MSCE Creative Arts key terms

A drawing method that creates the illusion of depth on a flat surface by making distant objects smaller and letting parallel lines appear to meet at a point on the horizon.

The single spot on the horizon line where receding parallel lines seem to converge in a perspective drawing; it fixes the viewer's eye level and controls how deep the scene looks.

Two colours sitting opposite each other on the colour wheel, such as red and green or blue and orange. Placed side by side they look brightest; mixed together they dull each other.

A shading technique in which sets of parallel lines are drawn across each other at angles; the denser the overlapping lines, the darker the area appears.

A thin, transparent layer of diluted paint or ink spread over a surface. Washes build tone gradually, suggest sky or shadow, and let the paper texture show through.

A picture of everyday objects such as fruit, bottles, cloth or flowers arranged on a table. Artists use it to practise shape, light, texture and composition.

The way an artist arranges shapes, lines, colours and empty space inside the frame. A strong composition guides the eye and holds the parts together as one whole.

A sculpture carved or modelled so that it projects from a flat background, like a coin or a carved door. It is viewed mainly from the front, not from all sides.

A frame of wire, wood or metal that supports soft modelling materials such as clay or papier-mâché, keeping a figure upright and stopping thin parts from collapsing.

A pottery technique in which long rolls of clay are stacked in rings and joined with slip, then smoothed, to build a pot without using a wheel.

A glassy coating applied to pottery and then fired in a kiln. It makes the surface waterproof, seals the clay and can add colour, shine or texture.

A fabric decoration method in which melted wax is painted or stamped onto cloth to resist dye, so the waxed areas keep their original colour. The wax is removed at the end.

A textile technique where pieces of fabric are cut into shapes and stitched onto a larger backing cloth to make patterns or pictures, often used on banners and traditional dress.

A small rough model built to test the shape, scale and structure of a design before the full-size work is made, common in sculpture, stage design and architecture.

How high or low a sound is, determined by the frequency of the vibration producing it. Faster vibrations give higher pitch; slower vibrations give lower pitch.

The quality or colour of a sound that lets you tell a flute from a violin even when both play the same pitch at the same loudness.

A short musical pattern repeated over and over while other parts change around it. It is common in drumming, in folk music and in classroom composition tasks.

A rhythm that stresses notes where you would not normally expect them, typically off the beat or between beats, giving the music a lively, off-balance feel.

The pair of numbers at the start of a piece showing how many beats are in each bar and which note value counts as one beat.

The varying levels of loudness in a performance, from very soft to very loud. Composers mark dynamics with symbols such as p, f and crescendo to shape expression.

A musical form in which a leader sings or plays a phrase and a group answers with a repeated reply, common in African work songs, church music and popular styles.

The art of planning and arranging dance movements and formations for a performance, deciding what is danced, in what order, by whom and to which music.

A dance or music device where one group starts a phrase, another enters with the same phrase a little later, and the overlapping parts create a layered texture.

Any dance movement that travels the dancer from one place to another, such as walking, running, sliding, jumping or skipping across the performance space.

A traditional healing dance of the Tumbuka people of northern Malawi, performed with drumming and singing to address illness, and recognised by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage.

A speech in which a character alone on stage speaks private thoughts aloud to the audience, revealing feelings that the other characters never hear.

Instructions written in a script, usually in brackets or italics, telling actors how to move, speak or use props, and describing set, lighting and sound.

The planned pattern of an actor's movement and position on stage, worked out in rehearsal so that the action is clear, visible and balanced for the audience.

A frozen picture made by performers holding a still pose, often used to open or close a scene or to highlight a key moment without words.

The release of strong emotion, such as pity or fear, that an audience is said to feel at the end of a tragedy, leaving them purged and relieved.

The basic building blocks used to make any artwork: line, shape, form, colour, value, texture and space. Students and critics use them to describe what they see.

The ways the elements of art are organised: balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, proportion and unity. They explain why an arrangement works or fails.

The distribution of visual weight in an artwork. It may be symmetrical, with equal halves, or asymmetrical, where differing but equally interesting shapes hold attention.

The material or tool an artist uses to make work, such as oil paint, clay, charcoal, the voice or the body; it also means the liquid that carries pigment.

The study of the symbols and images in an artwork and what they mean within a culture, for example a dove standing for peace or a mask standing for a spirit.

The documented history of who has owned an artwork and where it has been kept, used to show that it is genuine and lawfully acquired.

A late nineteenth-century French movement whose painters worked quickly outdoors, using loose brushstrokes and light colour to capture fleeting effects of sunlight and atmosphere.

An early twentieth-century style, led by Picasso and Braque, that breaks objects into flat geometric planes and shows several viewpoints at once instead of a single perspective.

A masked ritual dance of the Chewa people of Malawi, Zambia and Mozambique, performed by members of the Nyau society at funerals and ceremonies, using carved masks and spirit characters.