UNIT IV

THE ELEMENTS AND ORGANIZATION OF ART

The Visual Arts

Man has always tried to understand and control his environment. Inseparable from these
instinctive efforts in his impulse to express his understanding of his environment and life.

Using hands as his nature guide, he has formulated a basic idiom with which to express
and communicate the vision of his life and the reality that surrounds it. The painter or sculptor
sees shape, color, texture, and space in nature. He uses them, manipulates them, and organizes
them into a work of art. These are called the elements of the visual arts.

The Elements Of The Visual Arts

Line

Line is a man`s own invention. It does not exist in nature. The lines we see in nature are,
on close observation, veins of leaves. He joining of two different surfaces, or the edge of the
objects. The artist uses lines to imitate or to represent objects and figures on a flat surface. Lines
have many qualities which the artist exploits. They maybe short or long, fine or thick heavy or
light wavy or jagged straight or curved. They usually delineate shapes. Used across or within a
shape, they give the effect of solidity or create an illusion of volume or rough or smooth texture.
A series of heavy lines drawn close to each other creates an impression of roughness. On the
other hand, a few light strokes an give a sensation of softness and delicacy.

A painter can use lines to simulate the gentle movement of the flowing river, the graceful
swaying of the trees, or the sharpness of the crags

Direction And Movement Of Lines. Lines may move in several directions. When the
line continues in only one direction we call it a straight line. The straight line may proceed
vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. These directions of line can express emotional states o
evoke emotional responses.
A horizontal line creates an impression of serenity and perfect stability since we
associate it with reclining forms in nature, such as that of a sleeping person, or with the horizon.

A vertical line appears poised and stable. We generally feel that a straight tree is a strong
one or that the person who stands tall is one who has confidence in himself. The vertical
direction of Michelangelo’s David or of Rizal’s statue at Rizal Park conveys the feeling of
strength and stability.
 A diagonal line implies action. A man who is running bends forward and thus assumes a
diagonal position. A tree that is about to fall takes a diagonal direction. Diagonal lines show
movements and, consequently, instability. We notice this in the movement of trees buffeted by
strong winds, and in the bent of cyclists they pedal to the finish line. With diagonal lines artist
can convey a feeling of unrest, uncertainly and movement.

A curved line results when there is a gradual change of direction. Because it is gradual, it
shows fluidity. We see this in the curves of a woman`s figure, in the rounded petals of flowers,
and in the shape of the crescent moon. The curved line gives us a feeling of grace and movement.
It can also give us a feeling of serenity and stability as in the curves of the rounded arches in the
churches.

When the change in direction is abrupt, an angular line results. The abruptness creates
tension and an impression of chaos confusion or conflict Grunewald used angular lines in his
crucifixion intensifying the sense of chaos pain and sorrow inherent in the subject matter.
Lines whatever their direction control our eye movement and help us relate the various element
in a work of art with one another.

Shape
Our world is composed of a variety of shapes, some of which, because of constant use
have gained permanent meanings. They can be used to simplify ideas.

Classified according to their sources shapes maybe natural abstract non- objective or
geometric. Natural shapes are those we see in nature such as shapes of men animals or trees
natural shapes may be interpreted realistically or may be distorted.

Abstract shapes are formed after the artist has drawn out the essence of the original
objects and made it the subject of its work. Brancusi`s bird in space is an abstraction from nature.
Brancusi has adapted the essential element of a bird-his wing-and reduced them to a feather,
something that differentiates a bird from other animals.

Non-objective shapes seldom have reference to recognizable objects, but most often they
show a similarity to some organic forms. Sometimes these are called biomorphic shapes. Many
of Hernando Ocampo`s abstractions, such as that on the stage curtain of the main theater of the
cultural center of the Philippines, are of this kind.

