Elements of Style

When you visit a museum, you’re not usually allowed to touch the art. So when you look at a painting, how can you tell what the subject would feel like if you were to touch it? Artists use an element of art called ∫ to show surface quality. For example, texture can make a dog’s fur look like it feels fluffy or it can show that the spikes on a cactus are prickly.

Similarly, artists work with a principle of design called pattern to add detail and interest to their work. A pattern is a series of repeated shapes or visual ideas. Sometimes artists use one bold, dramatic pattern to make a statement. And other times, multiple patterns dance across the canvas, moving your eye where the artist wants it to go.

For many artists, texture and pattern— especially when used together—provide a way to bring an artwork to life or give it a personal flair, illustrating how they see the world around them and how they want us to see it.

When you visit a museum, you’re not usually allowed to touch the art. So how can you tell what things in a painting might feel like? Artists use texture to show you.

Artists also work with pattern. A pattern is a series of repeated shapes or visual ideas. Sometimes artists use one dramatic pattern to make a statement. Sometimes many patterns dance across the canvas. They help move your eye where the artist wants it to go. Artists often use texture and pattern together. These elements bring their artworks to life and show us how they see the world.

Patterns are important in Turkish artworks, like the 1880 example above by Osman Hamdi Bey called Young Woman Reading. In this artistic tradition, geometric shapes often symbolize balance and calmness. This image is dense with information, but the patterns create a sense of order, organizing the surfaces within the scene. For instance, the wall is composed with decorative hexagonal and triangular tiles. Bey juxtaposes this with simple square tiles on the floor.

Patterns are important in Turkish artworks. Geometric shapes like squares, triangles, or hexagons can represent balance. The 1880 painting above is by Osman Hamdi Bey. It’s called Young Woman Reading. The patterns in it organize the scene. The wall is composed of detailed hexagonal and triangular tiles. Bey juxtaposes this with simple square tiles on the floor. That means the artist places them side by side to achieve a certain effect.

In the 19th century, American artist James Peale made still life paintings of produce that are so realistic you can practically taste the veggies. In his 1820s Still Life: Balsam Apple and Vegetables, above, it’s easy to imagine what it would feel like to touch the smooth tomato skin, the bumps on the squash, and the rough ridges of the cabbage leaves. Peale achieves the implied texture—or the illusion of texture—on the flat canvas with highlights, shadows, and color.

James Peale was an American artist. He made still life paintings of fruits and vegetables. His 1820 Still Life: Balsam Apple and Vegetables is above. Can you imagine what the smooth tomato feels like? What about the bumpy squash? Peale uses highlights, shadows, and color to create implied texture, or the illusion of texture. The canvas is flat, but it doesn’t look that way.

In contrast, Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh used actual texture to create his 1890 landscape Wheatfield with Crows, above. If you were to run your hand across the painting’s surface, you would feel the ridges of paint that make up the wheat, the paths that run through it, the black birds, and the windy blue sky. Applying thick layers of paint with visible brushstrokes and minimal blending—in effect, sculpting the surface of a painting—is called impasto. Van Gogh is famous for using this technique. How does his use of impasto in this painting help convey the idea of a field of wheat?

In contrast, Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh added actual texture to his canvas to create his 1890 landscape Wheatfield with Crows, above. If you ran your hand across the painting, you would feel bumps and ridges. Van Gogh applied paint in thick layers, almost sculpting the painting’s surface. This technique is called impasto. Van Gogh is famous for it.

American artist Jocelyn Hobbie says her goal when painting a portrait is to create a “disjointed, harmonious thing, simultaneously.” She brings pattern and texture together to create a unified composition. In her 2022 Wild Zinnias, above, the flower petals create dense areas of texture that contrast with the smooth patterns on the jacket and shirt. Together, these techniques create a wild chaos around the calm focal point—the subject’s face. Would you describe this artwork as disjointed, harmonious, or both?

American artist Jocelyn Hobbie paints portraits. Her compositions can appear busy. But she brings them together using pattern and texture. Look at her 2022 Wild Zinnias, above. The flower petals create areas of texture. These contrast with the smooth patterns on the jacket and shirt. Together these techniques create a chaotic feeling. The subject’s face is the calm focal point.