From Jacci Howard Bear,
Your Guide to Desktop Publishing.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!

Definition: All designs — paintings, photos, sculptures, drawings, buildings, business cards, brochures, logos — have certain basics elements or building blocks chosen to convey the message — beyond the actual words or photos or subject matter. These are the shapes, brushstrokes, colors, and materials that come together to form the whole. In print design some of the most commonly described elements of design are:

• lines
• shapes
• mass or size
• texture
• color
• form
• space
• value (lightness or darkness)

Also Known As: elements of graphic design | design elements

Examples: In the illustration on this page, the most readily identifiable elements of design that make up the layout are the colors of red and blue, the light and dark values of the color blue, the horizontal line, rectangular and other shapes, the mass or size of different shapes (large and small), and the rough texture of the paper.