Some buildings look like geometric solids- pyramids, cylindrical towers, and box-like
office buildings. They have geometric shapes.
 Shape In Painting. In painting and other two-dimensional art-forms, shape is an area on
a flat surface enclosed by a line. It stands out from the surface because of a difference in color
value or texture or a combination of these

Often we find great difficulty in recognizing geometric shapes in paintings because we

see them as parts of objects, or as objects themselves. One way of developing our ability to
recognize such shapes is to see objects and people around us as particular tones, colors or
textures. We would soon discover that people are combinations of cylinders, triangles, or cubes;
blackboards are rectangles; and electric fans are circles. It is only when we are able to identify
objects as such shapes that we can recognize geometric shapes in the familiar thins that
surrounds us.

Shapes can give the illusion of weight, volume, or flatness. Realistic painters can make
objects appear as more than two-dimensional with the use of lines or color. A room or garden
may be made to look like a place where we can actually move and walk about.

Sometimes shapes which are not parts of a single form are spread throughout the
composition. Some paintings, like those of Joan Miro, contain shapes in a variety of
permutations across the picture pane. They are often distinguished by color or textual areas and
unified by lines drawn on the surface.

Between the shapes of figures are areas which are not occupied by any form. These areas
are called negative shapes. In painting these spaces can be as important as the shape themselves.

In Sculpture. Since sculpture is three-dimensional, shapes are identified either as mass

or as volume. Mass is matter that has weight and solidity. It can be lifted, pushed, or viewed in
the round.
When mass is structured or has a definite shape, it is said to have volume. The
fundamental unit in sculpture is the single volume. An example of a single volume is the
monument of Sultan Kudarat in Makati. Several volumes may be tightly grouped, as in the
Bonifacio monument, or they may be grouped but separated by open spaces as in the redemption
at the Loyola memorial park. The human figure, though taken as a single unit may also be
broken into component parts each of which may be regarded as a single volume.

An important consideration in sculpture is the treatment of its surface. Surface is

generated by line movement which in turn is determined by the structure of the mass inside it.
The expressive quality of sculpture depends on the curvature of the surface.

Sculpture ma have plane surface like those of solids (pyramids, cubes, and prisms);
cylinders and cones have surface which curved in a single direction and called single-curved
surfaces. When a surface curved in a several direction so that no two direction are parallel to one
another it is said to be a warped surface. Double curved surfaces are curved in all directions so
that it is extremely difficult to draw a straight line anywhere.

Single curve surfaces most often seen in sculpture made from sheet materials show a
straightness that has a mechanical simplicity and rigidity machine-produced formed.

The surfaces of sculpture maybe convex or concave. Convex surfaces seem to result from
the action of internal forces. Concave surfaces appear to result from the action of external forces.
They suggest a collapse, an erosion, or a dentation.

Concave surfaces are made o provide a shadows to contrast with the highpoints of a
convex surfaces. For example, the whole face of the African mask below the eyebrows is
scooped out in a hallow, contrasting dramatically with the convex rotundity of the high forehead.
Extreme contrasts between convex and concave surfaces, however, are seldom used for human
figures since concavities seem suggest deformities cause by disease or starvation.

Transition in Sculpture. Each of the component divisions of sculpture is connected to

each other in one way or another. It may project with parts of the surfaces touching; it may be so
joined that one looks as though it is embedded in another.

The places where the forms meet are very important. The expressive character of the
sculpture depends highly on how passage or transition is made fro one o another.

Transition may be abrupt or smooth. An abrupt transition is one in which the

connnecti0on of the forms shows a clearly defined line. The abrupt changes in form provide a
staccato effect, producing shadows and highlights which reveal the three-dimensional qualities of
the figure.

A smooth transition is achieved when one form flows into or blends with another element
without any sudden interruption in the continuity of the surface. In most of Moore’s works,
especially his reclining figures, there are no abrupt transition at all. Each form blends with
another, providing a rhythmic continuity of contour. In his Reclining Figure shown in Figure 3-2,
the neck blends with the head and the shoulders, the hands have completely disappeared, and the
arms are continued to the hips. The inside of the elbow and the armpits are all connected to the
back of the knee. This kind of continuity is achieved through the use of concave-convex
surfaces.

In Architecture. A house, a church, or an office building has a shape of its own, defined
by its walls and roof. The individual parts that compose each building have their own shapes
which add up to the shape of the whole. This we note while we look at the building from outside.
 The form or a shape of buildings and other structures depends upon the materials and
type of construction used.

