

What is formal and informal balance in art? ›

Formal and Informal Balance

Formal balance is the safe, solid symmetrical balance used in much religious art. It is serious and predictable in keeping with the messages it delivers. Informal balance is asymmetrical and dynamic, allowing the artist much more freedom of expression.

What is a central axis in art? ›

A central axis is a dividing line that works like the point of balance in the balance scale. Many works of art have a central vertical axis (Figure 9.3) with equal visual weight on both sides of the dividing line. Works of art can also have a horizontal axis.

What are the 3 balances in art? ›

The Artist's Toolkit: Encyclopedia: Balance | ArtsConnectEd. There are three different types of balance: symmetrical, asymmetrical and radial.

What is the principle of balancing? ›

Balancing of a Chemical equation is based on the Principle of Atom Conservation (POAC) which states that the total number of atoms of each element in reactants must equal the number of atoms of that element in products. It is a derivation of Principle of Mass Conservation.

What are examples of balance? ›

Radial balance occurs when elements radiate from a common center. Rays of sunlight and ripples in a pond after a stone is tossed in are examples of radial balance. Maintaining a focal point (fulcrum) is easy because it's always the center.

What are the two types of formal balance? ›

Types of balance:
  • Symmetrical balance (or Symmetry) means that the work of art is the same on one side as the other, a mirror image of itself, onboth sides of a center line.
  • Asymmetrical balance (or Asymmetry) means that the two halves of the work of art are different, however, try to create balance.

What is the easiest type of balance to recognize and create in art? ›

Formal balance occurs when very similar elements are placed on opposite sides of this axis. It is the easiest type of balance to recognize and create. A special type of formal balance in which two halves of a balanced composition are identical, mirror images of each other.

What is balance in art for kids? ›

Balance refers to how the elements of art (line, shape, color, value, space, form, texture) relate to each other within the composition in terms of their visual weight to create visual equilibrium.

What is a balance of unlike objects called? ›

ASYMMETRICAL BALANCE Asymmetrical balance is also referred to as informal balance. It is achieved when visual weights are equal, but elements are different in size, form, color, pattern, and spacing.

What is the balance theory of art? ›

Balance refers to how the elements of art (line, shape, color, value, space, form, texture) relate to each other within the composition in terms of their visual weight to create visual equilibrium. That is, one side does not seem heavier than another.

What is the meaning of principles of art? ›

PRINCIPLES OF ART: Balance, emphasis, movement, proportion, rhythm, unity, and variety; the means an artist uses to organize elements within a work of art. Rhythm. A principle of design that indicates movement, created. by the careful placement of repeated elements in a work of art to cause a visual tempo or beat.

What does balance mean in the art world? ›

Balance: a principle of design; the arrangement of elements that makes individual parts of a composition appear equally important; an arrangement of the elements to create an equal distribution of visual weight throughout the format or composition.

What is the balance principle of unity? ›

Unity and balance are two principles of design. They contribute to the harmony of a composition in visual and performing arts. To achieve balance, artists arrange and organize elements of design so that all areas of the composition have equal visual weight. Balance can be achieved symmetrically or asymmetrically.

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