Line

• Vertical lines direct the eye up and down.Jupiterimages/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images
  
  A line in a work of art or design is a visible path made by a moving point, like the tip of a paint brush or pencil. Lines help to define shapes and figures, and can have a variety of expressive characteristics, depending upon how they are rendered. The thicker the line, the more aggressive and powerful it seems. If a composition is comprised of thin lines, it may appear delicate and quiet. Wavy lines suggest movement and energy, and the more irregular the wave, the louder the composition. Lines also tell the viewer how to read a composition. A vertical line will lead the eye up or down, while a horizontal line will direct the eye across the composition.
  
  

Shape

• Shapes are surrounded and enclosed by lines and are two-dimensional, having both height and width. They can be regular or irregular, and open or closed. Regular shapes are geometric forms, like circles, squares and triangles. Irregular, or "biomorphic," shapes are reminiscent of living, organic entities. Shapes are expressive. Open shapes convey movement and suggest continuation, while closed shapes denote rigidness.
  
  

Color

• The value and intensity of a color help determine its character.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Colors are expressive components of works of art and design. Artists use color to represent objects, but also to convey moods and emotions. Warm colors like red and yellow are sometimes used to convey energy and happiness, while cool colors like blue and green can imply calmness and tranquility. Value --- how light or dark a color is, and intensity --- how bright or dull a color is, help shape a color's character.
  
  

Texture

• Texture refers to an object's surface character and is realized through touch or sight. Works of art, whether two- or three-dimensional, are textural if the surfaces represented convey sensation. The texture of a marble sculpture is smooth, while a painted representation of marble can appear smooth if it is convincingly simulated. Artists use line, shape and color to suggest texture.