Elements and Principles of Media Art

• The tools available to artists have increased and changed the ways we can create.  In light of this, we have to find new ways to describe artwork.
• Earlier in the course we learned about the elements and principles of art and design.  Now that we have had time to consider and use some of these new tools, we must address the elements and principles of Media Art.
• The elements and principles of media art are not replacing the old, instead they are adding to the existing elements and principles of art and design.
• Although these are still being debated by theorists, they are currently established as the following:

Elements of Media Art

• Light: Does the artwork include the use of light? (i.e. photography)
• Sound: Does the artwork include sound?
• Time: Does the artwork reveal itself over a period of time?
• Point of View: What angle do we see the subject at? ( High, low, etc)
• Performance: Is the act of creating part of the artwork?
• Framing: How does the subject fit in the frame? (close-up, medium, long shot)
• Narrative: Has story telling been used?
• Editing: Has the work been revised or rearranged?

Principles of Media Art

• Interactivity: An artwork is seen as interactive if you can affect it in some way, or explore it in multiple ways.
• Heterogeneity:  How an artwork can be made up of many distinct experiences and parts that are independent, yet when placed together bring deeper meaning.  An example might be an installation that includes recorded sounds, images, and performances.
• Hybridization: How an artwork can be made up of two or more artwork ideas, and rearranged to create a third artwork that is different from the “parent” artworks.
• Medium: The materials used to create the art piece determine the nature of the final work.
• Temporality: How the passage of time can change one’s interpretation of an artwork, or our ability to witness an artwork.

William Anderson (Schoolworkhelper Editorial Team)

William completed his Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts in 2013. He current serves as a lecturer, tutor and freelance writer. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, walking his dog and parasailing. Article last reviewed: 2022 | St. Rosemary Institution © 2010-2024 | Creative Commons 4.0

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