Grade 9 Art - Day 20

The next word in our study of art terminology is Variety.

From our text, ArtTalk, variety is defined as "...the principle of art concerned with difference or contrast."

Seems simple right?  Not really.  In fact, variety is about complex relationships between a number of different elements of design, and bringing them all together in a way that is intricate!

Check out this image from vectorfree.com:

The variety of shapes and icons is staggering, yet the effect is outstanding. Or how about this slightly more famous work, The Persistance of Memory by Salvador Dali:

Variety in this piece is demonstrated in many ways:

• The variety of textures such as the melting clocks, the rock cliffs in the background, and the sand throughout. 
• A variety of recognizable and less recognizable shapes (what is that white figure anyway?)
• A variety of principles of design, such as the movement of the melting clocks and the contrast between values.
• A variety of elements of design, such as colour, shape, and use of space.

A more complete definition of variety that I would like to leave you with is from Google's Principles of Design site:

"Variety is often obtained through the use of diversity and change by artists who wish to increase the visual interest of their work. An artwork which makes use of many different hues, values, lines, textures, and shapes would reflect the artist's desire for variety. Unity is the principle which is its variety's opposite; but when there is too little variety, the result is monotony."