19 Factors That Impact Compositional Balance Imagine a boulder leaning too far over the cliff’s edge. Seeing that boulder you think it should come crashing down the mountainside. It’s out of balance and you feel the tension of the impending crash. A similar feeling happens in your visitors when the composition of your design is visually out of balance. In a couple of previous posts I talked about visual balance and in each I briefly mentioned the idea of visual weight in order to achieve visual balance. Composition 8 by Kandinsky (above) is a study in visual weight, direction, and balance. What is Visual Balance? Visual balance (PDF) results from 2 major factors, visual weight and visual direction. Consider the image below of a small block and a large block on a lever. You likely see the larger block as being much heavier than the smaller block. The main force acting on the large block is gravity which is acting downwards. Optical Center Objects and elements balance around a point. Every shape has a geometric center. Photography
Glass Furniture by Santambrogio Milano : Could this be a new trend ? Designed by Italian manufacturer Santambrogio Milano these pieces of furniture made from glass are something quite interesting, that you don’t see everyday. The collection uses the ultra-clear Diamant Glass that is produced by Saint Gobain. At a first glance I’ve thought that this design is totally impractical, but after I’ve saw that the design is made using superdurable tempered glass I’ve changed my mind. Who knows maybe this glass furniture design will replace the old wood furniture designs that are right now in every home, because the materials look very good. – Via
lightbulb light bulb is a levitating yet powered lightbulb. It will float stably in midair and remain on for years without any physical contact, charging, or batteries. Ironically, with the levitation and wireless power circuitry both on, this entire package still consumes less than half the power of an incandescent bulb. This is not a trick or a photoshop manipulation. The bulb and the casing contain hidden circuitry [shown in figures] that uses electromagnetic feedback to levitate the bulb roughly 2.5" from the nearest object, and uses coupled resonant wireless power transfer to beam power from the housing into the bulb itself. Tesla invented wireless power transfer in the late 1890's. For press images or the high resolution movie, please email me.
Art and the art world Natural Pools or Swimming Ponds Natural Pools or Natural Swimming Ponds (NSPs) Let nature clean the water... Chemical-free water garden and swimming pool. The plant portion, or regeneration zone, is separated from the swimming area by the wall seen a few inches below the water’s surface. www.naturalswimmingpools.com The pools have skimmers and pumps that circulate the water through the regeneration zone and back into the swimming area. The aquatic plants filter out contaminants and use nutrients from the water as food which helps prevent algae. There are many options as to design. A gradual slope contains the plants, gravel and loamy sand, a wall keeps them separate from the swimming area. Vacuum but twice a year and tend to the plants as needed. The regeneration zone can be along the perimeter of a natural pool or a pond unto itself but connected to the swimming area. www.gartenart.co.uk Plants steel the nutrients away from algae. www.gartenart.co.uk Half regeneration area, half swimming pool. www.living-pool.eu Builders:
Fri, 11/04/2011 | Co. Design Most Popular Artists The most popular artist searches last month: a not-to-be-taken-too-seriously measurement of which famous artists have the greatest "mindshare" in our collective culture. Moving up: Edgar Degas (#22 to #12), Titian (#28 to #18), and realist painter Janet Fish (appearing for the first time on the list at #29). Moving down: Joan Miro (#13 to #19), Wassily Kandinsky (#11 to #24) and Paul Gauguin (#21 down to #32). 25 Wrist Tattoos | Penny's Daybook | www.PennysDaybook.com There’s always this one question that crosses everyone’s mind at least once in their lives: Tattoos – Should I get one? Yes/No? Tattoos are quiet, inspiring artwork that carry stories and hide secrets on a human canvas. It’s been said that wrist tattoos were used to ward off all sorts of illnesses and diseases. Each one is born with a thought and a tale, memorable and vivid enough to be inked in eternity. Upside down or not, be cool. All images from We Heart It.
3D Paintings on Panes of Glass Using multiple layers of clear glass, Canada based David Spriggs and Chinese born Xia Xiaowan, transform flat artwork into 3D sculptures. Viewers are treated to different shifting perspectives of the works based on where they stand in the art space. Spriggs work revolves around powerful explosive imagery, often resembling storms, cosmic blasts or firework like explosions. See Also INCREDIBLE 3D ILLUSTRATIONS JUMP OUT OF THE SKETCHBOOK For more on David Spriggs see his beautiful website at davidspriggs.com or for more on Xia Xiaowan see Wikipedia Above and Below: Xia Xiaowan’s distorted 3D figures Artist: Xia Xiaowan Below: David Spriggs beautiful paintings fill the room with stormy emotion. Artist: David Spriggs Artist: David Spriggs Source: amusingplanet.com