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Contrast is a strategy used by artists to focus the viewer’s attention; it is about breaking the unity of the work by inserting abrupt changes. Contrast is the opposite of unity, highlighting aspects of the work through differentiation.
contrast and unity
Contrast can be achieved through the placement of contrasting elements in the work, such as light and dark, rough and smooth, large and small. If the artist were looking for unity in the work, he would not include these combinations. The contrast in shapes and textures can be combined with colors that are chromatically opposite; If the work sought unity, the displayed colors would be complementary. By including similar shapes, such as two circles, contrasting in some way, such as a large and a small circle, a combination of contrast and unity can be achieved.
color and shape
In addition to the use of colors and shapes , contrast can also be achieved through the use of light. Renaissance painters such as Rembrandt and Caravaggio achieved contrast with the technique of chiaroscuro. They structured the work in a dimly lit environment, incorporating intense lighting in the characters or elements of the work that they wanted to highlight, as shown in Rembrandt’s painting Bathsheba with David’s letter. In these forms of contrast, the aim is not to express parallel ideas, but rather to emphasize an idea over the background or the general approach.
The contrast
In a Gestalt-based interpretation, contrast is the excitement or emotion produced by artistic confrontation that expresses complexity, ambiguity, and tension. When opposite forms meet in the work of art, the viewer immediately directs his attention towards polarization, and this is the tool with which the artist conveys ideas or sensations.
Sometimes the contrast must be measured, controlled, since extreme contrasts can generate such a sensation of chaos in the viewer that they make the message unintelligible. But in other cases, the message is conveyed through stark contrasts. The paintings of Jackson Pollack, an exponent of abstract expressionism, show chaos through intense contrasts in lines and spots of color, with a rhythmic result in a composition that unifies the contrasting variation.
In short, unity and contrast are the extremes of a scale that runs through its entire dimension. The integrated effect of a composition in which contrast predominates will generate in the viewer the sensation of an exciting and unique work.
Sources
Carl Thurston. The «Principles» of Art on JSTOR . The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 4 (2): 96-100, 1945.
Catherine Lord. Organic Unity Reconsidered on JSTOR . The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 22 (3): 263-68, 1964.
Marie Frank. Denman Waldo Ross and the Theory of Pure Design on JSTOR American Art 22 (3): 72-89, 2008.
Miles A. Kimball. Visual Design Principles: An Empirical Study of Design Lore . Journal of Technical Writing and Communication 43 (1): 3-41, 2013.
Nanyoung Kim. A History of Design Theory in Art Education on JSTOR . Journal of Aesthetic Education 40 (2): 12-28, 2006.