Texture

When we speak of texture in everyday conversation, we usually refer to the feel or textile
quality of the surface of an object---that is, whether the surface is rough or smooth, grooved or
ridged, furry or silky. A piece of sculpture, a building, and a painting may have texture which we
can described in much the same way.

For the sculptor and the architect, texture results chiefly from the physical properties of
the materials they use. The sculptor can produce any kind of texture that he wants his work to
have. If the material is soft, such as clay or wax, the artist manipulates or pulls and pushes it into
its final shape, leaving the marks of his manipulation on the surface as he wishes. He can
polished his finished work to give it a smooth texture.

The sculptor consciously produces texture even when he seems to neglect it. The rough
welded metal plates of Saprid’s Flagellant (figure 3-3) may seem to have an ‘unfinished’ texture,
and yet it is precisely this texture which the artist intended his work to have. Had he wanted the
surface to be very smooth, he would have made it so.

An architect can use brick and wood to produce pattern on the walls and partitions. He
can exploit materials to create surfaces that may blend interestingly or contrast with the site on
which the building is built.

Function of Texture. Texture can be enjoyed for its sensuous, decorative quality alone. N
this level, textures are experienced as pleasurable sensation in the manner that we enjoy stroking
velvet, silk, and other materials we feel are pleasant.

In life, we enjoy contrast between different surfaces which emphasize and enhance one
another when they are brought together. When the artist wishes us to feel such contrast, he
simulates the surface qualities of the objects he represents. He does this by a careful rendering of
light and dark patterns on the surface of the objet. We can “see” that something is smooth or
rough because of the way light is reflected. Metal for example, reflects light differently from the
way that water or silk does.

Painter can does show, with varying degrees of realism, the intrinsic textures of things by
initiating the way light is reflected by them.
 Texture clarifies space. Textures built up from symbolic patterns can create a greater
degree of spatial depth as well as volume.

Artist also use passages of formal lettering and manuscript as part of textural areas in
their paintings. When painting was regarded as illustration to written narratives, as in the case of
the early Christian miniatures and illuminations, lettered textures were common. These textures
are also featured in Islamic and other Asiatic paintings which have narrative captions written or
printed on a corner of the picture as part of the total composition.

Sometimes the artist wants to draw attention to the texture of the entire picture surface
itself. He may do this by applying his pigments so thickly that we can see the movement of his
brush strokes. He does not pay too much attention to the imitation of the surface quality of
objects. We notice this in Van Gogh’s paintings as well as in Amorsolo’s.

Color

Color is not a permanent property of things we see around us. It is derived form light,
whether natural, like sunlight, or artificial, like fluorescent light. Under a weak light we see some
color, but under a bright light, we see more color. Objects lose their color under moonlight or in
a dimly lighted room, even though their form of shape is clearly perceived.

Color is a series of wave lengths which strike our retina. Every ray of light coming from
the sun is composed of different waves which vibrate at different speeds. We can confirm this
scientific fact if we allow a beam of light to pass through a prism. the ray of light will break up
and be seen on a sheet of white paper as bands of different colors---red, orange, blue, indigo,
and violet---constitute the color spectrum.

Some objects do not have color. Some are black, white, or gray. These are not present in
the color spectrum. They do not have any color quality. Instead they differ in the quality of light
that they reflect. They are called neutral since they do not reflect any one distinct color. Black
reflects no lights at all; white reflects all colors, and gray results from a partial reflection of light.

Physical properties of Color. The color spectrum shows us a few colors and yet we know
that there many more color variations that exist. There are, or instance, many kinds of red which
differ in character from pure red. We have blood red, dull red, bright red, or dark red. Every
color that we see may be described in terms of its physical properties---hue, value, and intensity.

Hue
Hue is the quality which gives a color its name. The colors of the spectrum are therefore
called hues.
Value
Adding neutral, such as black or white to any hue (e.g. blue or red) result in changing the
quantity of light it reflects. A color combined with black will reflect less light than the same
color combined with white. When black is combined with a color, a shade is produced; when
white is added to it, a tint results. Black added to red results in dark red; when white is added, we
get light red. The lightness or darkness of a color is called value.

