Final answer:
Contrast in art refers to the difference in colors to create visual impact. Artists use various elements and principles like composition, balance, symmetry, and patterns to bring unity to their artwork, communicate meaning, and create emphasis on certain aspects. Proportion and scale are also important considerations in art.
Step-by-step explanation:
Contrast is defined as the difference in colors to create a piece of visual art. For instance, black and white is a known stark contrast and brings vitality to a piece of art, or it can ruin the art with too much contrast. Contrast can also be subtle when using monochromatic colors, giving variety and unity the final piece of art.
Artists consider how all of these elements interact and work with (or against) one another to produce an end result. These elements can complement one another, as when an artist places cool colors together (such as green, blue, and turquoise) to create a calm feeling. Artists can also pair elements to create interesting juxtapositions, such as contrasting rough and smooth textures, for example, or by pairing complementary colors (those opposite each other on the color wheel) such as yellow and purple. The way an artist organizes the objects or formal elements in an artwork is known as its composition. A formal analysis, which involves looking carefully at an artwork's visual elements independent of its content ("story") or historical context, generally includes both discussion of individual artistic elements and how they are arranged.
Balance is an even use of elements throughout a work of art. Symmetry is a very formal type of balance consisting of a mirroring of portions of an image. Bilateral symmetry, that is, two- sided symmetry, is the most common, in which two halves of a work of art mirror each other, as in Perugino's painting, Christ Giving the Keys of the Kingdom to St. Peter . In this painting, the symmetry gives the painting not only a sense of balance, but also a sense of calm, stability, and formality. Notice in particular the way that the building and arches in the background are painted to make the work symmetrical.
Patterns, or the way something is organized and repeated in its shape or form became one of the major tenets of design, forming flowers and leaves or spirals and circles as seen in the mosaics. All the works of art had some sort of pattern even though it may be hard to discern; the pattern was formed by the colors, the illustrations, or the shapes. The patterns worked together to bring unity to the picture or object.
Artists arrange their work to emphasize certain aspects and to create patterns of repetition and variation. The term composition is often used to mean arrangement. Images communicate their meaning in part through the variety and interplay among colors. Even the choice to use black and white or a monochrome color palette is a color choice. Symbols in images allude to deeper meanings. Emphasis can be color, unity, balance, or any other principle or element of art used to create a focal point. Proportion and scale are important aspects to consider when creating a work of art. Unity conveys a sense of completeness, pleasure when viewing the art, and cohesiveness to the art, and how the patterns work together brings unity to the picture or object. As the opposite of unity, variety should provoke changes and awareness in the art piece. Colors can provide unity when they are in the same color groups, and a splash of red can provide variety.