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Jay Hambidge

The Elements of Dynamic Symmetry (Dover Art Instruction) Paperback – Illustrated, June 1, 1967

by Jay Hambidge (Author)

46 ratings

Part of: Dover Art Instruction (132 Books)

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Is design intuitive or is it consciously and methodically worked out? Are there basic rules governing design that, when learned, will facilitate the creative process? These questions have been asked by artists, art historians, and art critics throughout the ages.
Convinced that design was not purely instinctive, Jay Hambidge (1867–1924) spent much of his life searching for the technical bases of design. He found his answer in dynamic symmetry, one of the most provocative and stimulating theories in art history. Hambidge's study of Greek art convinced him that the secret of the beauty of Greek design was in the conscious use of dynamic symmetry — the law of natural design based upon the symmetry of growth in man and in plants. But Hambidge, who was not only a theoretician but also a practicing artist, did much more than analyze classical art and its principles of design: he worked out a series of root rectangles that the artist, using the simple mathematics supplied in this book, can easily follow and apply in his own work.
Originally published as a series of lessons in Hambidge's magazine, The Diagonal, this engrossing book explains all the basic principles of dynamic symmetry. Part I sets forth the fundamental rectangles with their simple divisions based on the proportioning law found in nature; Part II explains compound rectangles, many of which were taken from or suggested by analysis of objects of Greek art.
Whether read for its historical importance in art theory, for its illuminating insights into Greek art, or for its practical value to today's artists and commercial designers, The Elements of Dynamic Symmetry has much to offer anyone who is interested in the principle of design.

Print length

176 pages
Language:

English
Publisher

Dover Publications
Publication date

June 1, 1967
Dimensions

5.34 x 0.46 x 8.66 inches
ISBN-10

0486217760
ISBN-13

978-0486217765
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Is design intuitive or is it consciously and methodically worked out? Are there basic rules governing design that, when learned, will facilitate the creative process? These questions have been asked by artists, art historians, and art critics throughout the ages.
Convinced that design was not purely instinctive, Jay Hambidge (1867–1924) spent much of his life searching for the technical bases of design. He found his answer in dynamic symmetry, one of the most provocative and stimulating theories in art history. Hambidge's study of Greek art convinced him that the secret of the beauty of Greek design was in the conscious use of dynamic symmetry—the law of natural design based upon the symmetry of growth in man and in plants. But Hambidge, who was not only a theoretician but also a practicing artist, did much more than analyze classical art and its principles of design: he worked out a series of root rectangles that the artist, using the simple mathematics supplied in this book, can easily follow and apply in his own work.
Originally published as a series of lessons in Hambidge's magazine, The Diagonal, this engrossing book explains all the basic principles of dynamic symmetry. Part I sets forth the fundamental rectangles with their simple divisions based on the proportioning law found in nature; Part II explains compound rectangles, many of which were taken from or suggested by analysis of objects of Greek art.
Whether read for its historical importance in art theory, for its illuminating insights into Greek art, or for its practical value to today's artists and commercial designers, The Elements of Dynamic Symmetry has much to offer anyone who is interested in the principle of design.
Dover republication of the third (1948) edition.

Product details

Publisher : Dover Publications; Illustrated edition (June 1, 1967)
Language: : English
Paperback : 176 pages
ISBN-10 : 0486217760
ISBN-13 : 978-0486217765
Item Weight : 8.3 ounces
Dimensions : 5.34 x 0.46 x 8.66 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #327,542 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #35,603 in Arts & Photography (Books)

Customer Reviews:
46 ratings

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Lex

Save your money.

Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2017

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Do not buy this book unless you are good at math and geometry. The diagrams are unclear and the information is presented in the least helpful way possible.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

island shalah

Composition

Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2019

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Excellent book for all levels of artists. Best compositional study I've found. Brings new insight into how to create paintings with more interest for the viewer. Highly recommend. One that I'll be using often.

Helpful

The Preptorial Foundation, Inc.

Not Dynamic in Today's Sense but Visually Helpful

Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2013

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For the price, artists who want to study a slice of the elementary math behind projective geometry and their static creations could do a lot worse. The author (in 1919!) discovered that the Greeks used "dynamic" in Geometry to refer to ratio and proportion, which pleased him since he coined that term for his book before discovering this, but the actual translation of the word (Dunamaei) is closer to "power" -- as in X^2, bisecting the square, etc.