Intensity or saturation
Intensity is the strength of the color’s hue. It refes to the quality of light in a color. Red,
for instane may be seen as bright red if oly red rays of light are reflected. But if any of the
complementary green rays were reflected in it the effect will be a duller color. If green and red
were balanced, the resultnt color will be a neutral gray.

Many colors maybe formed by mixing two or more colors. There are, however, three
colors which we cannot form from mixtures because they are in a sense, pure colors. These are
red, blue and yellow. These colors are called primaries. Framed in a triangular pattern they are
called the color triad. When these colors are mixed in pairs they can produce all other colors that
we know of. A mixture of all these results in gray.

Principles of Design

Design is the overall visual structure of a work of art. It is a means by which the artist
makes comprehensible the ideas he wishes to express and communicate. Churches for example,
are so built as to inspire us to religious thoughts and feelings while houses promise privacy and
peace.

Design makes our environment more readily comprehensible. Architects give order to
space through their design of buildings, giving consideration to the buildings’ interior and
exterior partitions doors and windows.

The design of an object makes it what it is at the same time that it is made interesting and
stimulating. A vase can give us aesthetic pleasure through its shape and color; a piece of
sculpture can give a new, vitalizing experience in space, form and texture. The precise
organization of colors in a painting can brighten up a room and lift our spirit to great heights.

Harmony
 Harmony is one of the most important principles of design. In the visual arts, it refers to
the adaptation of the visual elements to each other, the agreement between the parts of a
composition which result in unity. It is achieved by the repetition of characteristics which are
similar in nature, such as shape, size and color.

To take an example, a girl’s appearance will not please us at all if she combines a bright
violet, silk blouse with a red and orange plaid denim skirt. She will look attractive if her dress
color do not clash. Similarly, a room will be very inviting and will give us a feeling of peace and
quiet if the colors of the walls and draperies echo one another in value intensity and hue.

Variety

Variation in nature is infinite. The varying colors of flowers, the variations of greens and
grasses and leaves, or the contrast of the dry and rainy seasons prevent utter uniformity and
monotomy in the environment of man.

Harmony may be achieved through repitition. However, too much repitition esily results
in monotomy, hence, the principle of variety is needed to prevent this.

The use of a quality or an element which contrasts with or is slightly different from those
that surround it prevents sameness. If a shape is repeated, variety in size can prevent uniformity.
To make differences dramatic, a contrasting quality may be introduced. If bright colors (red,
yellow and orange for instance) are used, a cool, dark color (blue, green or blace) can provide a
refreshing change.

A janitor can contrast a very smooth, shiny surface with a very rough and jagged one; an
architect may interrupt the repeated squares of a series of windows with rectangular doors to
balconies; a pathway of smooth white stones and smooth dark green lawn around a building
make an intersting contrast.

A room with cool, dark colors is peaceful, but unless it is brightened by a few bright
pieces - ash trays or vases – it may become a dull and uninteresting place.

Rhythm

Rhythmical patterns exists in nature. There is rhythm in the tide created by the
alternating ebb and flow, just as there is rhythm in man’s heartbeat.

In the visual arts, rhythm is a continuance, a flow or a feeling of movement achieved by

the repitition of regular visual units. It exists in many ways. It may be simple that is only one
type of motif is repeated, or it may be composite, when two or more recurring motifs exists
simultaneously. It may even be a complex variation at times.

Proportion

Proportion deals with the ratio of one part to another and of the parts to the whole. Ratio
implies a comparison between parts. It is expressed in size, number and position. When we look
at an object we see its size as a whole, the sizes of the different parts that compromise it and the
relationships of these parts to one another. The space surrounding the object also assumes an
important relation to the object.

We find pleasure in looking at a well-proportioned shape or figure just as we find

pleasure in rooms in which the size and number of furnitures pieces are proportionate to the
length width and height of the room.

