Title: Introduction and learning outcomes
Course: EN_Overall composition

Vassily Kandinsky, 1923 - Composition 8, Öl auf Leinwand, 140 cm x 201 cm, Musée Guggenheim, New York, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository

Vasily Kandinsky himself counted "Composition 8" among his most successful works. He arranged geometric shapes with different colours on the canvas in such a way that he created a profound work of art that radiates calm and chaos at the same time. It can be seen today at the Guggenheim Museum in New York.

In art, the word composition refers to the organisation and arrangement of visual elements in a work of art. It is the process of combining elements to create a whole. The elements can be anything visual: Shapes, colours, lines, textures, etc. A good composition results in an appealing, natural or logical arrangement of the elements, which thus have a certain effect.

In graphic design, composition is also a particularly important factor when creating layouts for branding, marketing materials, website design or any other type of design composition that relies on the placement of elements to convey a message.

But how can this be learned?

The elements and principles of art and design are the glasses through which one learns to look at and understand works of art and products-on the one hand. They are the toolbox of an artist or designer.

The elements of art are the building blocks of a work: colour, line, shape, form, value, texture and space. Through the principles of design, the artist can create effects by arranging the elements in a certain way: Contrast, rhythm, proportion, balance, unity, emphasis, movement and variety.
Perception is trained and exercised by learning the laws of form, composition, techniques of representation and effects of form, combined with practical tasks.