What I Need to Know The Visual Elements of Arts 1. Line is the foundation of all drawing. It is the first and most versatile of the visual elements of art. Line in an artwork can be used in many different ways. It can be used to suggest shape, pattern, form, structure, growth, depth, distance, rhythm, movement and a range of emotions. 2. Shape can be natural or man-made, regular or irregular, flat (2-dimensional) or solid (3-dimensional), representational or abstract, geometric or organic, transparent or 3. Color is the visual element that has the strongest effect on our emotions. We use color to create the mood or atmosphere of an artwork. - 4. Texture is the surface quality of an artwork the roughness or smoothness of the material from which it is made. 5. Form is the physical volume of a shape and the space that it occupies.Form can be representational or abstract.Form generally refers to sculpture, 3D design and architecture but may also relate to the illusion of 3D on a 2D surface. 6. Tone is the lightness or darkness of a color. The tonal values of an artwork can be adjusted to alter its expressive character.​