A low ceiling gives us the feeling that we cannot move about freely and that we are in
danger of being buried under a heavy weight. On the other hand, a high ceiling like that of a
church, gives us a sense of freedom because it seems we have plenty of room in which to move
about.

In sculpture, the relation of one part to another and the relation of the whole to its
surroundings are important. Th U.P. Oblation loses it magnificence by its location in front of a
large building that dwarfs it. Conversely the Gomburza Monument at Plaza Roma seems too
large for the space that surrounds it.

Emphasis and Subortdination

Closely related to proportion are emphasis and subordination. The yare the principles
that concern the giving of proper importance to parts and to the whole. They are also basic to
life’s activities. Everyday we make choices what to do for the day and what to postpone for
another, what to value and what to discard. Emphasis and subordination involve the differentiate
between themore important and the less important.

In a room where the walls, curtains, floors, and furniture carry the same geometric pattern
and color, we would feel a irritating monotony. On the other hand, if each of these would
compete for attention because of a uniqueness in design and color, the room would appear
chaotic. We can bring order into the room by choosing on part or spot to be the focul of
attention, allowing it to stand out in importance through its position, color or design, and making
the other features of the room subordinate to it.
 There a various ways of showing emphasis in a the painting. The artist may depict the
object as a single unit. An element may stand by itself. The artist may make use of size. When
more than one object is depicted, the larger ones may have more importance than the other. Also,
the important object may be made to appear closer to us than the less important elements.
Photographic techniques may be utilized as in the use of aerial perspective as well as linear
perspective. And emphasis may also be achieved through the use of colors. As mentioned earlier,
warm colors tend to advance and attract our attention while cool colors tend to recede.

Balance

Unity in a work of art is dependent upon the balance between harmony and variety as
well as balance in the sizes and shapes in the work of art.

Balance is a feeling of equality in weight, attention, or attraction of the various elements.

In its simplest expression, balance suggests the gravitational equilibrium of a single unit in space
or a pair of objects arranged with respect to an axis of a fulcrum. There are two kinds of balance
– formal or symmetrical and occult or assymetrical.

Symmetrical Balance

The most obvious type of balance is symmetrical or formal balance. It is achieved by the
use of identical compositional units on either side of a imaginary vertical axis within the
pictorial space, or when one hald of a work mirrors the image of the other half.

Assymetrical or Occult Balance

Some artists resort to some kin of felt balance. This is more exciting than normal
balance. It is obtained when the visual unit on either side of the axis are not identical but are
placed in positions so equated as to produce a felt equilibrium. For instance, small area of color
may be calanced by a large empty space.

MUSIC
 Music is composed of tones and silences organized in such a manner as to convey the
emotions and ides conceived by the composer. The composer’s materials set limitations upon
his skill or craftsmanship and on his imagination and artistry.

A painting, piece of sculpture or a building exists in space. That is, each of them
occupies a definite space and remains static and unchanging while people look at them and
examine them from different points of view.

The definition of music appreciation as the acquired ability to listen to music intelligently
implies two important facts: that the ability to appreciate music is not inborn and tht it may be
acquired by anyone who makes up is mind to do so. A third fact which the definition implies is
that the conscious effort, intellectual activity, is also involved in the appreciation of music.

Sound

In music, what confronts the audience is tones. This is its physical property – the thing
which is encountered by our senses. Logically then we can begin to understand and appreciate
music by trying to understand the material which the composer deals with: sound

All sound is produced by vibrations. When the vibrations are regular, tones or musical
sounds are produced. When the vibrations are irregular, noise results. Slamming a door or
clapping the hands sets up irregular vibrations, so tht these result in noise. On the other hand, the
vibrations set forth by strumming guitar strings or blowing through a flute are regular. Thus,
they produce tones.

Sound in general – both tones and noise – has four qualities: timber, pitch, intensity and
duration. Tones, and any sound for that matter, will always have these four qualities. Our
description of the sounds we hear are attributable to any or all of these qualities. When we say
for instance we heard a loud bang, we are referring to intensity: when we say that someone has a
nasal voice, we are talking about the timber of hils voice.

