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- 7 Principles of Design for Jewellery Making Inspiration - Part 1
7 Principles of Design for Jewellery Making Inspiration - Part 1
Posted by
onby Susanne Kathol, Exclusively for Fire Mountain Gems and Beads®
What visual message is your jewelry sending? The answer to this can be found in
design theory, more specifically the principles of design as applied to jewelry
creations. The design principles include balance, proportion, contrast, unity,
harmony, movement and emphasis. These principles of design are used to arrange
the elements (beads, components, etc.) in jewelry art, guiding the visual
message of the piece.
Since a picture is worth a thousand words, here's an illustrative exploration
of seven different principles of jewelry design, including design ideas to help
identify and/or integrate these principles into your own work.
7
Principles of Design for Jewelry-Making Inspiration:
1.Balance - A Balancing Act
2.Emphasis - Point of Emphasis
3.Movement - The Magic of Movement
4.Proportion - Power of Proportion
5.Contrast - Contrast Consideration
6.Unity - Understanding Unity
7.Harmony - Happiness of Harmony
A Balancing Act
Balance refers to the distribution of the visual weights of materials, colors,
texture and space in jewelry designs. Think in terms of a seesaw or
teeter-totter, the idea is that the weights should be similar on both sides to
make a design feel stable. For example, if you have several small elements on
one side of a necklace they can be balanced by a larger element on the other
side. In addition to physical weight, it's important to consider visual weight
as well, such as color, lightness or darkness and texture. When objects are
equally distributed based on all aspects of weight, the jewelry design is
considered balanced.
Balance can be symmetrical (evenly balanced), asymmetrical (un-evenly balanced)
or radial balanced (arranged around a central point).
Symmetrical
(Formal) Balance
Symmetrical balance, also known as formal balance, is a mirror image balance.
If you draw a line down the center of a jewelry design, all the elements on one
side of the piece are mirrored on the other side. The following design ideas
illustrate a symmetrical balance, as both sides are evenly balanced in
materials, colors, texture shape and form.
Asymmetrical
(Informal) Balance
Asymmetrical balance, also known as informal balance, results when several
smaller elements on one side are balanced by a large item on the other side, or
one darker item is balanced by several lighter items. Asymmetrical balance
appears more casual and less planned; however it is usually more difficult, as
the jewellery artist must create the design very carefully to ensure that it is
still balanced. An unbalanced design can be harsh on the eyes and may appear as
if things might slide off, just as an unbalanced seesaw will dip to one side.
Here are some design ideas that illustrate asymmetrical balance.
This piece incorporates a different size, number and colour of materials on either side, but overall each side's visual weight still balances with the other.
This piece features different colours of Swarovski crystal beads, but overall each side still balances with the other.
Radial Balance
Radial balance is where all the elements in a piece radiate out from a centre
point. A good example in nature is a starfish. It is easy to maintain a focal
point in radial balance, since all the elements lead your eye toward the centre
of the piece. The following design ideas are examples of radial balance.
There is also the intentional ''off-balance'' design which can create visual
interest and suggest motion and action.
This is the first part of a seven-part series on the principles of design for
jewelry-making inspiration.
Stay Tuned for the next 6 steps..
Happy Beading from the NEED4BEAD Team..