In this glossary you will find the different terms used in the world of digital art and design
Abstract
noun
A term given to forms created by the artist that usually don't resemble the original object at all. Usually forms are simplified or rearranged to suit the needs of artistic expression.
Example: abstract concepts such as love or beauty
es: abstracto
Airbrush tool
noun
Tool available in most digital painting software. It attempts to imitate the actual airbrush tool (a tool that sprays various media, most often paint but also ink and dye). In digital art airbrush tool is mostly used for shading and creating smooth gradients.
Example: he cab was airbrushed with a mural of a sunset
es: aerógrafo
Animation
noun
Animation is used to create movement with digital imagery. Animators manipulate figures so they would appear as moving images.
Traditionally animation was created by drawing or painting images on transparent paper and then photographed and exhibited on film. Nowadays the technological advances allow for amazing computer-generated imagery (CGI). Both 3D and 2D computer animation is widely used in the creative fields, depending on the project and it's goal.
Example: animations as backdrops for live action
es: ANIMACION
Appropriation art
noun
Art in which the artist uses pre-existing images in their art, with very little alteration. The goal of this is so the viewer can recognize the original imagery, in hopes that it will evoke specific associations.
Example: Appropriation art raises questions of originality, authenticity and authorship, and belongs to the long modernist
Asymmetrical composition
A form of balance in artwork, when the components balance on either side of a vertical axis and are not identical, but are placed in positions within the picture plane to create a feeling of balance of the total form concept.
Example: Show students symmetrical and non-symmetrical balance and talk about how color, size, position, line, etc.
es: Composición asimétrica
Background
noun
In an image, area that appears furthest away from the viewer. Everything else is on top. In digital art usually referencing the background layers,(layers that are under the rest) as the rest of the layers contain other objects in the painting that are in front of the background.
Example: dark shadows in the background of the painting
es: Transfondo
Blending
noun
The merging of colors and / or values. There are few main methods that digital artists use to blend when rendering.
Example: the blending of drinkable yogurt with fruit juice
es: mezcla
Border
noun
The edge or frame of a painting or digital workspace (canvas).
Example: the northern border of their distribution area
es: frontera
CMYK
noun
Subtractive color model, based on the CMY color model, used in printing, and is also used to describe the printing process itself. CMYK refers to the four ink plates used in some color printing: cyan, magenta, yellow, and key (black).
The CMYK model works by partially or entirely masking colors on a lighter, usually white, background. The ink reduces the light that would otherwise be reflected. Such a model is called subtractive because inks "subtract" the colors red, green and blue from white light. White light minus red leaves cyan, white light minus green leaves magenta, and white light minus blue leaves yellow.
Example: the printing of the magazine has to be in cmyk
es: CMYK
Color
noun
Produced by light waves striking an object and reflecting back to the eyes. It's qualities include hue, intensity (purity and strength of the color), and value (darkness of color). The things we know as "colour names" like red, orange, etc are colour categories. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associated with objects through the wavelengths of the light that is reflected from them and their intensities. This reflection is governed by the object's physical properties such as light absorption, emission spectra, etc.
Example: the lights flickered and changed color
es: color
Composition
noun
Organization or arrangement of the visual elements in an attempt to develop a unity in the total work of art. There are different classic composition types, like rule of thirds, centre composition, symmetrical composition, frame within a frame, rule of odds, etc.
Example: Chopin's most romantic compositions
es: composición
Content
noun
The value of what's displayed in the artwork - sensory, psychological and emotional properties that the significance and aesthetic value conveys to the perceiver.
Example: the greater part of the century was a time of content
es: contenido
Contrast
noun
The difference between two things: light/dark, inside/outside, colors, warm/cool, curvy/angular, differing subject matter.
Example: the day began cold and blustery, in contrast to almost two weeks of uninterrupted sunshine
Design
noun
A plan or drawing produced to show the look and function or workings of a building, garment, or any other object before it is made. Organization or skilled arrangement of the elements of art into a unified composition or work of art.
Example: he has just unveiled his design for the new museum
es: diseño
Digital art
noun
Electronic artistic work or practice; images composed of bits and bytes of computer memory, created on a computer using software and in some cases hardware. Digital sources come from scans, photos, downloads, or drawing tablets. With software, images are manipulated and / or created, and then used either digitally, or there's physical copies made, depending on the purpose of the piece.
Example: digital art helps create new worlds
es: arte digital
Drawing
noun
Depiction of imagery achieved by means of lines. The basis of all pictorial representation.Where most artists begin.
Example: a series of charcoal drawings on white paper
es: dibujo
Filters
noun
Digitally, filters are layers that alter the look of an image.
Example: that filter will make my drawing look much better
es: filtros
Form
noun
Structure of something. Art elements are part of form & formal structure, also referring to 3D shapes.
Example: the form, color, and texture of the tree"
es: forma
Geometric
noun
Any shape or volume having more mathematic than organic design. Typically made of straight lines from geometry: circle, oval, triangle, rectangle, square, quadrilateral, polygon, sphere,cone, cylinder, tetrahedron, pyramid, cube, and other polyhedrons.
Example: traditional Hopi geometric forms
es: geometrico
Gradient
noun
In art - transition between colours and values.
Example: the gradient has very cute tones
es: degradado
Graphic design
noun
Art for commercial purposes like logos, letterheads, packaging, ads, posters, books,signs, web pages, and other publications. Arts for printing and online reproduction.
Example: graphic design has changed how we consume products
es: Diseño grafico
Harmony
noun
A principle of design uniting compatible components. A way of combining elements of art to emphasize similarities & blend the parts into a whole through repetition & simplicity.
Example: four-part harmony in the art style
es: armonía
Illustration
noun
A design, decoration, interpretation, visual explanation of a text, concept or a process, a story, created by an illustrator. Something that's providing an example in visual form.
Example: this accident is a graphic illustration of the disaster that's waiting to happen
es: ilustracion
Intensity
noun
Brightness or dullness of a hue or color.
Example: the intensity of the color is very saturated
es: intensidad
Invert
noun
Under Image Adjustments, changing an image to its color complement. Positive to negative. In some programs, flipping an image upside down / rotating it 180 degrees
Example: I inverted the shape to make the logo look better
es: invertir
Landscape
noun
Type of art piece that displays a view of scenery in nature. Seascape or city-scales are some of the examples of landscapes.
Example: a bleak urban landscape
es: paisaje
Layers
noun
Digital work areas that are stacked on one another. They can be individually manipulated through raster or vector functions in Photoshop. One can hide or move the layers to allow other layers to be revealed.
Example: my file has many layers
es: capas
Layout
nou
The arrangements of elements of art using the principles of design. Organizing or setting out images and/or text on a page. It is a plan
Example: the layout of your text has a good composition
es: Diseño
Manga
noun
Japanese comics / graphic novels that have a distinct style. In most cases they are black and white for various reasons, one of them being that the style has developed in a way that color can actually distract from the linework impact. While manga originates in Japan, lately the term has been blurred, as there's many mangakas (artists creating manga) that are not Japanese but are widely accepted.
Example: Akira Toriyama's manga are very entertaining
es: Manga
Manipulation
noun
Using hands-on or computer skills, changing or altering shapes, color, and other elements to make new imagery.