Timbre

Timbre, tone color or tone quality refers to the quality which enables us to distinguish
one sound from another, an instrument from another, a friends voice or singers voice from that of
another. We can tell for instance, the sound of a basketball bouncing on a concrete court from
the sound made by a can hitting the same concrete court. It is possible to distinguish the voice of
a man from that of a woman.

Pitch
 Pitch refers to the relative highness of lowness of a tone. It isthe result of the frequency
of vibrations: the faster the vibrations the higher the pitch. Some vibrations can be too slow or
too fast for hte human ear to perceive. There is a dog whistle for example which when blown
will be heard bydogs but not by humans, because the vibrations itsets forth are too fast to be
perceived by the human ear.

Duration

The third quality of sound is duration. This refers to the length of time which a sound
occupies how long a sound is heard.

Intensity

Intensity refers to the loudness or softness of a sound. This quality results from pressure
or force which is used to cause the vibrations that produce a sound.

You don't need to be a musician in order to understand the basic elements of music. Anyone who
appreciates music will benefit from learning how to identify music's building blocks. Music may
be soft or loud, slow or fast, and regular or irregular in tempo—all of these are evidence of a
performer interpreting a composition's elements or parameters.

It's worth pointing out that the leading musical theorists differ on how many elements of music
there are.

Some say as few as four or five, others as many as nine or 10, and a number of experts also allow
for intangible characteristics as well.

BEAT AND METER

Rhythm is the element of "TIME" in music. When you tap your foot to the music, you
are "keeping the beat" or following the structural rhythmic pulse of the music.A beat is what
gives music its rhythmic pattern; it can be regular or irregular. Beats are grouped together in a
measure; the notes and rests correspond to a certain number of beats. Meter refers to rhythmic
patterns produced by grouping together strong and weak beats. A meter may be in duple (two
beats in a measure), triple (three beats in a measure), quadruple (four beats in a measure) and so
on.
DYNAMICS
Dynamics refers to the volume of a performance. In written compositions, dynamics are
indicated by abbreviations or symbols that signify the intensity at which a note or passage should
be played or sung. They can be used like punctuation in a sentence to indicate precise moments
of emphasis. Dynamics are derived from Italian. Read a score and you'll see words like
pianissimo used to indicate a very soft passage and fortissimo to indicate a very loud section, for
instance.

HARMONY
Harmony is what you hear when two or more notes or chords are played at the same time. It
supports the melody and gives it texture. Harmonic chords may be described as major, minor,
augmented or diminished, depending on the notes being played together. In a barbershop quartet,
for example, one person will sing the melody.

The harmony is provided by three others—a tenor, a bass, and a baritone, all singing
complimentary note combinations— in perfect pitch with one another.

MELODY
Melody is the overarching tune created by playing a succession or series of notes, and it is
affected by pitch and rhythm. A composition may have a single melody that runs through once,
or there may be multiple melodies arranged in a verse-chorus form, as you'd find in rock 'n' roll.
In classical music, the melody is usually repeated as a recurring musical theme that varies as the
composition progresses.

PITCH
The pitch of a sound is based on the frequency of vibration and the size of the vibrating object.
The slower the vibration and the bigger the vibrating object, the lower the pitch; the faster the
vibration and the smaller the vibrating object, the higher the pitch. For example, the pitch of a
double bass is lower than that of the violin because the double bass has longer strings. Pitch may
be definite, which is to say easily identifiable (the piano, with a key for each note, is a good
example), or indefinite, meaning pitch is difficult to discern (percussion, such as the cymbals).

RHYTHM
This may be defined as the pattern or placement of sounds in time and beats in music.
Roger Kamien in his book "Music: An Appreciation" defines rhythm as "the particular
arrangement of note lengths in a piece of music." Rhythm is shaped by meter; it has certain
elements such as beat and tempo.
TEMPO
Tempo refers to the speed at which a piece of music is played. In compositions, a work's tempo
is indicated by an Italian word at the beginning of a score. Largo describes a very slow, languid
pace (think of a placid lake), while moderato indicates a moderate pace and "presto" a very fast
one. Tempo can also be used to indicate emphasis. Ritenuto, for instance, tells the musicians to
slow down suddenly.