A LOT of this little book is about spirals, proportions and bisecting rectangles. Today, "dynamic" systems in math refer to differential equations and time series that DO mimic nature-- as in population curves, birth/death sims, etc. (technically, point variance with time). This is NOT the use in this book-- symmetry is actually pretty static in the sense used here. Of course there also are over 600 primary articles on Wiki starting with the word "dynamic" so much has changed since 1919! Back then, "dynamic" in art/math meant a type of mental "animation" where, for example, repeated symmetrical bisections could produce a "golden ratio" spiral, etc.

Nevertheless, I'm always pleased when Dover or any other publisher takes the risk of publishing ANY math that connects to visuals. And in fact, this one is easily comprehensible by an average High School audience. For example, it doesn't look at symmetry in today's terms at all (Group Theory), and actually doesn't even seem to realize that symmetry is the ability to rotate without changing the visual! For more advanced, but still inexpensive math on symmetry, try Chapter 7 in Stewart: Concepts of Modern Mathematics . It takes it many steps beyond bisecting rectangles, but still doesn't go beyond advanced High School math.

BTW, I'm only commenting about THIS book's perspective, NOT suggesting that artists and math don't go together. In fact, digital artists working with Maya and other 3D programs today often know as much math as an engineer, and in gaming, as much physics as a mathematician. This world is FAR different than the "great artists" of Stewart's day, who had to be concerned with ratios, but not (consciously) with beziers, fractals and splines! Bless today's young artists-- they are indeed in many cases a new breed of mathematician! If you're thinking of becoming one of them, this is a great place to start, as it's indeed quite basic, but is as much about the math (geometry) as the art.

In fact, the "old" field of projective geometry, used in navigation, astronomy, etc. for centuries, almost died out as a modern subject, along with quaternions etc., until fields like Quantum Physics and Game Programming (3D computer graphics) resurrected them!

Library Picks reviews only for the benefit of Amazon shoppers and has nothing to do with Amazon, the authors, manufacturers or publishers of the items we review. We always buy the items we review for the sake of objectivity, and although we search for gems, are not shy about trashing an item if it's a waste of time or money for Amazon shoppers. If the reviewer identifies herself, her job or her field, it is only as a point of reference to help you gauge the background and any biases.

19 people found this helpful

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J. Clark

Excellent Learning Text

Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2013

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The ideas discussed in this book have become paramount to how I approach graphic design. It is very mathy, so don't go into this as an artist and expect it will make any sense to you if you aren't comfortable with geometry, numbers, ratios, and the like.

6 people found this helpful

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bernie j.

Lots of great information for an advance student of design

Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2018

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Lots of great information for an advance student of design. I would not recommended it for a beginning design student

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Marcelo Rodriguez

Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2019

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No what I was expected. Very “mathematic” for my taste.

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Ken. B.

Made complicated

Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2020

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Poorly written. Seems like confusion was purpose

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Amazon Customer

Another way of thinking about composition for paintings.

Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2020

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concise explanations

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starlight

dynamic language

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 2, 2013

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As with reprints of older texts, this one is written with depth and academic clarity using the more widely understood technical terms of the day. it is not a fast track understanding of the subject, which is a refreshing change to read.

2 people found this helpful

PhotoGeek

Worthwhile Aid To Improving Your Photography or Art Composition

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 12, 2016

Verified Purchase

Hard work to get through, and quite mathematical, but thoroughly worthwhile in terms of thought provoking content to help you improve your composition.

Frank Tegtmeyer

Die Urquelle zur Dynamischen Symmetrie

Reviewed in Germany on November 18, 2016

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Das Grundlagenwerk zur Dynamischen Symmetrie. Viel mehr ist dazu nicht zu sagen.
Ein Punkt Abzug, weil der Autor überall mit konkreten Zahlen rechnet anstatt mit Formeln, allerdings kann man ihm das verzeihen, da er kein Mathematiker ist.

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Cornu

Un livre qui a gardé de l'intéret

Reviewed in France on May 22, 2013

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Cet ouvrage qui est relativement ancien garde l'intérêt de la singularité sur une partie du texte. Ce livre est destiné à compléter une information, plus qu'à la construire.

One person found this helpful

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rachelle aaronson

space and Shape

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 22, 2014

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The concept has helped with my thought process for my future fine art masters;the book is challenging bordering on the intellectual

One person found this helpful

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