Stylization in art is the process of giving a creative work the features of a different style. In the visual arts, using this technique, objects or figures acquire simplified forms. It is also used in music and literature. Stylization makes the object of art understandable and is now widely used also in interior design.
What it is
First, let's figure out what a style is. This word is translated from Greek as "stick for writing." Over time, it acquired a different meaning associated with the individual ideological and artistic features of a creative person.
In a broad sense, this concept is associated with various trends in art, with culture of different times. Stylization is a kind of imitation, decoration. For example, in literature you can change a poem to folklore. Comedians and parodists are able to perform in the manner of a parodied person. Use his facial expressions, speech. In
art, design and photography, this method is also widely used. For example, the creation of antique paintings, the use of fonts in a certain manner. The stylization of flowers to include them in the ornament is also a change in their appearance for the culture of a particular country. For example, the image of blue flowers in the manner of writing "gzhel".
Types of styling
This technique is of two types:
- external surface styling;
- decorative.
The first view is based on imitation of ready-made samples, imitation of the manner of any author, genre, movement. An example is the creation of modern motifs with Khokhloma painting.
The second type implies the obligatory connection of the elements of the created work with the spatial environment. Here, decorative forms prevail over the realistic transmission of images and reality. The stylization of the form can be so crowded with unrealistic details that it turns into an abstract. It, in turn, is divided into such types: having a natural pattern and fictional.
What features gives stylization
The best stylists are called children. They are able to simplify any complex drawing. They easily draw a person with the help of “sticks” and “cucumber”.
Excessive details are removed in the chart using this method, revealing only the essence of form and character.
Stylization is a decoration process that can be used on a pre-prepared sketch of an object, or can be drawn immediately in a specific manner. At the same time, a work in which its techniques are used will acquire the following features:
- generality;
- geometricity;
- symbolism;
- eccentricity;
- colorfulness;
- sensuality;
- simplicity of form.
This method is used by designers to create concise logos.
Where to begin
The main goal of stylization is the transformation of a realistic transformation into an expressive and emotional object. This happens by reflecting the essence. To display such an object, you need to concentrate on the most important thing in it. Also, the artist must analyze the nature of the creation of its form, remove all unnecessary details and not use the means of artistic expression. In this case, only a line and a spot are used. In order not to copy nature, artists should include associative thinking and extract from memory their impressions. Stylization is the path to decorative painting, avant-garde, abstractionism.
Beginners are encouraged to comprehend this art by writing the simplest transformed drawings of plants or animals. For example, a sunflower, a tree branch, a bunch of grapes, fish, a cat - such first sketches will help to understand this process. It is necessary to feel the form as much as possible, to understand what is most important in this plant or animal, which fundamentally distinguishes it from others. And with the help of spots, lines and strokes, you need to display this object. After displaying it, they give it shape and color. The final drawing should resemble only this plant or animal.
Application of the method to a human figure and portrait
Stylization of a person occurs using several methods. One of them is an increase in real human growth. Keeping its proportions, the artist changes the length of the limbs and the main parts. Fashion designers often use this method, sketching their new clothing designs.
When using the second method, the model can change the size of the waist and neck, lengthen the legs. At the same time, the basic proportions of the body are also preserved. This method can focus on the individual characteristics of a particular person.
A very good example of stylized images of a person is the work of artists who write cartoons and caricatures.
The person in the picture remains absolutely recognizable, although it may have disproportionate facial features. He may have an unusually large mouth or nose, and his eyes and eyelashes are enlarged. Professionals manage to convey the character so precisely and to catch the individual traits of the person being portrayed, that it is not difficult to determine with whom the portrait was painted.
Stylization of the human body shape is observed on ancient icons. On them people are depicted with elongated silhouettes. In animation and animation, they almost always use some kind of human styling technique.
Transformation of plants and flowers
Stylization of plants arose in the manufacture of various jewelry, the production of objects of the art industry. Images of plants and flowers imitate their artistic display used in the ornaments of various countries. Summarizing the form, the artists conveyed the general outlines of a flower or plant, its leaf. Stylization of colors, for example, is obtained using geometric shapes: a rectangle, triangle, circle, pentagon. Using various graphic means, artists convey the individual characteristics of a flower or even the whole plant. They can also be recognizable, but get a new decorative image. Such sketches are widely used in decorating dishes, household utensils, jewelry masters.
Ornament
A stylized ornament can be found in the cultures of Ancient Rome, Ancient Greece, Ancient Egypt and Persia.
It is necessary to start work with focusing on the perspective of the depicted object. It can be turns of elements in different directions, their image from above or from the side. When creating an ornament, floral styling is often used. The animals in the ornaments are portrayed rather arbitrarily. They are positioned so as not to violate the integrity of the entire silhouette and not complicate the overall impression of the composition. If the image has a three-dimensional shape, then it transforms into a flat one.
Each nation uses its own floral ornaments. According to them, archaeologists now determine the places where the found household items and household utensils appear.
Animal styling
Stylization is a process of decoration, which of ordinary animals, for example, can make bright, colorful and fairy-tale characters. Here again comes to the aid of fantasy, imagination and improvisation. Decorative stylization of animals has certain boundaries. If it is necessary to portray a fox, a wolf or a fish, then all these objects must be recognizable. Typically, stylization is used in animation, decoration of rooms, in the illustration of fairy tales.
Still life in stylization
In a still life, several objects are combined into one group. The artist focuses on the structure of objects, their ratio and surface. The color, line and texture of the surface are subject to a single design. In a stylized still life, it is necessary to single out one main object around which the remaining components are placed. Items simplify by transforming them into symbols and silhouettes. You can use the opposite technique, saturating the composition with decorative details. Stylization of plants in a still life occurs according to the same principles. Sharp corners give their shapes, add bright contrasts.
Landscape image
This genre of painting has the largest number of styles and trends. The landscape is depicted in the paintings of various famous artists of recent centuries. A stylized landscape can be seen in murals on the walls of buildings built in Ancient Russia. Later, this method was used in decorative art. The Japanese landscape is an excellent example of a stylized drawing in this genre. There is no aerial or linear perspective in such figures. All elements have the same clarity. In the stylization of the landscape, a change in the number of objects is allowed. The color scheme can be real or changed at the discretion of the artist.
Color rendering in stylization
Color is an important tool in this technique. A transformed image of any genre should create the necessary impression with the help of color and express the intention of the author. For decorative stylization, fuzzy color relationships are characteristic, the color is used locally and in contrast. He is able to strongly emphasize the desired effect. At the same time, even stylization of a person in colors unusual for him is allowed. This applies to all displayed objects.
Photo stylization
Very often, styling a photo into a picture is required. Artists fully embody the imitation of the desired style, adjusting and retouching the original image.
With modern computer technology, such changes are carried out using a digital photo. Programs are able to stylize an image for an art photo very quickly and inexpensively. At the same time, the customer can choose the best option from those proposed by the photo operator.
The stylization of a person in the photo includes the use of such artistic processing methods as retouching, alignment, adding sharpness, contrast, adding effects, using chiaroscuro to adjust, coloring and others. This applies to all photos, regardless of content.
You can stylize a photo with a drawing made in watercolor, oil or ink. You can process it by adding bright colors or transform it into a black and white version.
Very often, recently people have been ordering stylization for oil paintings. At the same time, using several photos, the master can transfer the customer to any corner of the Earth, to any temporary space and environment. The pictures are very realistic. Images print on canvas, watercolor, silk. You can choose any style of "writing" such a canvas.