Principle of Design Art Rhythm Pattern Repetition

1. Rhythm, Pattern and
Repetition
Definition
Characteristics
Plates and Creative Output

2. By Definition
Repetition refers to one object or
shape repeated;
Pattern is a combination of elements or
shapes repeated in a recurring and
regular arrangement;
Rhythm is a combination of elements
repeated, but with variations.

3. Visual interpretation of the
definition

4. As applied in a real work of
art…
Taizokai (Womb World) mandala,
Second half of ninth century. Hanging scroll, color on silk.
The center square represents the young stage of Vairocana Buddha.
source http://www.mandala.hr
This scroll includes all three of these
elements: repetition, rhythm, and
pattern.
Repetition is seen throughout the
mandala in the repetition of figures.
This is most evident in the center
and the area immediately
surrounding the center of the
mandala.
Pattern can be found in the areas
where there are repeated figures
that are different in size but follow a
regular, ordered arrangement in
their recurrence.
Rhythm can be seen in the two
outermost layers, especially the
second one from the edge, with a
black background.
Differing sizes of similar figures are
repeated, with variations in their
order and grouping.

5. Repetition
Repeated use of a shape, color, or other art
element or design in a work can help unify
different parts into a whole. The repetition might
be limited to only an instance or two: not enough
to create a pattern or rhythm, but enough to
cause a visual echo and reinforce or accent
certain aspects of the work.

6. Effect of Repetition in an art work
There appears to be two
boxes.
In the first box, there is
one colored circle.
The second box is
overflowing with
multicolored circles, so
many that they cannot all
be contained within the
box.
What words do you think of when
you look at the two different boxes?

7. Repetition as a
Minimalist
Donald Judd, untitled (1969/1982)
anodized aluminium each of 10 boxes 6 x 27 x 24
inches
Walker Art Center Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Edmond R.
Ruben, 1981
From the Walker Art Center
website: "One of the foremost practitioners
of Minimal Art, Donald Judd is best known
for his sleek, boxlike constructions made of
industrial materials such as aluminium,
plywood, sheet metal, and plexiglass.
Through these works, he sought to create a
depersonalized art in which the exploration
of space, scale, and materials served as an
end, rather than as a metaphor for human
experience. Emphatically concerned with
pure forms, Judd’s works become
statements about proportion and rhythm as
well as three-dimensional space. His
stacked boxes seem to come directly out of
the wall rather than projecting from a
backing surface. This creates the impression
that the artwork shares the observer’s space
instead of being set apart like a sculpture on
a pedestal".
If Judd's concern is with pure
forms, how does the repetition of a
single form --shape, dimensions,
spacing and color--affect your
respsonse? Does it strengthen Judd's
intent? Are you able to experience this
work as pure form only, or do you look

8. Repetition as an Intimidation
Ahu Tongariki on Easter Island. c 1250-1500 CE
Moai restored in the 1990's by a Japanese research team after a cyclone knocked them over in the 1960's.
Photo taken by Ian Sewell, July, 2006. source IanAndWendy.com Photo gallery from Easter Island
Moai are monolithic human figures situated on platforms called ahu
on Polynesian Easter Island. They were carved from rock and have overly
large heads. They represent the faces of deified ancestors.(aringa ora ata
tepuna).
Imagine encountering this row of 15 moai, overwhelming in size
and able to be seen from a far distance. The height of the moai is more than
twice the height of the average human. The largest one is 33 feet high.
Imagine seeing one lone moai on the coast, compared to a row of 15 of
them.

9. Repetition as an On-
Site Art Work
Christo und Jeanne-Claude
Umbrella Project (Japan) 1991
1,340 blue umbrellas in Ibaraki
Japan, and 1,760 yellow umbrellas
at the Tejon Ranch in southern
California
Photo taken by Dddeco 27
December 1991, image under the
GFDL
Another massive project by Christo
and Jeanne-Claude was the
installation of large scale blue and
yellow umbrella sculptures, 1,340
blue ones in Japan, and 1,760
yellow ones in the U.S.
Besides covering a large area
geographically in each site, the
sites also linked one country to
another. Imagine a field with one
large umbrella sculpture. Now
imagine more than a thousand of
them, in the same field. What is the
effect of repetition in this project?

