Art Essay on Design

Johannes Vermeer 's vivid painting , Woman Holding a Balance ' is an example of how attentive artists utilize the various principles of design . It shows how these different elements harmonize together to compose one visual ensemble . To understand how each operates within this example , they must be dissected individually

Let us begin by discussing the painting 's emphasis . An artist does not necessarily have to place the focal point in the center of the canvas in to highlight the subject . In this piece , the eye is drawn to the focal point by Vermeer

's use of light . In general , the painting is heavily shadowed . However , Vermeer creates emphasis on the woman by illuminating them . The window , which serves as the light source for the composition , is placed high in the upper left corner . From this source the light falls upon the principle subject , the woman , and the reflecting light from the white hood and trim of her clothing frames her face by contrasting against the dark background

This leads us into the second principle of design , balance . Vermeer creates emphasis by contrasting light and shadow , however , it is worth noting that in so doing he has not sacrificed the balance of light and dark . Though the painting has a distinct focal point , it is not so distracting that it negates the rest of the imagery . The balance is kept in tact because the piece is composed to flow it draws the eye immediately to the emphasis , then the play of light continues to guide the attention around the rest of the painting . This creates a constant circular , movement of the eye that assures no detail of the piece will escape attention . This circular movement demonstrates Vermeer 's understanding of radial balance

Balance is also achieved through the use of symmetry and asymmetry . In the painting one sees that the composition is not weighted on one side more than another . What this means is that though the woman , already established as the painting 's emphasis , is positioned on the right side of the image , she is balanced by the light of the window and the cloth on the table . This gives equal weight ' to both sides , creating symmetry . However , the painting is also an example of asymmetry in that the two sides of the image do not mirror one another . This is another way Vermeer creates emphasis as well

Now let us take a look at the painting 's proportion and scale . For example , the woman does not tower above the table , nor is she so small that the negative space takes up most of the composition . Proportion and scale is one way some artists use to create emphasis by perhaps making the focal subject unusually large or small in comparison to the other elements of the painting . Yet , we already know that Vermeer has used light to create emphasis in this piece , therefore , such exaggerations were unnecessary

There is also a sense of rhythm within the piece . The woman 's...