TEXTURE
Musical texture refers to the number and type of layers used in a composition and how these
layers are related. A texture may be monophonic (single melodic line), polyphonic (two or more
melodic lines) and homophonic (the main melody accompanied by chords).

TIMBRE
Also known as tone color, timbre refers to the quality of sound that distinguishes one voice or
instrument from another. It may range from dull to lush and from dark to bright, depending on
technique. For example, a clarinet playing an uptempo melody in the mid to upper register could
be described as having a bright timbre. That same instrument slowly playing a monotone in its
lowest register could be described as having a dull timbre.

PERFORMING ARTS

Performing arts are a form of art in which artists use their voices or bodies, often in
relation to other objects, to convey artistic expression. It is different from visual arts, which is
when artists use paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects.
Performing arts include several disciplines, each performed in front of a live audience.

Theatre, music, dance, and other kinds of performances are present in all human cultures.
The history of music and dance date to pre-historic times. More refined versions, such as ballet,
opera, and Kabuki, are performed professionally.

Live performances before an audience are a form of entertainment. The development of

audio and video recording has allowed for private consumption of the performing arts.

The performing arts can help explain our emotions, expressions, and feelings.

Performers
Artists who participate in performing arts in front of an audience are called performers.
Examples of these include actors, comedians, dancers, magicians, circus artists, musicians, and
singers. Performing arts are also supported by workers in related fields, such as songwriting,
choreography and stagecraft.

A performer who excels in acting, singing, and dancing is commonly referred to as a triple
threat.[2] Well-known examples of historical triple threat artists include Gene Kelly, Fred
Astaire, and Judy Garland.

Performers often adapt their appearance, such as with costumes and stage makeup, stage lighting,
and sound.

Types
Performing arts may include
1. dance
2. music
3. opera
4. theatre and musical theatre
5. magic
6. illusion
7. mime
8. spoken word
9. puppetry
10. circus arts
11. performance art
12. recitation
13. public speaking

There is also a specialized form of fine art, in which the artists perform their work live to an
audience. This is called performance art. Most performance art also involves some form of
plastic art, perhaps in the creation of props. Dance was often referred to as a plastic art during the
Modern dance era.

Theatre
Theatre is the branch of performing arts; concerned with acting out stories in front of an
audience, using a combination of speech, gesture, music, dance, sound and spectacle. Any one or
more of these elements is performing arts. In addition to the standard narrative dialogue style of
plays. Theatre takes such forms as plays, musicals, opera, ballet, illusion, mime, classical Indian
dance, kabuki, mummers' plays, improvisational theatre, stand-up comedy, pantomime, and non-
conventional or contemporary forms like postmodern theatre, postdramatic theatre, or
performance art .
Dance

A ballerina en pointe.
In the context of performing arts, dance generally refers to human movement, typically rhythmic
and to music, used as a form of audience entertainment in a performance setting. Definitions of
what constitutes dance are dependent on social, cultural, aesthetic artistic and moral constraints
and range from functional movement (such as folk dance) to codified, virtuoso techniques such
as ballet.

There is one another modern form of dance that emerged in 19th- 20th century with the name of
Free-Dance style. This form of dance was structured to create a harmonious personality which
included features such as physical and spiritual freedom. Isadora Duncan was the first female
dancer who argued about “woman of future” and developed novel vector of choreography using
Nietzsche’s idea of “supreme mind in free mind”.

Dance is a powerful impulse, but the art of dance is that impulse channeled by skillful
performers into something that becomes intensely expressive and that may delight spectators
who feel no wish to dance themselves. These two concepts of the art of dance—dance as a
powerful impulse and dance as a skillfully choreographed art practiced largely by a professional
few—are the two most important connecting ideas running through any consideration of the
subject. In dance, the connection between the two concepts is stronger than in some other arts,
and neither can exist without the other.

Choreography is the art of making dances, and the person who practices this art is called a
choreographer.