10. Repetition as an Public
Monuments
Public Figures
Do-Ho Suh
2001, stone and bronze, 111.81 x 82.44 x 108.27
inches 284 x 209.4 x 275 cm Edition of 3, Lehmann
Maupin Gallery New York
For the lobby of City Hall, Do-Ho Suh
turns the traditional monument upside down
with his small-scale maquette for Public
Figures. Instead of a single figure perched on a
pedestal, Suh creates a pedestal supported by
myriad miniature anonymous male and female
figures, refocusing the viewer's attention from
the individual to the collective masses.
Challenging the established notion of the
common citizen revering a monument to an
important figure, Suh emphasizes the power of
the individual within public space.“
Do-Ho Suh uses repetition in much of
his work, as a profound statement about the
value of each individual within a larger group.
In this sculpture, each figure is different from
the others although they appear as a single
entity. As a group they carry the immense
weight of history and the actions of every
person, great or small.

11. Pattern
 Groups of elements or motifs* that
repeat in a predictable manner.
*Motifs can be thought of as units of
pattern. In visual arts, they are bounded
areas or volumes that contain designs or
any desired combination of art elements:
stamps, tiles, building blocks, modules,
etc.
Motifs can be copied and arranged in
multiple instances to create a desired
effect, such as repetition, rhythm and
pattern.

12. Symbolic uses of
Pattern
Detail of hand-woven Asante
(Ashante) ceremonial cloth featuring red and
yellow (primary colors), green (secondary color,
complementary to red), and black (neutral color
and the darkest tone available).
From Color interactions:
simultaneous contrast, Kente cloth on
webexhibits.org: "One of the most sumptuously
colored textiles used for clothing is Ghanaian
kente cloth, made by Asante and Ewe weavers
using specially designed looms. Kente was
probably introduced from the western Sudan
during the 16th century, when heavy, elaborate,
labor-intensive versions of this fabric were
designed for wealthy tribal chiefs and simpler
designs became available for the general
citizenry. Kente is woven in four-inch (9.5 cm)
narrow strips that are sewn together. A
characteristic Asante kente has geometric
shapes woven in bright colors along the entire
length of the strip, while Ewe kente often
displays a tweed effect by plying together
different colored threads in many of the warps.
Ewe kente may also incorporate pictorial
symbols...Colors convey mood, dark shades
being associated with grief and used for
mourning ceremonies, while lighter shades are
associated with happiness. The symbolic
significance of kente is located in the motifs
(the elephant signifies kingship, the scorpion
bitterness). The colors of the Ghanaian national
flag – red, yellow, green and black – are
popular in modern cloths."
Pattern is often used symbolically to
represent many things: people, beliefs,
the natural world, history,
tradition. Colors and shapes have
specific meanings, and are passed
down from generation to generation.
The predictability of pattern is important
in establishing a historical tradition and
cultural practice.

13. Pattern as
Decoration
Islamic spiritual art does
not allow the incorporation of
imagery, so pattern is used to
convey spiritual principles.
This is a detail of a wall from
the Alhambra in Spain, one of
many, each with complex
multi-layered patterns that
appear to mimic aspects of the
natural world.

14. Pattern as
Decoration
Victorian Philanthropist’s Parlour,
Yinka Shonibare
1996-1997.
From webexhibits: "Shonibare uses
a batik fabric that has African
characteristics. However, instead of
originating in Africa, the fabric was
invented in Indonesia, and the batik
printing technique was
industrialized by Dutch colonizers
in the mid-19th century. Soon after,
the British began to produce the
fabric in Manchester for West
African markets. Shonibare buys
his batik from the Brixton market in
London. Therefore, Shonibare
addresses the (mis)perceptions
and the questionable origins of art
that is interpreted as “African.” In
Shonibare’s work, the fabric comes
to symbolize the complex history of
Western colonialist exploitation in
African countries."

15. Rhythm
 Rhythm is like pattern, in that the same elements
(i.e.shape, line) are repeated; however, with rhythm
there are slight variations in the pattern.
 Rhythm is easily perceived but complex and subtle.
Think of water on a beach; it continually breaks
on the shore in lines that are repeated, yet each
one is different.
 . Rhythms can be broadly categorized as random,
regular, alternating, flowing, and progressive.

16. Kinds of
Rhythm
Random Rhythm
Groupings of
similar motifs or
elements that repeat
with no regularity
create a random
rhythm. Pebble
beaches, the fall of
snow, fields of clover,
herds of cattle, and
traffic jams all
demonstrate random
rhythms. What may
seem random at one
scale, however, may
exhibit purpose and
order at another scale.
Golconde,
René Magritte
oil on canvas,
81 x 100 cm
1953

17. Kinds of
Rhythm
Regular Rhythm
Like a heart or
song with a steady
beat, regular rhythm is
created by a series of
elements, often
identical or similar, that
are placed at regular
or similar intervals,
such as in grids.
Simple regular
rhythms, if overused,
can be monotonous.
Chuck Close - Self Portrait 2007
Screenprint, 2007, Screenprint in
187 colors, 74.5 x 57.8 in.

