Perspective, the illusion of deep space, is often created with the use of lines. Light and dark can suggest highlight or reflection on one side of an object - shadow on the other. Warm colors may be used to make an object seem nearer, or cool ones to make it seem farther away. Combining the elements of painting is called composition. One mode of composition is representation.
Representation is when a painting looks somewhat like an object or a scene.
Another mode is design - the buildup of repeating and varying line and spots of color arranged in a decorative manner. Abstract painting is when color and line are arranged in an interesting way. Abstract expressionism expresses emotion with line and color. If you have comments or questions on this article or any other feature of the ArtCafe. Net ArtCenter Pages, visit the Artists' Community ArtBoards .