18. Kinds of
Rhythm
Alternating Rhythm
Two or more
different motifs may be
alternated, such as the
black and red squares in
a checkerboard; a single
motif might be flipped,
mirrored or rotated every
so many iterations; or the
placement or spacing
between motifs can be
alternated. This is
essentially a regular
rhythm that has more
complex motifs, or meta-
motifs. The added variety
can help lessen the
monotony of a regular
rhythm.
Jasper Johns - Three Flags, 1958,
encaustic on canvas, 30 7/8 × 45
1/2 × 5 in. The flag stripes have
alternating rhythm, but the stars
and flags themselves have regular
rhythm.

19. Kinds of
Rhythm
Flowing Rhythm
Flowing rhythm is
created by undulating
elements and intervals,
bending and curving
motifs and spaces. Natural
flowing rhythm can be
seen in streams and
waterways, beaches and
waves, sand dunes and
glaciers, rolling hills and
wind-blown grasses.
M.C. Escher - Lizard, 1942
Gloria Petyarre - Bush Medicine
Dreaming, 2008, acrylic on canvas, 152

20. Kinds of
Rhythm
Progressive Rhythm
In progressive
rhythm, each time a motif
repeats it changes a little,
transforming and
translating in a steady
sequence - the motif
progresses from one
thing to another.
Steven Hill - Melon Pitcher, 2010,
10.5 x 9 x 7.5 in.

21. Kinds of
Rhythm
Flowing Rhythm
A flowing rhythm
gives a sense of
movement, and is often
more organic in nature.
Marimekko - Pelimanni and Matkalla Maalle
Gustav Klimt - The Blood of Fish

22. PLATES for RHYTHM,
PATTERN & REPETITION (6 to
10)Plate 6: Chart of Rhythm
(brush, acrylic paint, HB pencil, ruler)
Plate 7: Geometric Shape and Form
(HB pencil, technical pen (3 points), ruler)
Plate 8: Organic Shapes and Form
(HB pencil, technical pen, acrylic paint, brush,
ruler)
Plate 9: Thumb Pattern (Regular Rhythm)
(Ruler, Acrylic Pen, Pencil)
Plate 10: Imprinting Leaves (Progressive
Rhythm)
(5 found leaves, acrylic paint)

23. Plate 6: Chart of Rhythm
 Portrait or Landscape
 Create your own chart of the 6
different Kinds of Rhythm.
 Paint, ink and label your work
accordingly

24. Plate 7: Geometric Shape and
Form
2.5 in height, 1in for Principle of Art, 10 in width
Repetition
Pattern
Rhythm

25. Plate 8: Organic Shapes and
Form
Repetition
Pattern
Rhythm

26. Plate 9: Thumb Pattern (Regular
Rhythm)
 Portrait style
 Divide into 5 columns
(measuring 1.5 in) by 11
rows (1 in)
 Color each formed
rectangle with different
colors.
 Paint your thumb with a
color of your choice and
press it on one of the
formed rectangles.

27. Plate 10: Imprinting Leaves
(Progressive Rhythm)
 Portrait or Landscape
 Look for a set of 5 leaves of nearly the
same shape but different varying sizes
around the school.
 Color the background anyway you
like.
 Color the leaves and imprint it on your
sketch pad and create a flow of
progressive rhythm.

28. Creative Output: Stencil
Making
Materials:
1/8 Illustration Board Cartolina
Cutter Brush Acrylic Paint
Cutter board
Pencil

29. Method:
 Create a design on the 1/8 Illustration board.
Leave a two inch margin on all sides of your
illustration board
 Be mindful on the parts of a stencil design (the
bridge, the island and the safety border)
 Using your cutter, draw out your design.
 Lay down your stencil on your cartolina and
using the dry on dry technique, brush your
acrylic paint on your stencil.
 Repeat the process until you fill up the entire
cartolina.
 Final Submission is on November 29, 2016.

30. Sources:
https://www.sophia.org/tutorials/design-
in-art-repetition-pattern-and-rhythm
http://flyeschool.com/content/repetition-
rhythm-and-pattern
http://www.writedesignonline.com/resou
rces/design/rules/rhythm-pattern.html